Harris has worked with several popular recording and live acts in the music industry. Hits "Meet Me Halfway" and "Imma Be" by Black Eyed Peas, "It's My Birthday" by Will.i.am, "American Boy" by Estelle, "Feel Good" by Robin Thicke, "Can't Stop Won't Stop" by Usher, and "Gang Bang" by Madonna, and "Be Okay" and "Let's Rock" by Chrisette Michele are among the songs Harris has contributed to.
Early lifeedit
Harris was born and raised in Chicago's South Side. He began his music career playing with the city's New Friendship Missionary Baptist Church gospel choir.[3]
Recalling to Modern Drummer Magazine how he started: "Harris survived being thrown to the lions thanks in part to how he got his start behind the kit – playing drums in his church’s band. “I come from a Gospel background,” he explains. “Having to learn songs fast is part of the everyday life of a church musician doing Gospel music. A lot of times we would do concerts where there was no sheet music and we had thirteen songs in different styles. So just being able to absorb music quickly and keep it locked in is how I’ve learned to approach music.”[4]
"At Chicago’s Curie performing arts high school, Harris picked up more important tools of the trade, building his sight-reading chops, honing the keyboard and bass skills he’d picked up in church, mastering concert percussion, and performing blazing drum solos with the advanced jazz band and stage bands. After high school, Harris attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, graduating with a degree in production and engineering. Armed with the skills and know-how to succeed on both sides of the music-making process, he relocated to New York to work as an engineer for Bad Boy Records hit maker Richard Younglord Frierson."[5]
DRUM! Magazine says of Harris: "the hottest drummer in hip-hop.. pocket provider."[7]
"Harris produced three tracks on the Peas' smash CD The E.N.D., including the Top Ten hit "Meet Me Halfway," which went Number One on the UK Singles Chart, and "Ring-A-Ling.""Imma Be" is the third single from the Peas record-breaking The E.N.D. to hit Number One. He worked on Fergie's 2006 solo smash The Dutchess.[8]
In 2007 Harris released the album entitled "The Band Behind The Front" with Bucky Jonson on the BBE label.[9]
Filmographyedit
Be Cool (2005)
Cast: Black Eyed Peas
La La Land (2016)
Cast: Cole
Discographyedit
Fergie – Double Dutchess
"Life Goes On" (producer)
Nicki Minaj – The Pinkprint
"Grand Piano" (writer & producer)
will.i.am – It's My Birthday
"It's My Birthday" (writer)
Goapele – Strong As Glass
"Strong As Glass", "Hey Boy", "My Love", "Powerful", "Truth Is" (producer)
Backstreet Boys – In a World Like This Tour 2013, Larger Than Life 2017-2019
Touringedit
2003 – present, drummer for The Black Eyed Peas and Fergie
Pressedit
Printedit
May 2010, In Tune Magazine, "The Write Stuff" feature
April 2010, Drumbead Magazine, "A Day in the Life”
February 2010, Music Connection Magazine clip of Keith Harris on stage marriage proposal
July 2009, Drum! Magazine, "Keith Harris, Soul in The Machine”
Vibe Magazine article on the Bucky Jonson forthcoming CD
September 2007, Drum! Magazine, Keith Harris article in the "Trial By Fire"
Modern Drummer Magazine, "Pocket Comes First”
2005 Festival International de Jazz de Montreal
2005 Rolling Stone, "Up in It”
2005 Apple Pro/Music "Turning Ideas into Songs”
2005 M-‐Audio "On The Road with the Black Eyed Peas Band”
Referencesedit
^EurPublisher (April 11, 2013). "Grammy-winning Producer Keith Harris Shares How Prayer, Practice and Patience Led Him to the Black Eyed Peas". eurweb.com. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^"Universal Music Publishing Group Signs GRAMMY-winning Keith Harris Co-writer/Co-producer of the No. 1 Single Black Eyed Peas 'Imma Be'". PRNewswire.com. March 2, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^"Black Eyed Peas Keith Harris on ABC7". ABC News. March 16, 2010. Archived from the original on December 2, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^"Keith Harris with The Black Eyed Peas". ModernDrummer.com. May 12, 2004. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^Styles, Stephen (December 17, 2010). "The Black Eyed Peas' Keith Harris". ModernDrummer.com. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^"ARTISTS/WRITERS Keith Harris BIOGRAPHY". Universal Music Publishing Group. March 2, 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^Lentz, Andrew (July 2009). "Keith Harris: Soul In The Machine". DRUMmagazine.com. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^"Black Eyed Peas Keith Harris on ABC7". ABC News. March 16, 2010. Archived from the original on December 2, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
^"The Band Behind The Front". bbemusic.com. Archived from the original on December 15, 2014. Retrieved November 30, 2014.