Jonathan Moffett

Jonathan Phillip Moffett (born November 17, 1954) is an American drummer, songwriter and record producer from New Orleans, Louisiana. Beginning in 1979, Moffett collaborated with the Jackson family, particularly Michael Jackson, over the course of 30 years. More recently, he has worked with other notable artists and producers such as Madonna, George Michael, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones and many others.

Moffett is the third of a musical family of siblings. His two other brothers played the guitar and the bass guitar, while Jonathan's father encouraged him to drum. His influences are Zigaboo, Buddy Rich, Louis Bellson, Billy Cobham, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Roger Taylor and other drummers, mostly originating from New Orleans.

He initially wanted to play the bass guitar long before drums. He was always acutely aware of the bass guitar parts in songs and mimicked them on the bass drum. Moffett was never musically trained and learned to play drums on his own by ear. He was nicknamed "Sugarfoot" for his quick, articulate, and pronounced bass drum work, which requires a lot of precision and stamina for a drummer. He plays 16th note, 32nd note, and 64th note figures energetically and fluidly within rhythms. Moffett started off his drumming career by performing locally with prominent bands within the region and at nightclubs as a young boy.

He came up with his kung-fu inspired signature moves during a marathon practice session late one evening—the "one-handed cymbal catch" and his "backlash-whiplash" cymbal crashes (single and/or double hand) where he places two cymbals behind him and crashes/chokes them without looking.

Moffett's professional career initially started with the Jacksons. In 1979, through serendipity, he came across the Jacksons' musical director, James McField, who told him they were auditioning for a new drummer. Though the final auditions were that day, they extended it for him, knowing how eager he was to play for the group. According to an article by Robyn Flans in Drummer Magazine in September 1984, Moffett said:

He [McField] called that night and the audition was set for the next day. I was familiar with their songs [the Jacksons'] because I had grown up with their music, yet I didn't know everything about the music...After we finished a few songs, they pulled me aside and said they'd let me know something soon. That evening, I got the call and they said they wanted me to join the group. It was just a miracle.

His first major tour was the Destiny Tour (1979–1980). After his first show with the group, Michael Jackson was in awe by Moffett's ability to keep up with his dancing, always accenting his dance moves, which gave his dancing more power and prominence. He also used his "one-handed cymbal catch" frequently, in which Moffett explained to Zildjian:

With the Jacksons, I'll use it to accent certain moments before the vocal chorus. OR when Michael makes a move and stops real quick, I'll accent that with a catch. You've got to do it fast and drop back into the rhythm without breaking time.