She has wowed Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin – meet drum prodigy Yoyoka Soma, 10
- Yoyoka Soma has appeared on the US talk show Ellen twice. During one of those appearances, Foo Fighters singer Dave Grohl gave her a message of appreciation
- Away from the spotlight, she treasures family time in Hokkaido, Japan, where she likes to create art and is learning to play golf during breaks from drumming
When former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant watched then eight-year-old Yoyoka Soma replicate the complicated drum fills on Good Times, Bad Times, from the group’s debut 1969 album, he said: “Well, I know where she can get a job.”
Plant’s praise for the 2018 video that’s been viewed nearly four million times spurred on the budding Japanese drummer. “I was very surprised, but honoured,” she said.
Now 10, she has spent countless hours emulating the thunderous drum fills by the late Zeppelin drummer John Bonham. He is, along with R&B pop drummer Chris Coleman and German jazz player Benny Greb, her favourite.
“John Bonham feels like me,” she said without elaborating.
She doesn’t need to. Yoyoka, as she is commonly known, lets her drumsticks do the talking. On the average two videos she posts every month, Yoyoka plays along with a wide range of musical acts, including Foo Fighters, The Police, Rush, Queen, Toto, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kiss, Bruno Mars and more. No genre is spared, as her sole goal is to improve.
