Nic Collins
Nic Collins picked up the sticks at the age of 3 and never looked back. Being the son of legendary drummer Phil Collins, Nic gravitated towards the instrument immediately. His first vivid memories come from his father’s “Final Farewell Tour” in 2004, where Nic was able to watch his dad play drums and sing every night, igniting his passion for music. Growing up in Switzerland, Nic played drums as often as he could. However, it wasn’t until he moved to Miami, FL, and began playing in different local bands where his passion for drums amplified. In addition to his father, Nic cites John Bonham, Danny Carey, Taylor Hawkins, Gavin Harrison, Stewart Copeland, Abe Cunningham, Chad Smith, and Jon Theodore as some of his main drumming influences. Nic began playing drums for his father’s solo band at the age of 14 for various charity events. Those charity events turned into more serious performances, such as the 2016 US Open opening ceremony, until he was finally asked to fill in full time in his father’s band for the “Not Dead Yet” world tour from 2017-2019. By the age of 18, Nic had already played at venues such as the Royal Albert Hall, Hyde Park, Madison Square Garden, and various other arenas and stadiums around the world. Shortly afterwards, Nic was announced as the drummer for Genesis’ first reunion in 14 years for “The Last Domino?” tour in 2021. Following that, Nic took up drumming duties for Mike & The Mechanics on their 2023 “Refuelled” Tour and, most recently, on their 2025 “Looking Back - Living the Years” tour. In addition to that, Nic is working on new material in his own band, Better Strangers, with longtime friends Yannick Waingarten and Joe Rodriguez. Nic is dead set on making a global impact as a drummer and songwriter and hopes to inspire the next generation of drummers along the way
@nic_collins

Sam Purcell
Our Wild Card Performer for 2026
Sam Purcell is the current drummer for Clada Music, an Irish band based in the west of Ireland. He has been studying drumming since the age of five and achieved his Grade 8 in Drums with Rockschool at just 14 years old, under the tutelage of Ken “Tonto” McDonald.
Sam has toured extensively throughout Europe and the United States with the Sligo Academy of Music Jazz Orchestra and Sinfonietta, gaining significant international performance experience from a young age.
He was a finalist in the Irish Young Drummer of the Year competition at the Galway Drum Show and was named Ireland’s Most Talented Young Drummer in 2020 by the Earagail Arts Festival.
Since joining Clada, Sam has continued to build an impressive touring résumé, including a two-month residency at Walt Disney World, Florida, as well as two Irish tours and two UK tours. In 2025, Clada also performed at the NFL game at Croke Park, marking a major milestone for the band.
Sam is an endorsed artist with Vater Drumsticks and plays the Vater Manhattan 7A.
@sampurcell_
@cladamusic
