Name: Isabelle De Leon
Age: 25
Band: Prinze George
Gear Set-Up:
I play a beautiful pearl white DW Collector’s Series with:
- 22″ bass drum
- 2 rack toms & 1 floor tom (10″, 12″, 16″)
- Ludwig Classic Maple Snare (6.5 x 14)
- Iron Cobra 900 Bass Pedal
- Zildjian New Beat Hi-Hat 14″
- Zildjian A-Custom Crash 15″
- Zildjian Avedis Medium Crash 16″
- Zildjian Medium Ride 22″
- Pearl Roadster Throne
- Roland SPD SX Pad
- Focusrite Scarlett Audio Interface for backing tracks
City you live in: Gaithersburg, Maryland
City you were born in: Rockville, Maryland
Isabelle De Leon started playing drums at the age of 7 after hearing the line “girls don’t play the drums” in the movie Selena, and has worked to defy that stereotype ever since. Coming from a musical family, she attributes her strong musical foundation to Classical piano lessons (since the age of 4) as well as private drum lessons, playing in church, and performing publicly with her family band growing up. She attended the University of Maryland in College Park as a Jazz Performance major with a pre-medicine track and Arts Scholar, and began professionally freelancing with many local artists.
For her drumming she’s been awarded the Washington Post Music & Dance Scholarship Award, the DIVA Jazz Orchestra’s Stanley Kay Scholarship, the Washington Women in Jazz Festival’s Young Artist Award, and was the featured drummer for the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Jazz Orchestra two years in a row. Currently, she is the drummer for up-and-coming electronic Pop group Prinze George, and all-female Rock band Ivy Rose. With her groups, she has toured internationally, performed at major festivals such as SXSW, Firefly and Panorama, and opened for renowned artists like Weezer, Ben Folds, Walk the Moon, and Albert Hammond Jr. When not playing, she is the marketing director at DC’s only drum-dedicated music school, 7 Drum City, where she also teaches as a sub teacher. An avid educator, she has also led many clinics at various schools and institutions, including at the Strathmore Performing Arts Center, where she was an Artist-in-Residence during the 2012-2013 season.
“Unstoppably riveting…with a startlingly personal sound…DeLeon was jaw-dropping. Keep your eye on her.” – Washington City Paper
- TT: Draw the members of your band (point you out)
- TT: What was your first instrument?// IDL: Piano
- TT: What is your favorite thing/s about tour?// IDL: Old Friends, New places/experiences, and everything in between
- TT: What is your favorite animal?// IDL: Lion
- TT: Where was your favorite place to go as a child?// IDL: Beach/all the Lighthouses
- TT: What is the first thing you do when you get up in the morning?// IDL: Coffee
