Rob "The Animal" Cross

Since the age of 6, Rob has had a deep passion and appreciation for music and rhythm.   Growing up, he would listen to records, always concentrating on the drummer.   

His first drum set was the living-room sofa in his family's house in Randolph, New Jersey, with barbeque skewers or a pair of chopsticks as drumsticks.    From there, he upgraded to a pair of old snare drums and cymbals handed down from his uncle and began to study how to read rhythmic notation.  

Once he hit middle school, he formed a rock band, got his first "real" drum set and joined the middle school band.   In high school, he further nurtured his passion by playing in almost every band that was available; jazz ensemble, percussion ensemble, orchestra, concert band, wind ensemble, marching band, and pit orchestra.  

After he finished high school, he went on to tour Europe with American Music Abroad, a program that allows a large group of talented, young musicians to show off their skills to the masses in 6 different countries.   

Rob went on to continue his education at Kutztown University in Pennsylvania to study music.   During his two years there, he played drum set and pit percussion for summer stock musical theater and was the full time drummer for Blatt's Dinner Theater in Kutztown, PA.  

Once the realization hit him that he was not happy at KU, he left and continued to play gigs throughout the Pennsylvania and New Jersey area until he found his true Alma Mater at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts.   While studying at Berklee, he played and gigged with several different bands (including The Rachel Black Band and Venus Bullet), played on countless recording sessions, and received a degree in Contemporary Writing and Production.   During his time at Berklee, he joined up with Black Betty and her Bad Habits and the rest is, as they say... history.