Justin Ritter’s interest in band started 5 years ago in sixth grade. He has always loved the early mornings and after school practices, his favorite part was learning a new piece to practice and make perfect. His true desire to go into percussion stemmed from his older sister, Riley.

“Growing up my older sister took percussion, and I always wanted to be like she was. So I tried to follow in her footsteps,” he said.

5 years later and Ritter has well surpassed his sister’s efforts.

Drums aren’t just Ritter’s passion; you could say it’s his life. He recalls the most monumental moment of his drumline career, 2 years ago.

“The first time I performed in front of the whole school, it was immensely terrifying because I was by far the worst person on the line freshman year, so I was really intimidated,” he said.

Since then his confidence has grown and so has his talent. His favorite part of being in drumline is hyping the crowd. He loves the attention and craves the hype.

“When you’re performing It’s a little bit surreal, cause you don’t necessarily think about what you’re doing, you just kinda like do it and then it’s over and you kinda like snap back to reality and have this moment of like ‘whoa that just happened’, it’s an incredible indescribable feeling,” he said.

One person who has inspired Ritter and kind of coached him in band was Luke Martin.

“One person I admire in drumline would be The Luke Martin. He’s just a real standup guy, he’s amazing at drums; a true prodigy,” he said.

Everyday Ritter excels in his abilities and doesn’t take anything for granted. He’s improved a lot and definitely owes it to all the amazing and supportive people in his life.

“Drumline wouldn’t be as fun if it weren’t for the crowd, GP is awesome and I’m proud to call it my home,” he said.

“One piece of advice I have for anyone who wants to play an instrument or join percussion specifically, just stick with it. It’s an honor to play and even if you’re not that good, you’ll learn with time. Dedicate time to it, learning to play an instrument won’t happen overnight, but it’s definitely worth it,” he said.