Phil Duffy
My love for music and drumming in particular started at the age of five when I received a drum kit for xmas from my long suffering parents.
I would go on to spend the 80s playing along to my dad’s vinyl collection, which bred a hearty affection for classic rock and metal – Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Guns & Roses and AC/DC.
I spent the early 90s playing in a plethora of bands in Enniskillen before moving to London in 1995 with my first professional band, The Skinflints at the tender age of 17. Before I hit 20 I found myself touring extensively throughout Europe with Donegal blues guitarist Johnny Gallagher and the Boxtie Band.
In 1998 I joined popular Belfast outfit Watercress. With a legendary live reputation that took us across the globe, Watercress shared stages with everyone from Van Morrison to Glen Hansard and The Frames, as well as festival appearances at Roskilde and Glastonbury and tour dates with the Levellers and Duran Duran.
After joining Cashier No.9 in 2010 I was fortunate enough to travel to Los Angeles to work with the acclaimed DJ, Producer and Musician David Holmes in Laurel Canyon. After more tour dates with Noel Gallagher, Pulp, Snow Patrol, Paul Weller, Two Door Cinema Club and Primal Scream, we released our debut album To The Death of Fun on Bella Union Records.
Belfast Drum Academy
The idea of teaching first came to me while studying drumming in New York when I was based there in 2001.
After completing my grades I set up my first drum school in Enniskillen in 2006, then relocated to Belfast in 2009 where Belfast Drum Academy was born. Although we had various premises at the beginning we’ve been located at our current building on the Albertbridge rd in East Belfast since 2012.

