Abe Rounds
Composer, Musician
At 34, Abe Rounds is a Grammy Award winning drummer, percussionist, multi instrumentalist, producer and composer based in Los Angeles. Originally from Sydney, Australia, and of Polynesian descent, he has spent the past 14 years building a distinguished career in the United States, earning two Grammy Awards and multiple nominations while establishing himself as a leading figure in contemporary music.
An alum of Berklee College of Music (2014), Rounds is recognized and respected across the global music landscape for his rhythmic innovation and artistic versatility. He has collaborated with many of the world’s most respected artists and producers, including Joni Mitchell, Peter Gabriel, Blake Mills, Pino Palladino, Rick Rubin, Mark Ronson, Brandi Carlile, Jon Batiste, Annie Lennox, Lizzo, Seal, and many others across a wide spectrum of genres.
Since 2014, he has been a core member of Meshell Ndegeocello’s band, a longstanding creative partnership. As co-producer, writer, and multi-instrumentalist, Rounds received back to back Grammy Awards for Best Alternative Jazz Album in 2023 and 2024 for “The Omnichord Real Book” and “No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin”, a project he and Ndegeocello had been developing and performing together since 2016. That same year, he performed with Joni Mitchell as part of her historic Joni Jam at the Hollywood Bowl.
In the studio, Rounds is a trusted collaborator for leading producers and artists. His work spans a wide range of projects, with contributions that extend beyond performance into arrangement, sound and overall sonic direction. His playing and production appear on numerous Grammy Award winning and Grammy nominated recordings.
As a composer, Abe has scored original music for film and television, including all seven seasons of Queen Sugar, created by Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey and all four seasons of Black Mafia Family, produced by 50 Cent. Additional credits include We The People, produced by Barack Obama and Michelle Obama. He has also performed the drums and percussion on many feature films including the Oscar winning Killers of the Flower Moon, directed by Martin Scorsese, working alongside Robbie Robertson.
Beyond his collaborative work, Abe released his debut solo album “The Confidence to Make Mistakes” in 2021 and is one half of the duo Jake and Abe.
A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Rounds’ work is informed by a deep sense of lineage and identity. Of Fijian, Tongan, Hungarian, and Iraqi heritage, he brings a global perspective to his work, spanning performance, production and composition across genres and disciplines.
Selected Credits
SERIES COMPOSITION
*Original Music By Abe Rounds alongside Meshell Ndegeocello
Doing Life (Upcoming)
Netflix
Director: Tyler Perry
Producers: Tyler Perry, Angi Bones, Will Areu
Starring: Naomi Baker, Jay Reeves, Tamberla Perry
Queen Sugar
OWN Network
Director: Ava DuVernay, Kat Candler, DeMane Davis
Producers: Ava DuVernay, Oprah Winfrey, Paul Garnes
Starring: Rutina Wesley, Kofi Siriboe, Dawn-Lyen Gardner
We The People
Netflix
Directors: Chris Nee, Kenya Barris, Latoya Raveneau
Producers: Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Kenya Barris
Starring: Janelle Monáe, Adam Lambert, H.E.R.
Black Mafia Family
Starz
Director: Tasha Smith, Solvan Naim
Producers: Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Randy Huggins, Terri Kopp
Starring: Demetrius “Lil Meech” Flenory Jr., Da’Vinchi, Russell Hornsby
Hair Tales
Hulu
Director: Michaela Angela Davis, Tina Mabry
Producers: Oprah Winfrey, Tracee Ellis Ross, Michaela Angela Davis
Starring: Issa Rae, Chloe Bailey, Willow Smith
Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madame CJ Walker
Netflix
Directors: Kasi Lemmons, DeMane Davis, Craig Brewer
Producers: Octavia Spencer, Christine Holder, Mark Holder
Starring: Octavia Spencer, Tiffany Haddish, Blair Underwood
The House on Coco Road
Netflix
Director: Damani Baker
Producers: Damani Baker, Colette Ghunim, Yoruba Richen
Starring: Angela Davis, Fania Davis, Fannie Haughton
All In: The Fight for Democracy
Amazon Prime Video
Directors: Lisa Cortés, Liz Garbus
Producers: Alicia Garza, Stacey Abrams, Liz Garbus
Starring: Stacey Abrams, Amandla Stenberg
South to Black Power
HBO Max
Director: Jackie Jesko, D. Watkins
Producers: Jackie Jesko, Perri Peltz, Matthew O’Neill
Starring: Charles M. Blow
Supreme Models
YouTube
Director: Marcellas Reynolds
Producers: Marcellas Reynolds, Jason Bolden, Kellie H. Rucker
Starring: Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Iman
DRUMS & PERCUSSION FOR FILM & TV
Doing Life (Upcoming)
Netflix
Director: Tyler Perry
Producers: Tyler Perry, Angi Bones, Will Areu
Starring: Naomi Baker, Jay Reeves, Tamberla Perry
Elio
Pixar
Directors: Adrian Molina, Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi
Producers: Mary Alice Drumm, Lindsey Collins
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoë Saldaña, Brad Garrett
Haunted Mansion
Disney
Director: Justin Simien
Producers: Dan Lin, Jonathan Eirich
Starring: LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Owen Wilson
The Color Purple
Warner Bros
Director: Blitz Bazawule
Producer: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Fantasia Barrino, Danielle Brooks, Taraji P. Henson
Killers of the Flower Moon
Paramount Pictures
Director: Martin Scorsese
Producers: Martin Scorsese, Dan Friedkin, Bradley Thomas
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone
Space Jam: A New Legacy
Warner Bros
Director: Malcolm D. Lee
Producers: Ryan Coogler, Maverick Carter, LeBron James
Starring: LeBron James, Don Cheadle, Zendaya
Daisy Jones & The Six
Amazon Prime Video
Directors: James Ponsoldt, Nzingha Stewart, Will Graham
Producers: Reese Witherspoon, Lauren Neustadter, Brad Mendelsohn
Starring: Riley Keough, Sam Claflin, Camila Morrone
Birds of Prey
DC Films
Director: Cathy Yan
Producers: Margot Robbie, Bryan Unkeless, Sue Kroll
Starring: Margot Robbie, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett
King Richard
Warner Bros
Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green
Producers: Will Smith, Tim White, Trevor White
Starring: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Saniyya Sidney
GRAMMY AWARD WINNING RECORDINGS
Meshell Ndegeocello “The Omnichord Real Book” Best Alternative Jazz Album Winner 2023
– Co Producer, Co writer, Drummer, Percussionist & Vocalist
Meshell Ndegeocello “No More Water: The Gospel Of James Baldwin” Best Alternative Jazz Album Winner 2024
– Co Producer, Co writer, Drummer, Percussionist & Vocalist
Jon Batiste “Big Money” Best Americana Album 2025
– Drummer, Percussionist & Vocalist
Pino Palladino Blake Mills “That Wasn’t a Dream” Best Engineered Album – Non Classical 2025
– Drummer & Percussionist
GRAMMY NOMINATED RECORDINGS
*As a drummer/percussionist, composer & producer, he has contributed to the following Grammy nominated Recordings
Meshell Ndegeocello “Ventriloquism” Best Urban Contemporary Album 2018
Madison Cunningham “Who Are you Now” Best Americana Album 2019
Andrew Bird “My Finest Work Yet” Best Folk Album 2019
Emily King “Special Occasion” Best R&B Album 2023
ALBUMS
The Confidence to Make Mistakes (Colorfield Records) 2021
Finally “Jake and Abe” 2024
LIVE PERFORMANCE VENUE HIGHLIGHTS (USA & Worldwide)
The Hollywood Bowl
Super Bowl 50 – Levi’s Stadium (2016)
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Lincoln Center
NYC Town Hall
LA Coliseum
SF Jazz Robert Miner Auditorium
Royal Elizabeth Hall (UK)
North Sea Jazz Festival
Newport Jazz Festival
Newport Folk Festival
Montreal Jazz Festival
Montreal Jazz Festival
Cape Town Jazz Festival
Rock in Rio
Vienna Concert Hall
BBC Radio 2
Sydney Opera House