Billy Corgan calls Travis Barker the most influential drummer of the last 30 years

The Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan has called Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker probably the most influential drummer of the past three decades. He made the remark on an episode of his podcast The Magnificent Others released on 14 October, according to NME.

Corgan said Barker had influenced more popular drummers than anyone he could think of, arguing that power pop and rock drumming came straight from him and that almost everybody now plays like him. Barker, visibly moved, said the praise meant a lot. He described his style as a mix of everything he grew up on, naming Buddy Rich, The Meters, Mötley Crüe’s Tommy Lee, Dennis Chambers and Corgan’s own bandmate Jimmy Chamberlin. His biggest childhood influence, he added, was Animal from The Muppets.

The pair also discussed the 2008 plane crash that killed four people and left Barker with severe burns. He recalled that drumming was the first thing he did after leaving the burns centre, even though his doctor had doubted he would play again. His story is told in the documentary “Travis Barker: Louder Than Fear”, released in August. Barker returned to flying in 2021.

Blink-182 are working on a new album, following 2023’s “One More Time…”, and have announced European shows for 2027. Corgan recently completed UK and European dates celebrating the 1995 album “Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness” with a 60-piece orchestra.

An American musician born in 1967 in Elk Grove Village, Corgan launched the podcast in February 2025. In October mbuzz reported that he was among the more than 70 artists Consequence polled for its list of the 100 best bands of all time.