JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville teacher is turning heads online — one drumbeat at a time.
Greg Hersey, director of instrumental music at Episcopal School of Jacksonville, has gone viral for his percussive covers of popular songs, racking up millions of views and more than half a million followers on Instagram.
Recommended Videos
Hersey, a Florida native, has been a classroom teacher for nine years and an adjunct professor for three. But music has been part of his life far longer than that.
“My parents play, my dad was a drummer and still is,” Hersey said. “As early as I can remember, I’ve just been around drums my whole life. I have two younger brothers that both play. That’s how I met my wife, through high school band. Everything music, all the time.”
Going viral was never part of the plan, Hersey said — it just happened.
“I find a lot of joy in it,” he said. “It’s a lot of fun trying to figure out these different arrangements for these popular hip-hop songs, rock songs — some that people can find relatable and find joy in.”
His covers span genres, including a percussion rendition of OutKast’s “So Fresh and So Clean,” which he performed live for News4Jax anchor Jenese Harris during her visit to the school.
The response from fans around the world has at times caught Hersey off guard.
“Sometimes the reach is so far and wide it’s overwhelming,” he said. “I think my first taste of success with that was many years ago in the early days of Instagram.”
Beyond the views and followers, Hersey said his deeper goal is encouraging people to listen — and feel — more deeply.
“Just having a deeper level of appreciation for music and finding the joy in it of just being an active listener,” he said. “My hope and dream is to always inspire others to do the same, and I’ve seen that. People from all over the world are tagging me for their interpretation of what I’m doing, and I love to see that. It is so cool.”
And what’s Hersey’s favorite song — and the one that changed his life — it’s “Tom Sawyer” by Rush.