The well-known Amsterdam Tattoo King Henk Schiffmacher and the Rock Palace music store have produced and designed a very special and unique drumkit: a Tattoo Art Custom Drum Kit, designed for Chad Smith -drummer of the most popular rockband in the world: The Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Henk Schiffmacher and the Red Hot Chili Peppers
The friendship between the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Henk Schiffmacher dates from the late 80s. The then unknown band came to Amsterdam where Henk gladly introduced the band to the Amsterdam nightlife. Schiffmacher inked several tattoos on lead singer Anthony Kiedis, bass player Flea, guitar player John Frusicante and ofcourse drummer Chad Smith.

'Pimp my drums!'
In Autumn last year Chad Smith, Henk Schiffmacher and Cesar Zuiderwijk -drummer for the Dutch band The Golden Earring- were having dinner at the Amsterdam Amstel hotel. Chad Smith - who was already familiar with Schiffmacher's tribal and tattoo artwork asked him if he could design a drumkit for him. Chad shouted: "You need to PIMP MY DRUMS!" Henk Schiffmacher accepted the challenge immediately and asked Cesar Zuiderwijk where he could find an unfinished drumkit to base his artwork on.

Cesar Zuiderwijk -who has been a big name in the Dutch music scene for years and is a nationally and internationally acclaimed drummer - is closely connected to Rock Palace so he was able to order the basic kit from them. The Japanese manufacturer was able to honor the special request and supplied an unfinished drumkit and the first preparations were started....

A rhythmic masterpiece
All drum shells have been painted with classic tribal and tattoo art symbols and subjects. The drum kit is a compilation of well known artworks by Henk Schiffmacher. The different designs form a complete coherent set in their own unique way. Many images refer to Chad Smith's life, like a tattoo is often also a symbol for a certain event or special moment.

The drumkit has been designed to Chad Smith's exact technical requirements and specifications. The shells have been painted with a basic layer of varnish and then painted on by Henk Schiffmacher with a special acrylic marker. To protect the artwork three layers of glossy paint have been added and after that the drumkit was assembled by Rock Palace's specialists.

On world tour with the RHCP
Chad Smith will actually be using this drumkit during the next Red Hot Chili Peppers world tour. The unique tattoo drumkit will travel the world with the band. The artwork will get extra media attention throughout this time. Undoubtedly because it will be used extensively, the drumkit with Chad's life story on it will suffer many dents, scratches and other scars. The unique character of the drumkit will be enhanced by this and it will contribute to its value.

Orange Babies
When he accepted this challenge Schiffmacher had one condition: Chad Smith has to return this drumkit to him after using it for the Red Hot Chili Peppers world tour. The drumkit will then be auctioned off and all proceeds will be donated to Orange Babies; a foundation dedicated to helping pregnant African women who suffer from HIV and their babies. Primarily the money is collected to buy medication to ensure these mothers will have healthy babies. Orange Babies is very much aware of the vastness of the AIDS problem, but they don't think waiting around for something to happen is an option. Henk Schiffmacher is an official ambassador for Orange Babies.

Check all images here. Exclusively on RockPalace.com