Originally from the suburbs outside of Philadelphia, PA, Alex Clayton has been playing music from a young age. He learned to play piano, drums, bass, and guitar in middle school from a combination of formal lessons and self-teaching followed by 4 years of high school drumline. Alex’s passion for music has always been rooted in rhythm which is why he feels most at home behind a drum kit. He studied Music Business at Belmont University and graduated with his BBA in 2016. He lived in Nashville, TN for almost ten years performing and recording with multiple artists/bands in Nashville and around the country. Additionally, Alex has & continues to produce his own music under the name, West End Ritos, as well as the debut 5-song EP from up and coming singer/songwriter, Austin Bennett, with much more to come. 

While in Nashville, Alex performed and recorded with the indie-pop band, Miki Fiki, garnering thousands of fans around the world and over 10 million collective streams on Spotify. 

Alex also co-wrote the track, Vinnie the Crow, with 3x Grammy-winning saxophonist, composer, and educator, Jeff Coffin (Dave Matthews Band, Bela Fleck & the Flecktones) from Jeff’s Grammy-nominated album, Between Dreaming and Joy. The track features music legends Michael League (Snarky Puppy), Nigel Hall (Lettuce), DJ Logic, Richard Aspinwall, Jordan Perlson & Chris Walters. 

Recent projects Alex has lent his drumming abilities to include Philly-based Folk-Rock & Soul artist & storyteller, Sug Daniels, Pop-Rock Artist and contestant on Season 25 of The Voice, Olivia Rubini, as well as the ever morphing Psych-Rock group, Pillow Princess, fronted by Philly music scene stalwart Kimi Klauser. Alex splits his time between Minneapolis and Philadelphia, but continues to work, perform, and produce around the country.