Taku Hirano is a percussionist, composer, and educator whose career spans three decades at the top of the music industry. Described by Mick Fleetwood as his “Secret Weapon,” Hirano has toured with Fleetwood Mac, Whitney Houston, Stevie Nicks, Bette Midler, Lionel Richie, John Mayer, Isaac Hayes, and Dr. John, recorded with Dr. Dre, Ziggy Marley, and Jennifer Hudson, and consulted for Trent Reznor on the Nine Inch Nails Lights In The Sky world tour. He most recently served as LeAnn Rimes’ drummer/percussionist, and this summer completed sessions with Mick Fleetwood for an upcoming Warner Records release. Hirano has performed in 30 countries, twice at the White House, and on multiple GRAMMY Awards telecasts — most recently backing Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder, Janelle Monáe, Lainey Wilson, and Cynthia Erivo for the 2025 Quincy Jones tribute.
As a composer for Feed Media Group, Hirano writes functional music for yoga, meditation, and sleep, with two tracks in Pandora’s “Million Streams Club,” and was commissioned alongside Peter Gabriel and Laurie Anderson for the Rubin Museum’s Mandala Lab, a touring sound installation. He also produces signature percussion sample libraries for Splice. A Berklee College of Music alumnus and 2026 Berklee Alumni Achievement Award recipient, Hirano hasserved as Professor of Practice at Tulane University since 2024, developing and teaching coursework in music business and creative industry studies with a focus on artist entrepreneurship and AI’s impact on music and copyright.