Ziggy Modeliste Biography

Drummer Joseph “Ziggy” Modeliste was one of the original members of the Meters, a pioneering funk band based in New Orleans. He is widely acknowledged as the innovator of a style of playing known as second-line funk. As a solo artist, he released the album Zigaboo.Com in 2000, about two decades after the Meters’ broke up. Modeliste self-produced the release, which was issued by the indie label that he founded, JZM Records. He also appeared on numerous Meters’ recordings, as well as others by such artists as the Rolling Stones, Harry Connick Jr., Aaron Neville, Keith Richards, Professor Longhair, John Fogerty, Dr. John, Robert Palmer, Allen Toussaint, Patti LaBelle, and Lee Dorsey, among others. A New Orleans native, the drummer makes his home in Berkeley, CA. He went home to the Crescent City in 1997 and 1998 to perform at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.