Simon Lott was born January 6, 1982 in Baton Rouge and has been making music professionally since 1995, his career as a versatile drummer beginning in Louisiana at age 13. He recorded his first album of original music, the instrumental jazz record In The Parking Lott of Swing, at 18 in 2000, then spent two years in New York after Hurricane Katrina touring internationally before returning to the South and settling in New Orleans.
In 2010 he built his home recording studio, THE EARSE, in New Orleans, where he cultivates the alter-egos Context Killer (live electronic dubs and looping on drum set and synths) and Diamond Kinkade (piano/synthesizer). He has been a go-to drummer for local combos and major stars alike — George Porter Jr., Charlie Hunter, John Medeski, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Jonathan Batiste, Ivan Neville, Larry Coryell, Ellis Marsalis, and many more — and his group credits include the Charlie Hunter Trio, Jumbo Shrimp Jazz Band, Robert Walter's 20th Congress, and Unanimous Sources.
Recent work includes the Compersion Quartet with Skerik, Brian Haas, and James Singleton — a set of New Orleans studio improvisations released by Royal Potato Records in February 2025 — and his ongoing Clouds ensemble with Jesse Morrow and Seth Finch.
