Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith performs with Minnesota's marching band

Smith spent most of his youth in Michigan, but he was born in St. Paul and his parents are U of M alumni.

Halftime performance of Minnesota's 2025 Homecoming game against Purdue. | Picture via: @tonyliebert (X)

Legendary Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Chad Smith performed with the University of Minnesota's marching band at halftime of their 2025 Homecoming game against Purdue, and it was tremendous.

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith jamming with @UMNmarch pic.twitter.com/QvJSwvPmN5

— Mike Grimm (@MikeGrimm3) October 12, 2025

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Smith is a Minnesota native whose parents are University of Minnesota alumni. His parents, Curtis and Joan Smith, were recently honored with the creation of the Curtis & Joan Smith Scholarship, which supports students at the University of Minnesota's School of Music.

Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, son of two @UMNAlumni, joins @UMNmarch for a Homecoming halftime performance 🤘 pic.twitter.com/YMeNhzMpit

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) October 12, 2025

The performance lasted for the entire halftime, and it gave Minnesota's home crowd something to cheer for after a disappointing 17-13 halftime deficit against the Boilermakers.