‘Rhythm was in his blood’: Sunday declared ‘Drey Day’ in honor of treasured teacher, prolific musician

Through his 29 years of life, Quindrey “Drey” Davis influenced hundreds of local musicians through his teaching and thousands more who heard his beats as a prolific percussionist.

When he died in October, Drey left a legacy in one of his greatest passions in life: his everlasting music and that of his bandmates and proteges, his family said.

He is survived by his wife, Allyson Davis-Murphy, and two kids: 6-year-old son Cairo and 7-month-old daughter Rhythm, born two months after Drey died.

To immortalize Drey’s contribution to the Spokane-area and celebrate the beloved musician on his 30th birthday, his family and friends, including Mayor Lisa Brown declared Sunday as “Drey Day” with a lively concert in Riverfront Park. Brown penned an official proclamation for the day.

“His goal was to promote unity, create long-lasting friendships, and leave an imprint in Spokane,” she read from the proclamation before the concert that featured rock, gospel and rap.

Davis played drums for two years with the Spokane Jazz Orchestra before he died in 2023, days after a leukemia diagnosis. He also performed in numerous festivals and concerts, playing alongside dozens of regional musicians of all genres: funk, classical, rock and even worship music in accompanying his church’s praise group.

He taught music as the band director at Northwest Christian Schools, the department leader of percussion at the Bartell Music Academy, and returned to his alma mater, Cheney High School, to help band students before school.

He took a special interest in kids who initially didn’t enjoy music, his family said, eventually pulling them out of their shells and imparting his passion to the next generation.

“He wanted to continue on and be the greatest and help other kids strive to be greatest,” wife Davis-Murphy said. “So I think that really drove him to just reach students and stuff and try to drive his love for music into them.”

Over 100 of his family, friends, former students and fellow musicians were present at Sunday’s celebration, on what would have been Drey’s 30th birthday.

“We’re not the only ones grieving; there’s a whole bunch of people,” said his mother, Erica Davis. “People come up to my father all the time at the store where he works, asking what can they do, how’s everybody doing. People are still affected by it.”

On the set list for Sunday’s free concert was KingDow, a rapper from Seattle who met Drey when they were in college – him at Whitworth and Drey at Eastern Washington University.

Drey produced beats for KingDow to rap over. The two collaborated often, and on the heels of his own 30th birthday, KingDow said “it’s crazy” to celebrate his friend’s without him. Latrice Williams and the band Sessionz, for which Drey was drummer, also performed.

Much of his family’s treasured memories about the musician surround his passion for drumming. For him, it was more than a hobby or a career, “rhythm was in his blood, that’s all he thought about,” mother Erica Davis said.

Drey’s first exposure to drums was in the womb, his mother said, when she attended a concert while pregnant.

“He just started twirling in my stomach, he just would not stop. I had to leave the auditorium because he was just going crazy,” Erica Davis said. “So even in the womb, you know, I knew he was destined. That’s one thing I always told him was, ‘You’re destined for greatness.’ I told him that and instilled that in him and he really believed it.”

His grandfather, Earon Davis Sr., bought Drey’s first drum set at Hoffman Music. He treasured it, more so than the car Earon also bought him, he joked. Up until that time, Drey used pots, pans and buckets for drum sets as early as preschool.

“I thought it was a fad,” Earon Davis said. “He was always beating on everything and anything. It was always driving my wife crazy.”

Davis-Murphy imagined her late husband beaming to see the festivities in honor of what would have been his 30th birthday, something that they had previously planned to celebrate in the park with live music.

He lives on through his two children and the music still celebrated by many.

“His legacy is his music,” his mother said. “It spoke for him, his music spoke for him. He will go down in history as one of the best percussionists in Spokane, without a doubt.”

His family plans to host Riverfront Park concerts each year on his birthday, “because he deserves it,” Davis-Murphy said.