Nandi Bushell Taps Matt Helders for Cover of Arctic Monkeys’ ‘I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor’
Eleven-year-old rock prodigy Nandi Bushell has released a new cover of Arctic Monkeys’ breakout hit “I Bet You Look Good On the Dance Floor,” featuring the band’s actual drummer Matt Helders.
Bushell, who’s best known as a hotshot drummer, steps out from behind the kit to play guitar during the performance, doing well to pick out the song’s high-wire riffs at speed with Helders’ drumming. The clip also opens with a clever nod to Arctic Monkeys lore, with Bushell asking Helders, “Believe the hype, or don’t believe the hype?” Helders replies with a quip frontman Alex Turner shared at the start of a live video for “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor”: “Don’t believe the hype.”
Bushell and Helders’ version of “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor” is the first in a four-part series. The pair will also release covers of Arctic Monkeys tracks “Brianstorm” and “R U Mine,” while part four will feature an improvised jam session and Bushell interviewing Helders.
Bushell began playing drums at the age of five and started going viral after her father, John, shared videos of her covering tracks like System of a Down’s “Chop Suey” and Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s “Crazy in Love.” After covering Foo Fighters’ “Everlong,” she even challenged Dave Grohl to a drum-off, and not only did the frontman oblige, but wrote Bushell a theme song as well and dubbed her the “best drummer in the world.”
“A rock legend has been inspired by me,” Bushell told Rolling Stone earlier this year. “That is amazing. I’m inspired by [Grohl], so the fact that he’s inspired by me … speechless.”