Alex Acuña is a prolific drummer, percussionist, composer, and bandleader. He has amassed more than 1,000 recording credits. Since working in the Las Vegas bands of Elvis Presley, Diana Ross, and Ella Fitzgerald during the 1970s, he has been a sideman to a dazzling array of artists ranging from Paul McCartney and Joni Mitchell to Andre Crouch and Blondie, to name a few. A member of Weather Report from 1975 to 1978, he played on the hit albums Black Market and Heavy Weather. He issued Thinking of You, his leader debut, in 1990. He followed with Rumbero's Poetry (1999) and Bongó De Van Gogh (2002) in collaboration with Tolú and Justo Almario. He released both 2009's Jungle City ‎and 2012's Barxeta as a jazz trio with pianist Jan Gunnar Hoff and bassist Per Mathisen. After recordings with Lin Manuel Miranda and Moby in 2021, Acuña released the solo album Gifts in 2022.