Stick Gripps was founded in March 2007 by Cleve Alleyne and then partner Trius Pompe. Although Cleve knew Trius for many years, it was around this time that Trius showed Cleve the idea for what is now known as stick Gripps. Cleve felt strongly that Stick Gripps could be a great accessory for drummers and percussionists worldwide and suggested they create a partnership. Cleve and Trius were both aware of other products on the market but Cleve felt that Stick Gripps could be competitive enough to eventually become the choice for drummers everywhere. Cleve immediately put a pair of Stick Gripps in the hands of long time friend, drummer Adrian Grannum. Adrian found Stick Gripps easy to adapt to, he loved them! Adrian appreciated the ability to set the ring positions/placement during installation noting it gave him the ability to personalize Stick Gripps to suits his style of playing.

Six months later Cleve's partner Trius decided to opt out of Stick Gripps to pursue other interests. Cleve was given full charge of the future of Stick Gripps. From this point Cleve spent time refining Stick Gripps to It's current components and 3 step installation process. Being a musician himself,(click here for video) it was now time to check out a few more friends, Cleve's next stop, Guitar Center. The guys at Guitar Center also loved Stick Gripps.

In October 2007 Cleve started thinking about the NAMM Show. He was put in touch with Jimmy Ford and Jay Gaylen of Ford Custom Drums by his long time friend Ron Bruner Sr., Jimmy and Jay allowed Cleve to share some space at the 2008 NAMM Show in Anaheim. Stick Gripps received overwhelming response from drummers young and old alike. Drummers appreciated the natural feel in addition to no loss of tonal quality during cross sticking and rim shots. Others noted the ability to perform dynamic cymbal swells with the sleeve end of Stick Gripps. Drummers were also surprised that Stick Gripps didn't effect the weight or balance of their drumsticks. Cleve took advantage of this opportunity, giving samples to as many people as possible. Namm confirmed Cleve's initial assessment of Stick Gripps, putting cleve in touch with many new supporters of the product.

Cleve recently produced a Stick Gripps ad for the web which suspends him off the ground using a crane hanging from 2 pair of drumsticks with and without Stick Gripps, showing the advantages of Stick Gripps verses a bare set of drumsticks. Cleves theory, if you can hang a person's body weight from 2 drumsticks appx. 3 times the amount of time you can a regular pair of drumsticks, one can only imagine how great Stick Gripps are in an actual playing situation. The crane test produced results of 7 seconds without Stick Gripps on a pair of drumsticks and 19 seconds with Stick Gripps.

As president of Stick Gripps, Cleve's vision is to create a company which reaches it's full potential. This includes all form of hand held items from drumsticks to hammers, ratchet handles, pool sticks, tennis rackets, golf clubs and more. Possibilities for Stick Gripps are quite vast. Stick Gripps for drummers just happened to be the launch point for the product because of Cleve's love for music. Cleve's greater vision is to use the success of Stick Gripps and other ventures to do things in the world that gives back, embracing a quote from his first album, "Lifes Greatest Blessings Are Received By Those Who Give!"