Mike Portnoy is an American drummer, songwriter and producer, born on April 20, 1967 in Long Island, New York, USA. In 1985 he founded the progressive metal band Dream Theater together with guitarist John Petrucci and bassist John Myung while they attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston. After 25 years, Portnoy left Dream Theater in 2010 and has since then played in a variety of projects and bands including Adrenaline Mob, Avenged Sevenfold, The Winery Dogs, Sons of Apollo and The Neal Morse Band.