Afrobeats Drum Pattern

A syncopated 3-3-2 rim/log figure over a bouncy kick and a busy shaker. Light swing makes it roll.

106 BPM12% swingAfrobeats

Steps

Round boomy kick, snappy snare, metallic hats

808 bass & chords

F → C → Dm → A#

Chord sound
808
CHD
F · then C, Dm, A# on later loops

The 808 follows the chord root in each bar; set a step's offset to walk the bassline. Pads hold until the next chord hit. Stabs are short.

Click a step once for a hit, twice for an accent, three times to clear. Space plays/stops, T taps tempo, R makes a random beat.

Export
Saved beats (0)

Nothing saved yet. Beats stay on this device only.

How to program it

  1. Tempo 95–115 BPM.
  2. Rim on steps 4, 7, 12 and 15 (the 3-3-2 figure).
  3. Kick on step 1 with off-beat kicks on 7 and 11.
  4. Shaker on every 16th, conga accents, and 10–15% swing.

The grid above is already loaded with this pattern: press Play, change a step, then download it as WAV or MP3. Want a different version? Open it in the full beat maker with the AI pattern writer and coach.

For a whole page about this style, see the afrobeats beat maker.

Step chart · one bar of 16th notes, numbers mark the beats

Questions

What is the difference between Afrobeat and Afrobeats drums?

1970s Afrobeat (Fela Kuti, Tony Allen) is live drumming with interlocking hi-hat and snare figures. Modern Afrobeats is programmed: syncopated kicks, rims and shakers over a steady pulse.

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