Reggaeton Drum Pattern (Dembow)

The dembow: four kicks plus a snare on the "a" of 1 and the "and" of 2 (3+3+2). Instantly recognisable.

95 BPM0% swingReggaeton

Steps

Round boomy kick, snappy snare, metallic hats

808 bass & chords

Fm → A#m → Cm → Fm

Chord sound
808
CHD
Fm · then A#m, Cm, Fm 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 88–100 BPM.
  2. Kick on every beat: steps 1, 5, 9, 13.
  3. Snare on steps 4, 7, 12 and 15. That is the dembow.
  4. 8th-note hats; add rim or conga for colour.

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 reggaeton beat maker.

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

Questions

What is the dembow rhythm?

Dembow is the rhythm under reggaeton: a steady kick on each beat with a snare on the fourth and seventh 16th of every half-bar (a 3+3+2 grouping). The name comes from Shabba Ranks' 1990 dancehall track "Dem Bow".

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