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Footwork drum pattern

Fast with triplet stabs that fight the beat; half-time melodies on top. Here are its drums on a step grid, at the tempo it starts at, to hear and to change.

160 BPM · 808 kit · 1 bar

The pattern, step by step

Each step is a triplet, three to a beat: step 1 is beat 1, 4 is beat 2, 7 is beat 3 and 10 is beat 4. A lit square is a hit; a fainter one is played softer.

  • Hit
  • Softer hit
  • Lands between two steps
The footwork drum pattern: the steps each drum plays
DrumSteps
Closed hat1, 2 (soft), 3 (soft), 4, 5 (soft), 6 (soft), 7, 8 (soft), 9 (soft), 10, 11 (soft), 12 (soft)
Clap4, 10
Kick1, 3 (between steps), 5 (between steps), 9, 11
Open these drums in the editor

They open as one drum lane on a step grid, at 160 BPM. No account needed to start.

How footwork drums go

Syncopated triplet kicks and toms, claps on 2 and 4, rapid triplet hats.

Questions about footwork drums

What BPM is footwork?

Usually 155 to 165 BPM. This pattern plays at 160 BPM.

How do you make a footwork drum pattern?

Start with the kick on steps 1, 3, 5, 9 and 11, the clap on steps 4 and 10 and the closed hi-hat on every step. Each step is a triplet, three to a beat: step 1 is beat 1, 4 is beat 2, 7 is beat 3 and 10 is beat 4. Open it in the free editor to change any step.

Do footwork drums swing?

Its hits are written on triplets, three steps to a beat, which gives the groove its lilt without any swing setting.

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Make a footwork beat

The free editor opens with a whole footwork beat: drums, bass and chords, each part yours to change, add to or take away.

Make a footwork beatAll drum patterns

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