Top 10 Hip-Hop Drum Patterns
Hip-hop rhythm is less about complexity and more about placement, swing, and space.
A great beat often comes from moving one kick a few milliseconds — not adding 50 sounds.
Below are 10 foundational drum patterns every beatmaker should understand.
(Use any tempo around 140 BPM trap or 90 BPM boom bap — patterns still apply.)
We’ll use a 16-step bar (standard piano-roll view)
You just place notes exactly on these numbers.
K = Kick
S = Snare/Clap
H = Hi-hat
1) Basic Trap Bounce
2) Boom Bap
3) Modern Dark Trap
4) Drill Pattern
5) Melodic Rap Groove
6) Detroit / Rage
7) Club Trap
8) Slow Emotional
9) Southside Style
10) Experimental Modern Trap
Quick Tip
After placing them:
Move some kicks slightly off-grid
Lower hi-hat velocities randomly
That single step turns robotic drums into real hip-hop groove.