Memphis Triplet Phonk drum pattern
A slow two-bar Memphis-style groove on a triplet grid: rolling triplet hats, a heavy 2-and-4, triplet-placed kicks and a sparse cowbell answer. Press Play to hear it with a sampled drum kit at 72 BPM, change the tempo or swing, and follow every hit on the grid.
How to count the Memphis Triplet Phonk
Count it as: 1 trip let 2 trip let 3 trip let 4 trip let · two bars. The pattern is a 2-bar phrase in 4/4 (two-bar eighth-note-triplet grid).
The Memphis Triplet Phonk pattern, hit by hit
Each character is one step of the grid and each group is one beat. X is an accented hit, x a normal hit, o a quiet or ghost note and - a rest.
| Voice | Bar 1 | Bar 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Kick | X-x --- X-x --- | X-- --x X-- --x |
| Snare | --- X-- --- X-- | --- X-- --- X-- |
| Closed hat | xoo xoo xoo xoo | xoo xoo xoo xoo |
| Cowbell | --- --- -x- --- | --- -x- -x- --- |
Tempo and feel
Dark, slow and rolling. The triplet hats should hover; the backbeat is heavy and unhurried. The default tempo is 72 BPM. Slow it down until every hit is controlled, then raise the tempo a few BPM at a time.
How to practise the Memphis Triplet Phonk
Play continuous triplet hats with an accent on each beat. Add the backbeat on 2 and 4. Add the kicks on the last triplet of beats 1 and 3, then the cowbell.
Variations to try next
Play the hats on beats and last triplets only. Move the cowbell to the let of 4. Halve the feel by moving the backbeat to beat 3 only.
Where to hear this feel
Records in this family include Three 6 Mafia - Late Nite Tip and Three 6 Mafia - Tear da Club Up '97. A played-kit study of 90s Memphis underground rap programming, the root of phonk: rolling triplet hats, a slow heavy backbeat and a sparse 808 cowbell. It is a style study, not a transcription of any tape or track.