How do I get started making a beat?

There’s no one “right” way to get started making beats. Here are a couple of ways that others get started. Try them out and see what works for you.

Get Started

Here are three ways you can get started making a beat. Try each approach and figure out which approach you like best:

1. Messing around with sound right away
2. Listening to a beat you like and trying to make your own version
3. Using tutorials to learn how to make a type of beat

1. Messing Around With Sound Right Away

Check out these apps that let you get started making a beat right away. Experiment with each one to figure out what you like best.

Groove Pizza

Splice Sounds BeatMaker

WebAudio Drum Machine

Infinite Drum Machine

Type Drummer

Sampulator

Here are some other applications people use to create beats.

2. Listen to a beat you like and try to make your own version

1. Listen to several beats you like and choose one to use as your inspiration. It doesn’t need to be exact. 
2. Figure out the different parts of the beat as you listen. Try some of these strategies:
   
   1. Beatbox or tap/bang on a surface and hum along with the beat
   2. Use a web-based digital audio workstation (DAW) like the Splice Sounds BeatMaker or BandLab Drum Machine to create something that sounds like the beat you like. 

Don’t worry about how close your version is to the original. This is just a way to get started.

 

3. Use tutorials to learn how to make a type of beat

You can find all kinds of beat making tutorials online.

Text and Pictures

Some tutorials have step by step instructions with text and pictures like Attack Magazine’s Beat Dissected tutorial on Dark R&B. 

Videos

Other tutorials are in the form of videos with explanations like this “Making of Drake’s “Sneakin” With London On Da Track Deconstructed” 

or Metro Boomin sharing his secrets on kick drums and basslines 

 

Take a look at some of these tutorials

OR

Find your own tutorials online by using search terms such as:

“Beat tutorial” “beat deconstructed” “how to make the [fill in the blank] beat”

Note: Not all tutorials are high quality so if you find your own, keep track of the youtube channels or sites that you like best so you can return to them.

Share What You Learned

1. Write a brief post or share a video selfie that explains which approach you like the best to get started making a beat.
2. Include a link to the app, beat you listened to, or tutorial you used and let us know what you like about it and how it helped you get started.