Drum beat in the style of “Beat It” — Michael Jackson
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Song grooves
· Simplified drum grooves in the style of famous songs — not exact transcriptions.
Jeff Porcaro played the drums on this 1982 Michael Jackson song. It is a punchy rock beat with a pop polish — crisp hi-hat and a strong backbeat.
- Tempo
- 139 BPM
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Groove
- rock beat with 8th notes
- Genre
- Pop
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Loop
- 4 bars
Drum pattern
| Hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snare | ||||||||||||||||
| Kick |
| Hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Floor tom | ||||||||||||||||
| Snare | ||||||||||||||||
| Kick |
Each row is one drum, each column one step. Large dots are accents, small dots normal hits, faint dots ghost notes.
Who plays what: notes per bar
| Cymbal hand | 8 |
|---|---|
| Snare hand | 2 |
| Kick foot | 3 |
Every kick lines up with a cymbal stroke, which makes this one of the easiest coordination patterns to start with.
About this groove
At about 139 BPM it has an up-tempo feel: one beat lasts 432 ms and a 4/4 bar takes 1.7 seconds. Use the tempo buttons to slow it down while you learn.
Practice plan
How it differs from similar beats
Compared with “Major Tom (Völlig losgelöst)” (Peter Schilling, straight pop beat), this groove adds kick notes on 3& — and it runs 7 BPM slower. If you can already play that one, this is your next step. Major Tom (Völlig losgelöst) →
“Tempo Perdido” (Legião Urbana) uses exactly the same simplified pattern, 13 BPM slower — a good warm-up before this one. Tempo Perdido →
Other songs with the same rock beat with 8th notes
Similar drum beats
This is a simplified rhythm pattern in the style of “Beat It” by Michael Jackson, written for drum practice. It is not a transcription of the recording and contains no audio, lyrics or artwork. Drums3D is not affiliated with Michael Jackson.