Drum beat in the style of “Thriller” — Michael Jackson
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Song grooves
· Simplified drum grooves in the style of famous songs — not exact transcriptions.
The 1982 title track rides on a disco-style four-on-the-floor kick with the open hi-hat on the off-beats. Keep it steady and a little spooky.
- Tempo
- 118 BPM
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Groove
- four-on-the-floor beat
- Genre
- Pop
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Loop
- 4 bars
Drum pattern
| Open hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snare | ||||||||||||||||
| Kick |
| Open hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 4 |
|---|---|
| Snare hand | 2 |
| Kick foot | 4 |
| Kick notes without a cymbal | 4 |
The tricky spot is the 4 kick notes that fall between cymbal strokes — practice hand and foot on their own there before playing the whole groove.
About this groove
At about 118 BPM it has a medium tempo: one beat lasts 508 ms and a 4/4 bar takes 2 seconds. Use the tempo buttons to slow it down while you learn.
Practice plan
How it differs from similar beats
Compared with “Could You Be Loved” (Bob Marley & The Wailers, rockers reggae beat), this groove adds snare accents on 2 and 4 and drops the snare on 3 — and it runs 15 BPM faster. If you can already play that one, this is your next step. Could You Be Loved →
“Poker Face” (Lady Gaga) uses exactly the same simplified pattern, 1 BPM faster — a good next step once this one feels easy. Poker Face →
Other songs with the same four-on-the-floor beat
Similar drum beats
This is a simplified rhythm pattern in the style of “Thriller” 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.