Amapiano beats

What amapiano is

Amapiano grew up in the townships around Pretoria and Johannesburg in the 2010s and broke through worldwide in the early 2020s. The name means "the pianos", and the piano is still at its centre: chords that come from jazz and soul, played over the deep house and kwaito rhythms of South African clubs.

Its signature is the log drum: a pitched, percussive bass sound that plays rhythm and melody at once. Together with arrangements that build slowly, it gives amapiano a hypnotic feel that works in a club and on headphones.

The sound of an amapiano beat

• Tempo: around 108 to 115 BPM.
• Log drum: the bass and the hook in one, a pitched, percussive sound that bounces through the beat.
• Keys: jazzy chords on piano or electric piano, often with long, open voicings.
• Percussion: shakers, hi-hats and rimshots in steady, rolling patterns.
• Arrangement: long builds and breakdowns, with elements coming in and going out slowly.

Writing to an amapiano beat

Amapiano vocals are often few words and a lot of feeling: short phrases, repeated, chanted or sung. Let the log drum lead the rhythm and put your hook where the beat opens up after a build.

A custom amapiano beat from TH6

Send the amapiano songs you love and tell TH6 whether you want the deep, jazzy side or the harder side led by the log drum. You get one price up front and a beat built around your voice.

How a custom beat works

1. Send references: two or three songs whose sound you want, your tempo if you know it, and a voice memo or demo.
2. You get one price up front, based on your brief. There is no standard rate, because no two songs are the same job.
3. TH6 builds a first version. You react, and the beat gets shaped around your song.
4. You get the WAV, the stems and an exclusive licence in writing.

More about custom beats

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