The Suno Drum Pattern Cheat Sheet — Tell Suno Exactly What Beat You Want

"Drums" is not a prompt. Suno will pick whatever its default is, which usually means generic 4-on-the-floor or trap hi-hats. You can do way better with 3-4 specific words. Here's the cheat sheet by groove component.

Kick patterns

• four on the floor — kick on every beat (house, disco, EDM)
• boom-bap kick — kick on 1 and the "and" of 2 (classic hip-hop)
• trap 808 pattern — kick on 1, syncopated 808 hits (modern hip-hop)
• rock kick — kick on 1 and 3 (driving rock)
• breakbeat kick — irregular, syncopated (drum & bass, jungle)
• kick-snare-kick-snare — basic backbeat (pop, country)

Snare patterns

• backbeat snare — snare on 2 and 4 (almost everything)
• cross-stick snare — quieter, woody snare (bossa nova, intimate ballads)
• clap on 2 and 4 — replaces snare with claps (R&B, pop)
• snare roll — building tension before drops/choruses
• brushed snare — soft, jazzy texture
• rim shot — sharper, country/folk snare

Hi-hat patterns

• eighth-note hi-hats — steady, basic groove
• sixteenth-note hi-hats — busier, modern feel
• trap hi-hat rolls — triplets and rolls for energy bursts
• shaker hi-hats — softer, percussion-style
• open-closed hi-hat pattern — disco/funk groove
• swung hi-hats — jazz/shuffle feel

Ghost notes & fills

• ghost notes on snare — quiet snare hits between beats (R&B, neo-soul)
• drum fill before chorus — Suno will deliver
• crash on the 1 — chorus impact
• tom roll fill — classic transition
• linear drumming — no two drums hit simultaneously (precise, modern)

Genre-specific drum prompts (copy-paste ready)

Lo-fi hip-hop

"dusty boom-bap drums, vinyl crackle, brushed snare, swung hi-hats, light tape compression"

Modern trap

"trap drums, heavy 808 sub, hi-hat rolls and triplets, clap on 2 and 4, sparse kick pattern"

Indie folk

"brushed snare, cross-stick on 4, shaker, tambourine, no kick drum"

Driving pop

"four on the floor kick, clap layered on snare, sixteenth-note hi-hats, big chorus crash"

Disco/house

"four on the floor, open hi-hat on the off-beat, claps on 2 and 4, syncopated bass"

Neo-soul / R&B

"boom-bap kick, ghost notes on snare, brushed hi-hats, pocket groove, behind the beat"

Punk rock

"driving rock kick, snare on 2 and 4, eighth-note hi-hats, no fills, relentless"

Jazz

"brushed drums, ride cymbal swing pattern, cross-stick snare, walking-bass groove"

Pro tips

• Drum tags belong in position 3-5 of your style prompt, after genre and vocal description.
• "Pocket groove" + "behind the beat" = the secret sauce for any soul/R&B song. Single biggest dial Suno responds to.
• Don't say "complex drums" — Suno overcorrects to chaos. Say linear drumming or precise rhythmic kick instead.
• For instrumentals, you can stack more drum descriptors. For vocal songs, keep it to 2-3 — vocals need room.
• "No drums" works as a negative prompt for ambient or piano-led tracks.

Bookmark this. Drop your favorite genre below and I'll share the exact drum prompt I'd use.