Afroswing

History and character

Afroswing is a genre from the United Kingdom developed in the mid-2010s by the African and Afro-Caribbean communities of London. It derives from dancehall and afrobeats, with influences from trap, British rap, R&B and grime, and lyrics that come from British 'road rap' (the street, money, relationships). The foundations were laid around 2014 with “Ringtone” by Timbo and Mover and the emergence of MoStack, Tion Wayne and Geko; the genre's first notable track is “Dem Boy Paigon” by J Hus (2015). Kojo Funds coined the name 'afroswing' (his “Dun Talkin'” with Abra Cadabra won the MOBO for Best Song in 2017).

Success came in 2017–2018: J Hus (“Did You See”, No. 9 and the most-streamed single of 2017 in the UK; album Common Sense, No. 6), Ramz (“Barking”, No. 2), B Young (“Jumanji”, 2018, No. 13), EO (“German”, No. 13), Not3s, MoStack, Yxng Bane, WSTRN, Hardy Caprio, Tion Wayne, Geko, Don EE, ZieZie. Producers: Jae5 (architect of J Hus's sound), Blairy Hendrix, Joshua Beatz, Juls, Steel Banglez. Other names: afrobashment (a Spotify term coined by Austin Daboh), afrobbean (Lotto Boyzz), afro-trap (different from the French genre), and the early 'traprobeats' and 'trapfrobeat'.

According to Steel Banglez, what distinguishes it is the chords and the snare on the third beat (which comes from afrobeats, whereas hip hop puts it on the fourth, in half-time counting); Martin Connor describes a recurring three-note pattern in 4/4 and a hip hop-style lyrical focus. Aesthetic: afrobeats percussion, trap/grime basses and 808s, melodic guitars and pads, sung-rapped vocals with Auto-Tune and Ghanaian, Nigerian and Jamaican inflections, London slang.

Scales and keys

Natural minor (Aeolian)

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 — T S T T S T T (semitones 2 1 2 2 1 2 2)
• Example on A: A B C D E F G
• Characteristic note: the b6: melancholy; with the b7 (no leading tone) the minor stays 'circular'
• Diatonic triads: Am (i) – Bdim (ii°) – C (III) – Dm (iv) – Em (v) – F (VI) – G (VII)
• Seventh chords: Am7 (i7) – Bm7b5 (iiø7) – Cmaj7 (IIImaj7) – Dm7 (iv7) – Em7 (v7) – Fmaj7 (VImaj7) – G7 (VII7)
• Use in the genre: the basis of many tracks: minor loops (i–VI–III–VII, i–iv) on guitar, piano or synth; a late-night 'road' atmosphere.
• Real-world example: J Hus — Did You See (2017), built on a soft loop with guitar (check the key).
• Common mistakes: progressions that are too long: the loop is 2–4 chords.

Minor pentatonic

• Formula: 1 b3 4 5 b7 — 1½T T T 1½T T (semitones 3 2 2 3 2)
• Example on A: A C D E G
• Characteristic note: no semitones: b3 and b7 without 2 and b6, an open sound that 'can't go wrong', ideal for riffs and hooks
• Use in the genre: sung-rapped vocal melodies: repeated 3-note cells (the 'three-note pattern'), ad-libs.
• Real-world example: the choruses of Kojo Funds, Not3s and J Hus on 3–4 notes.
• Common mistakes: melodies with notes outside the pentatonic if the Auto-Tune is set badly.

Dorian

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 — T S T T T S T (semitones 2 1 2 2 2 1 2)
• Example on D: D E F G A B C
• Characteristic note: the major 6 over a minor base: an 'open' minor, less sad, which gives a major IV
• Diatonic triads: Dm (i) – Em (ii) – F (III) – G (IV) – Am (v) – Bdim (vi°) – C (VII)
• Seventh chords: Dm7 (i7) – Em7 (ii7) – Fmaj7 (IIImaj7) – G7 (IV7) – Am7 (v7) – Bm7b5 (viø7) – Cmaj7 (VIImaj7)
• Use in the genre: for the sunnier, more 'Afro' tracks: i–IV, seventh and ninth chords.
• Real-world example: many lighter, club-oriented afroswing tracks (e.g. B Young — Jumanji, check the key) use an 'open' minor.
• Common mistakes: using the b6 in the guitars.

Major pentatonic

• Formula: 1 2 3 5 6 — T T 1½T T 1½T (semitones 2 2 3 2 3)
• Example on C: C D E G A
• Characteristic note: no semitones: 3 and 6 without 4 and 7, a sunny, African/folk sound, always consonant
• Use in the genre: poppier, sunnier hooks over major loops.
• Real-world example: productions closer to pop afrobeats.
• Common mistakes: wrong pentatonic relative to the loop's tonic.

How to choose among the genre's scales

• Road, late-night → Aeolian.
• Club, sunny → Dorian or major.
• Vocals → pentatonic (minor or major depending on the loop).

Harmony

Harmonic function

Loops of 2–4 minor or major chords, one or two bars each, often played by guitar (clean or nylon), piano or pad; 'warm' harmonies with 7 and 9. No cadences: the tension is in the vocal and the groove.

Elements

• Chords with 7 and 9 (the 'chords' Steel Banglez cites as a signature).
• Offbeat guitar ostinatos (highlife/afrobeats legacy).
• 808 pedal on the tonic with chord changes above.

Voicings

Guitar in the mid-high register, piano and pad above C3, 808 below.

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

Feel

Afrobeats/dancehall groove at about 95–110 BPM with the snare/clap on the third beat of each bar (half-time feel, an afrobeats legacy according to Steel Banglez), syncopated kick, Afro percussion (shaker, rim, conga) with 10–20% swing, trap hi-hats in some passages.

Elements

• Kick and 808 on tresillo-like figures (1, 1a, 2&) or dancehall.
• Clap on 3 (step 9 of 16) — or on 2 and 4 in the tracks closer to afrobeats.
• Rim with 3-2 figures, continuous shaker.
• Hi-hat in eighth/sixteenth notes with small rolls (trap influence).

Microtiming

Percussion and vocal relaxed, slightly behind the beat.

Drums

Kick

• Syncopated figures (1, 1a, 2& | 3&) as in afrobeats or dancehall; often the kick coincides with the 808.

Snare / clap

• On the third beat (step 9) in the typical feel; layers of clap and snap; high velocity.

Rim and percussion

• Rim/stick in a 3-2 or 2-3 figure, sampled conga and tom, shaker in sixteenth notes with swing.

Hi-hat

• Light eighth or sixteenth notes, occasional rolls; open hi-hat on the offbeat.

Interaction with bass and vocals

• 808 or synth bass following the kick; rap-sung vocal leaning on the offbeats.

By section

• Intro: guitar/pad and producer tag (e.g. 'Jae5').
• Verse: percussion and 808.
• Hook: layers of clap and backing vocals.
• Bridge: percussion drops out.

Typical mistakes

• Snare on 2 and 4 in a feel that should be half-time (or vice versa, without a clear choice).
• Trap 808 too distorted, covering the percussion.
• Percussion without swing.

Bass

• Sound: soft 808 or round synth bass, register E1–A1; less distorted than in trap.
• Rhythm: follows the syncopated kick; short notes, light glides.
• Notes: root, octave, fifth; follows the loop.
• Sidechain from the kick if separate (2–3 dB).

Harmonic instruments

• Clean or nylon guitar with ostinatos and arpeggios.
• Piano, Rhodes, pads with seventh and ninth chords.
• Synth plucks and bells.

Melody and vocals

Vocals

• Sing-rap with soft Auto-Tune, melodies on 3–4 notes, London slang and Ghanaian/Nigerian/Jamaican inflections; mid register.
• Short, repeated hooks; the track often starts with the hook.

Backing vocals and ad-libs

Chorus doubles, ad-libs, frequent features.

Effects

1/4 or dotted-1/8 delay, soft plate, Auto-Tune (retune 10–30 ms).

Instruments

• Drum machine, sampled Afro percussion (shaker, conga, rim), trap hi-hat
• 808, synth bass
• Guitar, piano, Rhodes, pads, plucks
• Sing-rap vocal with Auto-Tune, ad-libs

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• Jun-6 V — Pads and plucks: Warm pads with chorus and short plucks.
• Stage-73 V — Rhodes: Seventh and ninth chords.
• Mini V — Soft 808: Sine with light glide and moderate saturation.
• DX7 V — Bells and marimbas: Ostinatos in the high register.
• Prophet-5 V — Late-night pads: Dark pads under the verses.

Song structure

Typical form (≈ 2:30–3:30)

Arrangement

Variations in percussion and vocals, few harmonic variations; short tracks for streaming.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

Soft and warm with a modern low end: defined Afro percussion, round 808, melodic guitar/pad, a polished vocal up front. References: J Hus — Did You See, Kojo Funds & Abra Cadabra — Dun Talkin', B Young — Jumanji, Ramz — Barking.

Kick / 808

• Kick: HP 30 Hz, +2 dB at 60 Hz, −3 dB at 300 Hz. 808: HP 25 Hz, fundamental 45–60 Hz, light saturation; mono.

Clap / rim / percussion

• Clap: HP 200 Hz, +2 dB at 1–3 kHz, short plate. Rim and percussion: HP 200–400 Hz, panning ±20–50. Shaker: HP 600 Hz, panning ±30.

Guitar, piano, pads

• Guitar: HP 150 Hz, −2 dB at 300 Hz, +2 dB at 3 kHz; panning ±30; 1/8 delay.
• Pad: HP 250 Hz, 100% width.

Vocals

• Auto-Tune → EQ (HP 90 Hz, −2 dB at 300 Hz, +2/+3 dB at 3–5 kHz) → FET 4:1 (4 dB) → opto → de-esser; plate 1–1.3 s at 12%, filtered 1/4 delay.

Buses and groups

Drum bus, vocal bus with light compression.

Sidechain

Kick → 808 (2–3 dB) if separate.

Master

• Chain: EQ → bus compression 2:1 → limiter −1 dBTP.
• Target: −9/−7 LUFS integrated, true peak ≤ −1 dBTP; PLR 7–9 dB.

Common mistakes

• Drill/trap 808 that is too aggressive.
• Buried percussion.
• Vocal too harsh.

Reference tracks for the mix

• J Hus — Did You See (2017)
• Kojo Funds feat. Abra Cadabra — Dun Talkin' (2016)
• Ramz — Barking (2017)
• B Young — Jumanji (2018)

Reference listening

• J Hus — Dem Boy Paigon (2015)
• Kojo Funds feat. Abra Cadabra — Dun Talkin' (2016)
• J Hus — Did You See (2017)
• J Hus — Common Sense (2017, album)
• Ramz — Barking (2017)
• B Young — Jumanji (2018)
• EO — German (2018)