Definition
The backbeat is the strong accent placed on beats two and four of a four-beat bar, almost always played on the snare drum.
Example
Clap along to nearly any rock, pop, or hip-hop song and your claps land on the backbeat. Against a kick drum marking beats one and three, the snare answering on two and four is the engine of the groove, and the part a crowd instinctively claps with.
Why it matters
The backbeat is the rhythmic backbone of most popular music. It tells the listener where the beat is and creates the call-and-response between kick and snare that defines a groove. Getting the backbeat steady and confident is the first job of any drummer or finger drummer.
How to play or configure
On a 16-pad device, map the snare to a comfortable pad and play it firmly on beats two and four against a quarter-note kick on one and three. Keep those snare hits loud and consistent; the backbeat should be the most dependable thing in your pattern. Once it is solid, decorate around it with ghost notes and hi-hats without ever letting the backbeat itself waver.
Related terms
Further reading
The 30-Day Finger-Drumming Challenge locks the backbeat in during its second week.