How To Make A Phonk Song

You want a phonk beat that smells like smoky VHS tapes and midnight drives. You want that gravelly Memphis rap vocal sample to snap into a cold 808 while a cowbell hits just like your heart when the street light turns green. Phonk is equal parts nostalgia, grit, and bass. This guide gives you everything you need to make a phonk track that bangs on Spotify and sounds authentic when you play it for your friends who know too much.

We write for artists who want to move fast and sound legendary. You will get practical steps, hands on exercises, exact plugin recommendations, creative prompts, and a release plan. We will explain acronyms like BPM and DAW. We will give scenarios that actually happen in real life. If you follow this playbook you will have a full phonk song you can finish in a few days and a plan to get it heard.

What Is Phonk

Phonk is a subgenre of hip hop that mixes gritty 1990s Memphis rap samples with lo fi textures and modern trap production. It often uses chopped soul and funk records, pitched down vocals from old rap tapes, deep 808 bass and crisp trap hi hat patterns. The mood is moody, nocturnal, and cinematic. Some tracks sound like cruising through a neon parking lot at 2 AM. The vibe is as important as the drums.

Phonk started with producers sampling underground Memphis rap and slowed down horrorcore vocals. In the 2010s producers on platforms like SoundCloud and YouTube took those roots and added modern trap drums. The result is two main flavors. Old school phonk is slower, rawer, and sample heavy. New school phonk is faster, more danceable and often called phonk trap. Both share the same dusty taste and base ingredients.

Typical Tempo And Groove

Tempo matters. Many classic phonk tracks sit between 80 and 110 BPM. Modern phonk trap often lives between 140 and 160 BPM. If you want a laid back cruisey feel pick a tempo around 90 BPM. If you want club energy pick 150 BPM and use double time for the hi hats. BPM means Beats Per Minute. It is a measure of tempo. Choosing tempo changes everything from drum feel to vocal delivery.

Key Elements Of A Phonk Song

• Sample source. Vinyl or old tape snippets from soul funk or Memphis rap.
• Chopped vocals. Short phrases or screams pitched down with reverb and tape saturation.
• 808 bass. Distorted and tuned so it hits like a freight train.
• Drum pocket. Kick and snare patterns that leave space for the vocals to breathe.
• Hi hat programming. Triplet rolls, fast subdivisions and swing for groove.
• Lo fi texture. Tape noise, vinyl crackle, or bit reduction for the nostalgic coating.
• Atmosphere. Reverb and delay to create depth and a late night mood.

What You Need To Start

You do not need a million dollars in gear. You need good ears, a DAW, and a handful of plugins and samples. DAW means Digital Audio Workstation. It is the software you use to arrange and mix your track. Common DAWs include Ableton Live, FL Studio, Logic Pro, and Cubase. Pick what you are comfortable using. The difference between them is workflow not magic.

• A DAW with audio time stretching and sample editing
• A decent pair of headphones or monitors
• Sample packs that include Memphis rap vocals, soul loops, and vintage drums
• Plugins for saturation, EQ, compression, reverb and delay
• An 808 instrument that allows tuning and distortion control

Where To Find Samples Without Looking Like A Pirate

Sampling is the spiritual core of phonk. You need audio that has character. That often means old records and tapes. If you cannot dig through physical crates try these legal and fast options.

• Royalty free sample packs. Many producers sell packs with soul chops and Memphis vocal one shots.
• Paid sample libraries. Websites like Splice, Loopmasters and Bandcamp have curated phonk packs.
• Public domain and cleared sources. Look for records that are cleared or in the public domain.
• Record your own. Sing or speak short lines in a bathroom and process them. You get unique material and no clearance hassle.

If you sample an old commercial record the safest route is to clear the sample or use it in a way that qualifies for a license. In real life many underground producers use uncleared samples. That works for mixtapes and SoundCloud leaks. If you want to sell your song or place it in media you will need proper clearance. Think about this before your release party goes viral and lawyers appear at your door.

Step By Step: Make A Phonk Beat

This is the real playbook. I will assume you have a DAW, a sample pack and an 808 plugin or sample. Follow these steps in order. Each step includes practical tips and one small creative trick you can steal.

Step 1 Choose Your Tempo And Mood

Decide if you want nocturnal chill or energetic phonk trap. Set BPM accordingly. For chill choose 85 to 95 BPM. For energetic choose 140 to 155 BPM and program hi hats in double time. Set the mood by choosing a sample that already implies it. A minor chord loop will sound sad. A bright horn loop will sound urgent. Your sample sets the emotional center, not your drum pattern.

Step 2 Pick A Sample And Chop It

Drag your loop into an audio track. Use transient markers to slice phrases. Phonk loves short chops. Move slices around to create new melodic patterns. Pitch a vocal sample down one or two semitones to add darkness. Pitching changes timing. If the sample becomes out of time use your DAW time stretch to re align it with your grid.

Creative trick: pick one slice and repeat it like a motif. That repeating slice becomes the earworm that ties the whole track together.

Step 3 Create Your Chord Or Melody Bed

If your sample is melodic you may not need extra chords. If you do add a pad or a simple Rhodes sound under the sample. Keep it low in the mix so it supports the sample rather than competes. Use EQ to scoop some mids and leave space for the sample vocal texture. If you want old school feel apply mild tape saturation to the pad so it breathes with the sample.

Step 4 Program Drums

Start with a kick and snare that sit in opposite places. The kick should hit hard and leave room for the 808. The snare or clap needs a sharp transient. Layer a clap with a snare to add crunch. Add a cowbell or rim to taste. Phonk users often use a snare sample with some vinyl crackle in it for personality.

Keep the drum pocket sparse so the atmosphere can breathe. Let the sample and 808 share the low end. Use high pass filters to clean the top of some drum layers if they clash with the vocal slices.

Step 5 Hi Hats And Groove

Hi hats give movement. Program 16th patterns and then add triplet rolls and fast fills that resolve into the downbeat. Add swing to the pattern to make it lurch. Most DAWs have a swing or groove setting. Use it on the hi hats not the whole pattern so the beat feels slightly loose while the kick stays locked. That loose and locked contrast is the pocket of modern phonk.

Creative trick: automate velocity so that repeated hi hat hits feel like a human hand. The sample will sound repetitive if every hat is the same volume.

Step 6 808 Bass Design

Phonk 808s are beefy and saturated. Use an 808 sample or synth that allows you to tune it to the track key. Tune the 808 so the root note matches your sample bass notes. Add a soft distortion or tape saturation to make the 808 audible on small speakers. Sidechain the 808 to the kick or use volume automation to create space. If you sidechain too hard you will lose low power so find a balance.

Real life scenario: You finish the beat and the 808 sounds flat on your laptop. Add a harmonic exciter or mild distortion centered around 60 to 200 Hz to bring it through small speakers. Check the mix on headphones and phone before you celebrate.

Step 7 Add Vocal Chops And FX

Drag the vocal chops you sliced earlier to separate tracks and treat them as instruments. Pitch them, reverse them, and run them through reverb and delay. Put one chop in the background as a pad and another as a rhythmic stab. Saturation and bit crushing can make a vocal chop sound vintage and spooky.

Use reverb short times for small space and long times for cathedral type space. Be careful not to drown the mix in reverb. Use a send return so you can send several tracks to the same reverb. That creates a cohesive space.

Step 8 Atmosphere And Texture

Layer vinyl crackle, tape hiss, street noise or distant car engines at low volume. These details make a track feel lived in. Put them under the chorus or hook to create a setting for the song. Use a high pass so the textures do not crowd the low end. Automate their level so they breathe with the arrangement.

Step 9 Arrangement

Arrange your loop into sections. Standard shapes work. For a blunt song try Intro Verse Chorus Verse Chorus Outro. For more club friendly tracks add a breakdown before the final chorus and a small riser into the drop. Keep the hook short and return to it often. Phonk hooks are memorable because they repeat just the right amount.

Real life tip: Start with a 16 bar intro if you want DJs to mix your track. If your audience is sleep deprived TikTok skippers you may prefer to drop the hook within eight bars.

Step 10 Rough Mix And Bounce

Balance levels. Use EQ to carve space. Compress where dynamics feel wild. Pan instruments to give width. When the rough mix feels powerful, bounce a demo and listen on multiple systems. If it bangs on your phone and on a car stereo you are close. If it only bangs in your studio it needs translation work.

Mixing Tips Specific To Phonk

Mixing phonk is a balancing act between grit and clarity. You want vintage warmth without mud. Here are practical mixing tips that actually help.

• High pass non bass tracks. Remove low end below 100 Hz from pads and vocal chops.
• Parallel saturation. Duplicate the 808 or drum bus, add saturation and blend back to taste. This keeps the original transient while adding harmonics.
• Bus compression on drums. Use a slow attack and medium release to glue kicks and snares. Keep it subtle.
• Mid side processing. Widen pads and textures on the sides while keeping the low end mono in the center.
• Automation. Automate reverb sends and filter cutoff to create movement across sections.

Creative Plugins And Tools That Make Phonk Easier

You can make phonk with stock plugins. Yet certain third party tools speed the process and give signature flavor.

• Saturation. Plugins like Decapitator, Saturn and RC-20 Retro Color add tape and tube grit.
• Vintage EQ. Pultec style EQs warm the top and fatten the bottom.
• Time based effects. Valhalla Vintage Verb and Soundtoys EchoBoy give lush spaces and tape echoes.
• Pitching and slicing. Serato Sample and Kontakt make chopping and pitching fast.
• 808 engines. SubLab and Serum presets allow custom 808 shaping.

Vocal Options For Phonk

Phonk often uses two kinds of vocals. First are sampled vocals from old Memphis rap tapes. They are processed and used like instruments. Second are original vocals from rappers or singers who record new lines in a style that matches the vintage tone. For rap verses record dry and add plate reverb and tape saturation later. For hooks double the vocal and add a slightly pitched harmony. Keep lead vocals forward in the mix and sit them above the 808 with careful EQ.

Real life scenario: a feature rapper sends you a verse recorded on a phone. The phone vocal can work if you treat it like a lo fi artifact. Use de essing, gentle EQ and a vintage reverb to make it musical. If it is unusable ask for a re record or use it as a background texture only.

Legal And Ethical Considerations With Samples

If you sample copyrighted recordings the legal safe path is sample clearance. That means contacting rights holders and negotiating a license. That can be expensive and slow. Many independent phonk artists release mixtapes with uncleared samples and accept the risk. If you want your song to be monetized on streaming services or synced to film or TV you will need clearance. Consider interpolating where you recreate a part of a recording using live instruments or virtual instruments as a creative compromise.

Mastering Tips For Phonk

Mastering polishes your track and ensures it translates. Phonk masters should avoid squashing dynamics too hard. Keep the transient life in drums and the rumble in the 808. Use multiband compression to tame resonances and a gentle limiter to raise loudness. Finalize with a tape emulation for glue. Always check your final master on several platforms including Spotify and YouTube. They apply their own processing so leave headroom.

Distribution And Release Strategy

Making the song is about half the battle. Getting it heard is the rest. Here is a release plan that moves slowly but hits hard.

1. Tease. Release a 15 second clip to social media with a visual that matches the late night mood. Use hashtags that phonk listeners follow.
2. Pre save and playlist pitching. Use distribution services to submit to editorial playlists. Pitch blogs that focus on underground beats.
3. Visuals. Make a VHS style cover art and a short looping video for socials. Phonk aesthetic is visual as much as sonic.
4. Collaborations. Feature a rapper from the scene to tap into their audience. Cross promote on both channels.
5. Release formats. Put a clean version for radio or curated playlists and an explicit version for fans.

Monetization And Growth

There are several ways to make money from phonk beyond streaming. Sell beats to rappers, license instrumentals for visuals, release sample packs, and perform live sets or DJ mixes. Build a brand that matches your sound. If your artwork looks like a funeral home brochure you might be mis selling yourself. Keep visuals consistent with your sonic identity.

Common Mistakes Producers Make

• Too much reverb. It muddies vocals and drums. Use sends and automate shallow rooms for presence.
• Un tuned 808s. If the 808 is out of tune with the sample it will feel thin. Tune it to the key.
• Clashing mids. Vocals and samples fighting for the same space. Use subtractive EQ and panning.
• Ignoring translation. If your song sounds great in your studio but bad on phone it fails in the real world. Test everywhere.
• Over processing sample. Too much pitch and time stretch makes the sample sound synthetic. Keep the human grain.

Creative Exercises To Make Better Phonk Beats Faster

Sample Roulette Exercise

Pick five random samples from a pack. Load them into five tracks. Spend 20 minutes making a beat using only those sounds plus one drum kit. You will force creative choices that reveal new combos.

One Hour Phonk Challenge

Set a timer for sixty minutes. Start with an empty project and finish a loop and a two minute arrangement. Limit plugins. No autopilot. This builds speed and reduces perfection paralysis.

Reverse And Rebuild

Take a vocal chop and reverse it. Use that reversed sound as a pad under a clean melody. The reversed texture can become the defining mood of the track.

Example Workflow For Beginners

Here is a practical timeline you can follow in a single day.

1. Morning. Spend one hour crate digging and finding a sample. Choose a key and tempo.
2. Afternoon. Spend two hours chopping the sample, programming drums and 808, and creating a rough chorus loop.
3. Late afternoon. Add vocal chops, texture layers and arrangement markers.
4. Evening. Rough mix, bounce and listen on phone and car. Make three small fixes and finish a demo.

If you can do this in a day you will finish tracks faster and learn what works for your style. Real producers make mistakes quickly and learn faster than producers who over plan.

How To Collaborate With Rappers

Phonk often pairs with aggressive rap albeit sometimes lo fi rap. Send a clear guide to your collaborator. Tell them the BPM, the key and where you want verses and hooks. Provide a clean instrumental and a reference vocal. If they send back a performance with timing problems either ask for a re record or align the audio in your DAW and nudge it until it breathes with the drums. Communication is the secret to clean collabs. If you say nothing you will get a mess and then blame the internet.

Branding And Visual Aesthetic

Phonk fans respond to visuals that match midnight nostalgia. VHS overlays, neon typography and grainy car interior shots work well. Keep your artist name legible and your cover simple. On social media use short teasers that loop. Fans like to hear the hook in a 10 second clip and then follow to the release link. If your visuals look like a corporate office you will not capture that dumpster fire romance that phonk thrivers crave.

Action Plan You Can Use Today

1. Choose a tempo. Pick 90 BPM for chill or 150 BPM for club energy.
2. Find one sample that gives mood. Chop it into short pieces and create a motif.
3. Program a sparse drum pocket. Keep space for the 808 and vocal chops.
4. Tune your 808 to the sample key and add saturation for presence.
5. Add vinyl crackle or street noise at low volume.
6. Rough mix and bounce a demo. Test on phone and car.
7. Make a short video teaser and post to social with a release date.

Phonk Production FAQ

What tempo should I use for phonk

Use around 80 to 95 BPM for classic lo fi phonk. For more modern phonk trap aim for 140 to 155 BPM. The tempo determines whether you feel like cruising or racing. Pick the mood first then set tempo.

Do I need to sample old records to make phonk

No. Samples are classic but you can create phonk with original instruments that mimic the same tone. Use vintage sounding keys, re textured vocal lines and tape saturation. Samples speed up the vibe but they are not required for a track to feel like phonk.

How do I make my 808 cut through on small speakers

Use harmonic distortion to create mid range content. Add a subtle layer an octave higher with short decay to imply sub bass. Use sidechain compression sparingly to create space for the kick without killing sustain. Always check on a phone and laptop speaker to confirm translation.

Can I sell beats that use uncleared samples

Technically you can sell beats with uncleared samples but you risk copyright claims and takedowns. For small scale sales many producers use uncleared samples for demos and lease instrumentals that are mostly original. If you want full commercial distribution or placement get the sample cleared or recreate the part with session musicians or virtual instruments.

What plugins create the phonk vocal effect

Use pitch shifting to drop vocals down one or two semitones. Add tape saturation and a plate reverb. Use slight chorus for width. A low pass filter can remove harshness and create a telephone type tone. Plugins like RC-20, Decapitator, and Valhalla Vintage Verb are favorites for this job.

How do I make my beat sound vintage without making it muddy

Apply subtle tape saturation and vinyl noise. Use EQ to remove mud around 200 to 400 Hz. Use mid side processing to widen highs while keeping low end focused in mono. Less is more. A little dust is charming. Too much dust is a garage sale.

Get Contact Details of Music Industry Gatekeepers

Looking for an A&R, Manager or Record Label to skyrocket your music career?

Don’t wait to be discovered, take full control of your music career. Get access to the contact details of the gatekeepers of the music industry. We're talking email addresses, contact numbers, social media...

Packed with contact details for over 3,000 of the top Music Managers, A&Rs, Booking Agents & Record Label Executives.

Get exclusive access today, take control of your music journey and skyrocket your music career.

Unlock Instant Access