808

Hip-hop beat foundation

The 808 is a Roland TR-808 drum machine, released in 1980, whose deep bass kick and crisp snares became foundational to hip-hop, electronic, and pop music.

By extension, 808 refers to the distinctive booming bass sound it produces: Those 808s hit hard.

The term appears in song titles and lyrics as shorthand for heavy bass production.

hip hop

bass

Deep pitch or fish

  • kickFoot-delivered strike
  • boomLoud deep sound
  • trapDevice for catching animals

beat · producer · sample · sub · trunk · rattling · Kanye · T-Pain · Lil Wayne · Atlanta

drum machine

Roland

Music equipment brand

  • kickFoot-delivered strike
  • snareDevice for catching prey
  • hi-hatPedal-controlled cymbal pair

cowbell · clap · handclap · toms · bass drum · analog · synthesizer · sequencer · programming · beat

Hawaii

Honolulu

Hawaii's largest city

  • OahuThird-largest Hawaiian island
  • MauiHawaiian island, tourist hotspot
  • KauaiHawaiian archipelago's fourth largest

Waikiki · Kilauea · volcanoes · lei · luau · hula · poi · mahalo · lanai · Molokai

Categories
Opposites
sound source

808hand drums

Skin-topped percussion struck manually

congas · bongos · djembe · tabla · drum kit

production era/aesthetic

808unplugged

Disconnected from power

analog recording · Motown sound

musical genre association

808marching drums

Portable percussion for processions

Phrases
Family

808s

Familiarity
Top 1,000,000
Profile
Concrete · Rated G