DJ genres A to Z

Genre names are loose and overlap a lot, and producers argue about them constantly. Use these one-line descriptions as a starting point for digging. Tempos are typical ranges, not rules. For a quick tempo table, see the BPM chart.

61 terms

A

Acid house

Chicago house built around the squelching Roland TB-303 bassline, from the late 1980s; about 120 to 128 BPM. See Chicago house.

Acid techno

Harder, faster techno using the TB-303 sound; about 130 to 145 BPM.

Afrobeats

Contemporary pop and dance music from West Africa, especially Nigeria and Ghana, with syncopated rhythms; about 95 to 115 BPM.

Afro house

House music with African percussion, chants and melodies, popular in South Africa and worldwide; about 118 to 125 BPM.

Amapiano

South African style with log-drum basslines, jazzy keys and a relaxed groove; about 110 to 115 BPM.

Ambient

Atmospheric music focused on texture rather than beats; tempo often free or slow.

B

Baile funk

Brazilian funk from Rio de Janeiro built on heavy drum machine patterns; about 125 to 135 BPM.

Balearic

Eclectic, sunny, downtempo-to-midtempo music associated with Ibiza sunset sets.

Bass house

House with aggressive, distorted basslines; about 124 to 128 BPM.

Big room

Festival house with huge drops and simple kicks; about 126 to 130 BPM.

Breakbeat

Dance music built on sampled or programmed broken drum patterns instead of a straight kick; about 125 to 140 BPM.

C

Chicago house

The original house sound of 1980s Chicago; about 118 to 128 BPM.

D

Deep house

Warm, soulful house with jazz chords and smooth basslines; about 115 to 124 BPM.

Disco

The 1970s dance music that started club DJ culture; about 110 to 130 BPM. See disco.

Disco house

House built on disco samples and filtered loops; about 120 to 126 BPM.

Downtempo

Relaxed electronic music, often with hip-hop or jazz influences; about 80 to 110 BPM.

Drill

Dark rap style from Chicago and later UK drill, with sliding 808 basslines; often about 140 BPM with a halftime feel.

Drum and bass

Fast breakbeats with heavy bass that grew out of jungle; about 170 to 175 BPM. See jungle and drum and bass.

Dub

Jamaican reggae production style using echo, reverb and stripped-back mixes; about 60 to 90 BPM.

Dubstep

UK bass music with halftime drums and heavy sub bass; about 140 BPM.

Dub techno

Techno with echoing chords and deep, hazy textures; about 120 to 130 BPM.

E

Electro

Funky drum machine music with robotic sounds, rooted in early 1980s hip-hop and electronic music; about 110 to 130 BPM.

Electro house

House with bright, buzzing synths; about 125 to 130 BPM.

F

Footwork

Chicago style with rapid, stuttering drums for competitive dancing; about 160 BPM.

French house

Filtered, disco-sampled house popular in the late 1990s; about 120 to 126 BPM.

Funk

Groove-based 1960s and 1970s music that supplies many breakbeats; about 90 to 120 BPM.

Future bass

Melodic electronic music with lush chords and pitched vocal chops; about 130 to 160 BPM.

G

Garage (US)

Soulful, gospel-influenced house from New York; about 115 to 125 BPM. See garage.

Gqom

South African style with dark, broken kicks and sparse arrangements; about 120 to 126 BPM.

Grime

UK genre with sharp, electronic beats and fast rapping; about 140 BPM.

H

Hardcore

A family of very fast styles, from UK breakbeat hardcore to gabber; about 150 to 200 BPM.

Hardstyle

Dutch style with distorted kicks and euphoric melodies; about 150 BPM.

Hard techno

Fast, distorted modern techno; about 145 to 160 BPM.

Hip-hop

Music built on beats, rapping and DJ techniques, born in the Bronx in the 1970s; about 85 to 100 BPM. See Kool Herc.

House

Four-to-the-floor dance music born in Chicago; about 118 to 130 BPM.

I

Italo disco

Synth-driven European disco of the late 1970s and 1980s; about 110 to 130 BPM.

J

Jersey club

Fast, bouncy style from New Jersey with triplet kicks and chopped vocals; about 130 to 140 BPM.

Jungle

Early 1990s UK style with chopped breakbeats and reggae bass; about 160 to 170 BPM.

L

Leftfield

Experimental or unconventional dance music that does not fit neat categories.

Liquid drum and bass

Melodic, soulful drum and bass; about 170 to 175 BPM.

M

Melodic techno

Emotional, synth-driven techno; about 120 to 126 BPM.

Minimal techno

Stripped-back techno focusing on small changes in repetition; about 120 to 130 BPM.

Moombahton

Fusion of house and reggaeton rhythms; about 105 to 110 BPM.

N

Neurofunk

Dark, technical drum and bass with processed basslines; about 172 to 176 BPM.

Nu-disco

Modern take on disco with live-sounding instruments and synths; about 115 to 125 BPM.

P

Progressive house

Slowly building, melodic house; about 120 to 128 BPM.

Psytrance

Trance with fast, rolling basslines and psychedelic effects; about 140 to 148 BPM.

R

R and B

Rhythm and blues, from classic soul to modern smooth styles; tempos vary widely.

Reggae

Jamaican music with offbeat guitar chops; about 60 to 90 BPM.

Reggaeton

Latin music with the dembow rhythm; about 88 to 100 BPM.

S

Soca

High-energy music from Trinidad and Tobago linked to carnival; about 150 to 160 BPM.

Soulful house

House with live instruments and soul vocals; about 120 to 125 BPM.

Speed garage

Mid 1990s UK garage with heavy basslines; about 130 to 135 BPM.

Synthwave

Retro 1980s-inspired synth music; about 80 to 118 BPM.

T

Tech house

A blend of house grooves and techno sounds; about 122 to 128 BPM.

Techno

Repetitive, machine-driven dance music born in Detroit; about 125 to 140 BPM. See Detroit techno.

Trance

Euphoric, melodic electronic music with long buildups; about 130 to 140 BPM.

Trap

Hip-hop style with rapid hi-hats and 808 bass; about 130 to 170 BPM, often felt in halftime.

Tribal house

House with heavy percussion and drums; about 124 to 128 BPM.

Two-step (2-step)

UK garage with skippy, syncopated drums; about 130 to 135 BPM. See garage.

U

UK funky

London style mixing house and soca rhythms; about 128 to 132 BPM.