Gqom
House · 2016 · 120 to 128 BPM · also known as Gqom Tech, Sgubhu
Gqom is a dark, stripped down club music from Durban in the early 2010s, built on droning triplets, cavernous drums and almost no round bassline, made on makeshift computers by teenagers in the townships. Emptiness itself is treated as an instrument. DJ Lag and Rudeboyz defined the sound, and the label Gqom Oh! documented it for listeners outside South Africa.
16 reference tracks
- DJ Lag: Ice Drop (2016)
- Babes Wodumo: Wololo (2016)
- Rudeboyz: Mercedes (2016)
- Sbucardo Da DJ: Woza (2016)
- Distruction Boyz: Omunye (2017)
- DJ Lag: Trip To New York (2019)
- Citizen Boy: Gqom Killa (2020)
- Karen Nyame KG: Taboo (2022)
- DJ Lag: Bulldozer (2023)
- DJ Lag & Mr Nation Thingz: Hade Boss (2023)
- Beyoncé & Travis Scott: Delresto (Echoes) (2023)
- RudeBoyz: Get Down
- Kelela & DJ Lag: DJ LAG_ONANON_127 BPM (DJ Lag Remix)
- DJ Lag: Rich Drop
- RudeBoyz: Major Turn Up
- DJ Lag: 16th Step
At a glance
- Tempo: 120 to 128 BPM
- First appeared: around 2016
- Machines: FL Studio, Native Instruments Massive, Roland TR-808
- The sound: Tambours caverneux, Triolets superposés, Cris et chants zoulou samplés
- Labels: Goon Club Allstars, Hakuna Kulala, Gqom Oh!
- Key artists: DJ Lag, Rudeboyz, Distruction Boyz, Babes Wodumo, Citizen Boy
Producing Gqom
Gqom sits between 120 and 130 BPM, though it never reads as a straight four four: the kick is a triplet motif or broken pattern avoiding the downbeat, giving a heavy, lurching pulse with no swing. The kick is the real motif, heavy, cavernous, saturated and reverberated, playing triplet eighths over two beats before silence, often two or three differently tuned kicks answering each other, low toms or muffled snares standing in for a clap. There is almost no bass in the usual sense, the low end held by the kick's own decay and reverb, or a plain sine sub held on one note appearing and disappearing across whole bars. Saturated 808 kicks with long dark reverb, sampled Zulu chants pitched down and delayed, sirens and industrial noise complete a palette poor in elements and rich in space.
The full production course, in French: tempo, drums, bass, sounds, arrangement, mix, plugins and machines, and a step by step start.
Frequently asked
What is Gqom?
Gqom is a dark, stripped down club music from Durban in the early 2010s, built on droning triplets, cavernous drums and almost no round bassline, made on makeshift computers by teenagers in the townships. Emptiness itself is treated as an instrument. DJ Lag and Rudeboyz defined the sound, and the…
What tempo is Gqom played at?
Between 120 and 128 BPM.
Who are the key Gqom artists?
DJ Lag, Rudeboyz, Distruction Boyz, Babes Wodumo, Citizen Boy.
