[[[122 BPM]]] [[[(sweet spot for Afrohouse + vogue runway energy)]]]
[[[Key: F# minor or D minor (deep, sexy, and works well with Arabic scales)]]]
[[[2. Sound Palette]]]
[[[Traditional & Arabic Elements]]]
[[[Oud & Kanun plucks]]] [[[(syncopated, microtonal bends)]]]
[[[Ney flute swells in breakdowns]]]
[[[Darbuka & riqq percussion loops]]]
[[[Afrohouse Rhythm]]]
[[[Heavy tribal kick (deep, long tail)]]]
[[[Layered conga & bongos for groove]]]
[[[Offbeat claps with reverb tails]]]
[[[Rolling shakers & tambourines]]]
[[[Vogue Ballroom Energy]]]
[[[Snappy, pitched-up snare hits ("Ha" crashes for vogue drops)]]]
[[[Reverse crash cymbals before kicks]]]
[[[Call-and-response chant moments]]]
[[[Alt R&B & Deep House Layer]]]
[[[Smooth Rhodes chords (minor 7ths & 9ths)]]]
[[[Subby 808 bass layered with warm analog bass]]]
[[[Atmospheric pads for space]]]
[[[3. Structure]]]
[[[1. Intro (0:00 – 0:32)]]]
[[[Lowpass Rhodes chords, subtle kick + shakers]]]
[[[Darbuka pattern slowly fades in]]]
[[[One-shot vocal sample]]] [[[( “Habibi”) teased]]]
[[[2. Build 1 (0:32 – 1:00)]]]
[[[Add bassline with 808 sub punch]]]
[[[Clap + snare accents start]]]
[[[Filter sweeps & riser FX]]]
[[[3. Drop / Hook (1:00 – 1:32)]]]
[[[Full drum kit: kick + 808 + darbuka + claps + snare rolls]]]
[[[Oud melody + Rhodes chords playing in unison groove]]]
[[[Vogue “Ha” crash on every 4th beat for dancefloor hype]]]
[[[4. Verse / Groove Section (1:32 – 2:04)]]]
[[[Strip drums to kick + congas + Rhodes]]]
[[[Vocal chant repeats]]] [[[(“Layali, Layali, Yalla, Yalla”)]]]
[[[Kanun fills between vocal phrases]]]
[[[5. Build 2 + Main Drop (2:04 – 2:45)]]]
[[[Percussion fills + vogue snare rolls]]]
[[[Louder “Ha” crashes + bass growl]]]
[[[Rhodes gets brighter, melody doubled by synth plucks]]]
[[[6. Outro (2:45 – 3:20)]]]
[[[Drums fade to darbuka solo]]]
[[[Last vocal chant echoes into reverb]]]
[[[4. Extra Production Tricks]]]
[[[[Sidechain Rhodes & Pads to the kick for deep house bounce]]]]
[[[[808 Bass Glides between notes for R&B sensuality]]]]
[[[Stereo Panning on Claps for club-width]]]
[[[Quarter-tone pitch bends in melodies for authentic Arabic feel]]]
[[[Ballroom Vogue Snare Fill:]]]
[[[[1-e-&-a with snare rolls + crash for dramatic “pose” moments]]]]
HeartMusic2025
