Funk Strumming Pattern (Sixteenth Notes)

161 strumming patterns from beginner to funk and Bollywood, played with real chords, with slow motion and a moving strum hand.

Sixteenth-note down-ups that never stop, with a chuck on 2 and 4: the core funk rhythm. Written in arrows it is DUDU XUDU DUDU XUDU.

The player above plays it at 92 BPM over a single C chord. Press Start to hear it, or slow it down to see each stroke.

How to count Funk sixteenths

Count	1	e	&	a	2	e	&	a	3	e	&	a	4	e	&	a
Strum	↓	↑	↓	↑	✕	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	✕	↑	↓	↑
Hand	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑	↓	↑

Say the count out loud and strum only on the bold words: 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a

↓ down · ↑ up · ✕ chuck (muted) · B bass note · b second bass note · bold: accent · dashed: palm-muted · underlined: short. The last row is the strumming hand, which keeps moving even where nothing sounds.

DUDU XUDU DUDU XUDU fills all sixteen sixteenth-note slots in the bar: eight down and eight up. Four strokes fall on the beat and twelve between beats. The bar ends with an up strum on the “a” of 4: many players let go of the chord there and change while the open strings ring.

Playing it

The hand never stops: sixteen strokes a bar, down-up, whether they sound or not. Keep the fretting hand ready to release pressure at any moment for the chucks.

Up strums

On every “e” and every “a”, brush the top three or four strings, a little softer than the downs.

Accents

Hit beat 2 and beat 4 harder (the bold arrows), with a bigger swing rather than a tighter grip.

Chucks

On beat 2 and beat 4, strum with the strings muted for a dry “chk” instead of a chord.

Practise it step by step

Rhythm only: mute the strings with your fretting hand and play it while saying “1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a”.
Hold C, set slow motion to ×0.5 (46 BPM) and play along until four bars in a row are even.
Loop the trickiest moment on its own: the change from the up to the chuck on beat 2.
Normal speed at 56 BPM, counting “1 e & a” with the hand moving on every sixteenth.
Stay on C until the groove settles, then try Em only, changing every 2 bars.
Up 4 BPM at a time to 92 BPM, then toward 115 BPM for faster songs.

At 92 BPM a bar lasts 2.61 seconds and you play 368 strokes a minute. Slow motion at ×0.5 brings that down to 184.

Chords to try

C only Em only Am – Dm – E

Funk guitar is a percussion part. The hand moves in sixteenth notes the whole time, most strokes are muted scratches, and the open chords that cut through are placed exactly against the bass and drums. Many funk songs stay on one or two chords for minutes.

One step away

Make the accented chuck on beat 2 a down, and make the accented chuck on beat 4 a down and you have Sixteenth down-ups (DUDU DUDU DUDU DUDU).

Change it in the pattern builder

Common questions

How do you count the Funk sixteenths strumming pattern?

Count “1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a” and play down on beat 1, up on the “e” of 1, down on the “&” of 1, up on the “a” of 1, accented chuck on beat 2, up on the “e” of 2, down on the “&” of 2 and up on the “a” of 2, and so on.

What tempo is Funk sixteenths played at?

92 BPM here, 368 strokes a minute. Learn it near 56 BPM; songs with this feel usually sit between 85 and 115 BPM.

Is Funk sixteenths good for beginners?

It is intermediate: the hard part is the change from the up to the chuck on beat 2. Get D DU D DU and D DU UDU steady first, then take this one from 56 BPM.

How do I play the chucks in Funk sixteenths?

Lift your fretting fingers just enough that the strings stop sounding, or let your strumming palm land on them as you strum. It should sound like a snare drum.

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