Learn to playGive It Awayas made famous by Red Hot Chili Pepperson drums
Give It Away features a strong driving beat, with Chad Smith's signature sloshy, accented hi-hat and big snare fills. A syncopated kick pattern locks in with the bass.
With our step-by-step drum lesson you can recreate the beat behind Give It Away. We’ve broken down the main sections of the song and will take you through each part beat by beat, with video demonstrations.
Give It Away
Drums Tutorial - Step by Step
Intro and verse
Pick up on the snare on beat 3-a. Lay down the groove, with 1/16 note kicks throughout. Play a fill after 3 bars, and simplify the kick pattern for the verse.
Chorus
Continue the groove, watching for the snare fills in bars 4 and 8.
Solo
Continue the groove, watching for the crash variations in bar 4, and finishing on a syncopated snare fill.
Verse 2
Continue the groove through the second verse. Watch for the snare variation in bar 8, followed by a crash.
Chorus 2
Continue the groove, watching for the fill variations. In the last bar, use two hands to play the hi-hat following the syncopated snare fill.
Outro
Groove out with fills for the outro. Begin the final fill on beat 3, playing the triplets on the snare, and finishing with a crash on beat 3 of the next bar.
Combine and play
Now combine the sections to play the full arrangement.
Learn to play
Give It Away
with Melodics
Behind the track
Give It Away
by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Give It Away features funky, interlocking guitar and bass rhythms, with a strong driving backbeat groove by drummer Chad Smith. A reversed guitar solo brings an otherworldly, psychedelic feel to the song.
Vocalist Anthony Kiedis delivers irreverent lyrics in a pseudo rap style, with a bombastic energy that matches the rest of the band. The titular refrain happens towards the end of the song, riding out with the band improvising and delving deep into the hypnotic groove.
Tips for learning Give It Away on drums
Tip 1: Slow it down
Break it down: Tackle each section of Give It Away individually for precision mastery. With Melodics, you can slow the pace of the song and work up to full speed.
Tip 2: Review your performance
Identify growth areas: Listen to playback of your performance to learn where you need to develop your timing, technique & rhythm. Melodics provides instant feedback on your performance.
Tip 3: Practice makes perfect
Stay consistent: With regular, focused practice you'll see rapid progress when learning the song. Even a short session each day will make a huge difference.
- Get access to 100s of interactive lessons and popular songs
- Instant feedback on your performance and tracking of your progress
- The fun and effective way to stick to your drum kit
Other popular songs available in Melodics
Easy - Commodores
Lay back with this breezy swung groove from Lionel and the gang.
Running Up That Hill - Kate Bush
Get those toms galloping up that hill with this viral cult classic hit.
Chop Suey - System of a Down
Move between half, regular and double time in this heavy rock hit.
FAQs
- Give It Away is an intermediate difficulty song. Fortunately, there are beginner versions of the song available on Melodics to check out!
- You will need a strong sense of groove, and understanding of basic syncopation.
- 91 bpm.
- 4/4.
- New songs are released every week on Melodics! And we love to take requests - the best place for this is within our Discord community where you can also connect with other music learners around the world. Check out https://melodics.com/info/community.