Learn to playMove On Upas made famous by Curtis Mayfieldon drums
Start with driving eighths, then lock the kick to the melody. Add sixteenth-note snare runs without breaking stride, until you're the reason the track lifts.
With our step-by-step drum lesson you can recreate the beat behind Move On Up. We’ve broken down the main sections of the song and will take you through each part beat by beat, with video demonstrations.
Move On Up
Drums Tutorial - Step by Step
Verse
Set up the band with 2 hits on the snare. Play 1/4 notes on the hi-hat pedal throughout. Use double strokes at the beginning of each fill.
Chorus
Use alternating hands to play the snares on beats 2-&-a and 4-&-a, while your main snare hand fills in the other 1/16 notes.
Verse 2
Now move beat 2-a to the hi tom. Play a 6-stroke roll for the final fill - R-L-L-R-R-L.
Chorus 2
Vary up the pattern, using the grooves from the first chorus and verse 2. There is another 6-stroke roll fill at the end, playing crashes on beats 1 and 2.
Outro
Now ride out on the Chorus 2 groove, and finish on the crash with the horn melody.
Combine and play
Combine the sections to play the full arrangement.
Learn to play
Move On Up
with Melodics
Behind the track
Move On Up
by Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield recorded "Move On Up" in 1970 as the first single of his solo career, stepping out from The Impressions after more than a decade writing and singing hits as part of the group. The track ran over eight minutes in its full album version - nearly unheard of for a soul release at the time - built around a rolling groove that never really resolves so much as it keeps ascending. It became a cornerstone of Chicago soul and went on to be one of the most sampled recordings in hip-hop history. Mayfield played all the guitar parts himself, wrote the string arrangements, and produced the whole thing on his own terms.
Tips for learning Move On Up on drums
Tip 1: Slow it down
Break it down: Tackle each section of Move On Up 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
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FAQs
- Move On Up is an advanced level song. Fortunately, there are beginner versions of the song available on Melodics to check out!
- You will need 4 way independence and advanced 1/16 note dexterity between snare and ride.
- 139 bpm
- 4/4
- B minor
- 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.