The Best Plugins to Produce Drift Phonk Beats
By now you’ve probably heard of drift phonk. Inspired by Memphis rap, this music genre became popular recently through - among other things - its use on TikTok. That’s right, this music sounds cool when you put it over videos of cars drifting at night on wet pavement. A blend of lofi trap and electronic music, phonk is in the same class as vaporwave, chillwave, lofi beats, and all those trends of the past decade. It’s cool when music sounds weird and degraded. Whether you're making drift phonk, or the OG Memphis kind, you don’t need many plugins. You could probably get by with a free 808 cowbell sample and a bunch of stock plugins. Still, it’s fun to use pro VSTs to make whacky sub-genre tracks, so here are a few of my favorite plugins I use to make my phonk beats.
The Best Plugins to Produce Drift Phonk Beats
1. Nepheton 2 | D16 Group
2. TAL-Sampler | TAL
3. SubLab XL | Future Audio Workshop
4. ShaperBox 3 | Cableguys
5. Pigments | Arturia
6. SynthMaster 2 | KV331 Audio
7. Arcade | Output
8. Decapitator | Soundtoys
9. RC-20 Retro Color | XLN Audio
10. Comeback Kid | Baby Audio
1. Nepheton 2 | D16 Group
The main thing you need to make phonk is that percussive synth sound that leads the track. Of course, you could use any synth to create a similar plucky sound, but if you really want to play by the rules, you’ll need a TR-808 - or at least an emulation.
That’s right, the sound you hear is in fact an 808 cowbell sample that is played chromatically like an instrument. You can find a plethora of cowbell samples out there (including some pretty solid ones on Splice.) But, if you want to create a unique sound, you might as well go to the source.
Having a TR-808 plugin in your arsenal is never a bad idea. From R&B to trap, most drum sounds you hear on modern tracks come from the illustrious instrument. Think of those hi hats cascades you hear in everything, that’s an 808 hat.
The best VST emulation of the 808 is probably Nepheton 2 from D16 Group. I highly recommend it, it’s the next best thing to owning one!
For more options - including free ones - check out my post dedicated to the TR-808 right here.
2. TAL-Sampler | TAL
To play that cowbell sound, you’re gonna need a sampler.
Now, you don’t need to go out of pocket for one of those. All modern DAWs have a sampler included somewhere. For example, I use Ableton Live and I love Simpler, a very powerful tool despite what its name suggests.
If you’d like to go further though, you can try TAL-Sampler. A very interesting plugin with a lot of sonic capabilities that aims to recapture the fun and the magic of old school samplers from the 80s and 90s.
3. SubLab XL | Future Audio Workshop
Next up, you’re going to need some bass to add to your beat. For this, I’d recommend SubLab XL.
Filled with mix ready 808, sub basses, reeses, this little powerhouse has a distinctive and very versatile sound that will soothe your needs.
SubLab XL has a great synth engine and all the modulation you want to create a deep and crunchy low end. The presets are pretty inspiring as well, including the sounds created by Richie Souf, a multi-platinum producer who has worked with cool artists like Future and Playboi Carti.
SubLab XL can also do the lofi blown-out bass thing, so it’s perfect for that phonk sound.
4. ShaperBox 3 | Cableguys
To get that slick pumping bounce to a phonk beat, it doesn’t hurt to add a side-chaining effect to your basses and your synths. ShaperBox 3 can do that… and so much more.
The same way you can automate a volume dip on your instrument, you can also create pretty much any pattern on pretty much any modulation with this bad larry.
In a phonk beat, I’d definitely dock the volume everywhere, and mess with the saturation and the pan to create a weird and edgy feel.
5. Pigments | Arturia
If you’re like me, you probably don’t really care about what’s under the hood of a synth. Sure, Pigments has a brilliant sound engine, and a versatile modulation section, but for the moment, you’re probably just curious to know how it sounds.
With more presets than you might ever need, I’m happy to report that Pigments sounds really dope! Modern, edgy, weird… These are just a few of the words that come to mind when I pull it up on a beat.
Arturia proved that they could do more than just emulate classic synths with this VST. Pigments is super creative, and that’s what makes it a perfect instrument for phonk. I highly recommend you add this one to your tool box.
6. SynthMaster 2 | KV331 Audio
If Pigments isn’t enough, you can turn to SynthMaster 2.
Better known by EDM producers than hip hop beatmakers, this is an incredible synth that can provide you all the feels of classic analog instruments, as well as all those sharp frequencies you can expect from modern synthesizer plugins.
I like this one for phonk because it can give you great leads and pads that will cut through the mix and bring some neon colors to your sonic universe.
7. Arcade | Output
Phonk is characterized by all sorts of weird samples and soulful vocal chops.
'My go-to for all those off-the-cuff little ear candy remains Arcade by Output, a sample powerhouse that is quickly becoming the GOAT.
Arcade has great vocal bits that will liven your phonk tracks, and it also includes a diverse and modern modulation section to get some cool vibes going.
I’d recommend venturing out of the beaten path and exploring one of their many ranges to find unexpected samples to hide in the background of your phonk jams, too. It will help you make them multidimensional and extra trippy.
2 other things I like about Arcade: 1) I like how it locks in the tempo and the key of your session so you don’t have to fiddle around with sounds, leaving you more time and energy to be creative. And 2), I love how new sounds get added all the time, so you don’t have to reuse the same ones over and over.
8. Decapitator | Soundtoys
Phonk is all about that fuzzy and muffled saturation.
To get the perfect distortion on all of your elements, I’d recommend Decapitator. It’s super simple to use, and it adds a lot to the power to a track.
Just pick your color of saturation, dial in the right amount of drive and fine-tune the tone. That’s it.
Whenever I feel like a track is a little boring, I put Decapitator on every track and listen to it come alive.
9. RC-20 Retro Color | XLN Audio
A good drift phonk kinda sounds like it’s coming out of a busted speaker, and there are no better plugins out there to get that effect than RC-20 Retro Color.
RC-20 gives you that vintage feel of drifting, warbly tape modulations shine in a way that almost feels like a caricature. Add to that a modern reverb module that cuts through the mix, and controls for the tone, the EQ and the width of your sound…
What you have here is a phonk machine. Friends don’t let friends drift without it.
And since phonk is all about experimenting, I’d recommend trying to put RC-20 on your whole master and circling through presets. It might not always work, but sometimes it might give that extra lofi edge to your bangers!
10. Comeback Kid | Baby Audio
Finally, to get the echo-y bounce of phonk, it helps to have the right delay VST.
There are many great delays out there - EchoBoy and Galaxy Tape Echo being some of my personal favorites - but when it comes to phonk, I need something modern, left-field and creative.
The VST developer Baby Audio is synonymous with creativity, and Comeback Kid is the proof. This really cool delay plugin comes loaded with a bunch of super usable presets, and it’s one of those VSTs that doesn’t sound like the recreation of a vintage module.
This one is its own thing, baby. And it’s a must-own for every modern producer out there.