riddim

Definitions

1. An instrumental version of a song in Jamaican or Caribbean music, usually with a drum pattern and a prominent bassline, meant to be reused as a backing track in other productions.
   countable, uncountable
2. A subgenre of dubstep known for its heavy use of repetitive and minimalist sub-bass and triplet percussion arrangements.
   countable, uncountable

Examples

“From very early on ‘riddims’ have⟳ been the core of reggae music, and been seen as reusable. But deejay and later dancehall has taken this tendency to what some people consider⟳ an obsessive extreme. The apotheosis, or nadir, of the recycled riddim came in 1985, the year of ‘Sleng Teng’, which gave birth to the hard, modern dancehall sound⟳ of the computerised, digitalised, drum machines.”

“Artists from 50 Cent to the Prodigy have⟳ worked Sleng Teng into their oeuvres. To date⟳, more than 200 versions (vocal interpretations) of the riddim (the instrumental backing track) have⟳ been released.”

CEFR level