(almost) every sub-genre/beat type in the current underground
\*all of this is subjective for educational purposes only & I might get some of the terms & facts wrong as all of this is from recollection so feel free to correct me🫡.
\*includes some hyperpop sub-genres too due to them coming under the same umbrella post lockdown.
Let's start at the beginning:
\- WLR / Trip At Knight era rage beats- daz some old sht, the colourful synths have aged terribly, but Ken (Project X) & Lone (NOSTYLIST) type beats have more ambience.
\- 2021/22 Rage Beats (misc.)- The BabySantana+Slump6s type beats done aged like milk, but moodier ones like Yeat/KanKan type beats with the bells surprisingly hold up well.
\- Ken Carson AGC era rage beats- self explanatory, worn out overall but still popular for moshpits.
\- Nettspend + OK type beats - newer rage beats with repeated sample chops and more polished distorted 808s & snares.
\- Che/Osamason type beats - very distorted bass heavy evolution of AGC & Carti type beats. Moshpitmaxxing.
\- (Old) plugg / MexikoDro + Cash Carti type beats - spacey underground version of LoFi HipHop based on ZayToven beats, lotta empty room for rapping but quite dated by today's standards. Most influential genre ever in the underground as almost every beat takes up from here
\- (New) Plugg / Pierre Bourne / KA$HDAMI type beats - Die Lit's chill tracks, elements often heard in lotta mainstream artists goo since plugg never really dies & has kept evolving for over a decade.
\- 1300saint / Apollo1Red / sk8star / Tezzus type beats - polished version of rage beats for mainstream appeal, born of Atlanta's Trap influences (Thug, Pluto meets Carti/Opium).
\- Luh Tyler / Nino Paid / Concrete Boys type beat - Mordern bouncy version of BoomBap, suitable for lyrical miracles.
\- Nine Vicious / Izaya Tiji sample type beats- both of them have completely different sound but both have beautiful piano & jazz samples. NineV is more blaring horns, cleaner production, high energy & raw samples, Izaya Tiji is more layered, better for emotional cuts & interludes (ambient plugg that greatly influenced many in the future like 1oneam & tdf).
\- Swapa / Lucki type beats- Absolute mood music & amazing samples, leads with more traditional trap production, gives you plenty space if you wanna really spit some bars.
\- perc40+tdf lildre556 type beats- lowkey one of my fav type beats cuz they have absolutely beautiful piano samples with crazy ass tdf type sound effects & unique drums.
\- perc40+tdf 1oneAM / okaymar type beats- Lullaby melodies to glide over, with signature tdf production. boolymoon specific beats are more "experimental" for comedic relief.
\- maxon margiela type beat- the backbone being the electronic sounds like lead/synth placed on a random mix bag of percussion you'll find, it can anything jerk/trap/rage.
\- Destroy Lonely guitar Clayco type beats- ILCK era beats, the ones with rock samples & slower tempo rage drums. Lowkey one of my fav eras of his, inspiring so many copycats. For faster mosh-ready BPMs, Homixide Lifestyle type beats are just as good.
\- Yeat BNYX 2093 type beats- Back to the future no cap. Cyberpunk level sound design that goes well with both acoustic & trap percussions. Really experimental, but very safe cuz the beat will carry you hard.
\- Pluggnb (XanGang) type beats- extremely versatile beats, rap like the rent's due on interlude beats, go full R&B like autumn, chill rap like summrs, glokk40spaz if you want the beat to carry you or a kankan type beat for ignorantly blissful melodies & hardest snares out of them all.
\- old che / glofromda4 Pluggnb type beat - spacier slower take on normal summrs packrunner beats, less moody, more seducing.
\- kaani / riovaz type beats - Dance the night away!
\- Dom Corleo / HardRock type beats- clam casino type sample chops, cold ambient sounds, EDM inspired synths, Y2K influence, 2000s&2010s samples, nasty 808s.
\- untiljapan acoustic type beats - lone / dom type ambient beats with stripped down cinematic drums.
\- jerk version 1: nettspend xaviersobased yhappoJJ type beats - by far the most versatile beats you can literally do anything. Melodic hooks, choppy flows or precise bars, moshpit-ready, dancefloor-ready.
\- jerk version 2: Kyle Richh jerk drill beats- whatever mainstream artists who end up accidently hopping on jerk drums rap on these cuz drill influence is too easy to come across for the mainstream appeal. Sample driven heavily like traditional NY Drill.
\- jerk version 3: wraith9 + fakemink + esdeekid / YT + FimiGuerrero type beats- UK's fast paced spin on the jerk sound, wraith9(esdee,mink) production is more distorted & sample driven (either breathtaking or menacing), while YT/Fimi type beats are polished takes on the OG jerk sound with cleaner drums and catchier melodies.
\- Jim Legacy afroswing type beats- afrobeat influences from the UK scene with mordern underground sensibilities.
\- evilplugg glokk40 lazer dim type beats - Black air force theme song. underground version of nba youngboy YN type music.
\- newjazz lunchbox type beats- groovy and funky with lush instrumentation, hence the name. late night drive sexy vibes, you won't understand it unless you hear it.
\- glo gang type beats - Chief Keef Mr 300 OBlock's Mozart almighty Sosa himself took 2012 chicago drill and turnt it into a whole new unique sound inspired by Atlanta and Houston's rich Southern Trap sound characterized by horns trumpets cowbells and hard ass 808s, still relevant in 2026.
\- jace glo type beats- took sosa's sound even further by incorporating yeat's bells & mordern 808 patterns. Most glo gang beats you hear in the UG are derived from here.
\- regalia jace! type beats- pluggnb but instead of leads and piano, it's a full on orchestra with violins & cellos.
\- bleood / 2slimey / new che type beat - if black metal happened in 2026. each of these artists have very unique & different beats of their own, with lowkey too much going on. but most potential for virality if executed well.
\- Sematary haunted mound type beats- if calling bleood's sound as black metal, then Sematary is Ozzy Osbourne himself. A mix of Lil Peep & Chief Keef, with a whole lotta distortion & samples fried beyond saturation. Other members of HM have their own unique spins on this sound.
\- slayr burger music rage beats- if the underground rage scene chose to embrace project X's sound instead of AGC's sound, absolutely love the anime samples & gaming soundscapes.
\- 2010 club jerk/ nettspend club type beat - 2015 peak Chris brown moody rnb typa sound with jerk instrumentals.
\- tana / Molly Santana type beats- luxurious sounds, beautiful samples with mainstream trap appeal, really depends on which era & song typo beat you want cuz there's sm versatility.
\- yung fazo young money 2010s type beats - old YMCMB type beats with an underground twist.
\- feng party type beats- actual burger music imo but it's cool. underground frat party of pop drums, jerk patterns & samples that would appeal to listeners outside underground too.
\- tory lanez alone at prom / jace 70s retro type beats - Michael Jackson if he was Gen Z.
\- yung lean / old bladee / black kray (sickboyrari) Lil B cloud rap - the variety in cloud rap type beats is a real rabbit hole in itself and it surprisingly holds up so well being a sound made by lil B in 2010 and it sounds great in 2026 mainly due to being a sample driven sound. Some samples are borderline psychedelic, some ethereal & some downright devious.
\- A$AP Rocky + CLAMS CASINO type beats- Heavy chopped & looped cloud rap beats with wider drum patterns for more spacd. Influenced many future production techniques like those used by Dom Corleo, untiljapan & Destroy Lonely.
\- old pinkpantheress DnB type beats - bedroom pop infused with UK's rave, garage and drum&bass influences. Wish she didn't fully abandoned her old DIY sound cuz it was beautiful.
\- lockdown era brakence midwxst glaive ericdoa type beats - hyperpop version of pop punk cuz mgk type shit don't hold up no more but ts still does.
\- Ninajirachi / Jane Remover / underscores / 100gecs / slayyter type beats- they used to sound the same back in the day everyone has their own sound now tho it's as good as hyperpop gets in the big 2026, again each artist has their own vastly different beats.
\- PC Music / SOPHIE / AG Cook type beats - less melodic, more chaotic. Lowkey has dated a bit since this is what started hyperpop in 2016 & peaked with brat in 2024. But still so much room for experimentation.
\- 2hollis nate sib sorissa type beats - peak Avicii Calvin Harris Skrillex era EDM sounds with underground crashout rage elements. I'm so glad this sound got as big as it thanks to 16 year old underground kids.
\- Bollytekk Reesh/roro/saif type beats- takes the soundscapes of the Ancient Indian Vedas / Puranas & mixes them with elements of rage. Tablas & 808s, Sitars & Synths.
\- 90s jssr lawsy type beats - lowkey one of my favourite type beats. 90s R&B and boombap elements infused into new wave suited song structures & BPM.
\- ECCO2K X bladee X whitearmor type beats- soft fairycore type beats with cloud rap, ambient, cottagecore/folk, and rave/techno elements.
\- bladee WOD cold visions type beats- sounds like a panic attack. same universe as AGC type beats but minimal distortion & higher tempo.
\- bladee ripsquad type beats- brighter upbeat version of dark bladee / yung lean type beats.
\- tohji / mechatok / dj billybool / swedm / bladee type beats- Straight up 2010s house music with proper build up & drop, comprising of bubblegum pop melodies, blaring synths & autotune rap vocals instead of some random unnamed woman.
\- Mura Masa / Cashmere Cat type beats- you cannot rap on this lmao but great for sampling.
\- oklou "galore"/"choke enough" type beats- if you still don't know oklou, search it up, trust me.
\- Yabujin / Hi-C / Reptilian Club Boyz / Nokia Angel type beats- absolute cinema but oddly soothing. chronically online hyper saturated version of cloud rap.
\- Yabujin JumpStyle type beats- I lowkey feel like this finna be the next big thing in the west seeing where the underground is going. Ain't even gon be mad.