Remove the drums from a song and play along

A drumless version of any song you own is a few minutes away: PadLoop splits it on your phone into vocals, drums, bass and other, and you mute the drums. The original bass, vocals and chords stay. You play it in sections of up to 30 seconds, looped if you like: ideal for working on one passage at a time. It all happens offline. Split a song is part of the full version, and you can try it free for 7 days.

Watch the video on its own page →

Transcript

1. 0:00 Pick any song from your phone
2. 0:02 It is split right on the phone, offline
3. 0:05 4 parts: vocals, drums, bass and the rest
4. 0:10 Just the vocals
5. 0:16 Or just the beat
6. 0:21 Put the parts on your pads
7. 0:24 …and remix the song live

Into the drummer's seat

1. In the SAMPLE tab tap Split a song and pick the track: the first time PadLoop takes you to the plugins, so download Stem split and come back.
2. Wait a few minutes inside the app until the Vocals, Drums, Bass and Other rows appear.
3. Drag the window at the top onto the passage you want to play, up to 30 seconds.
4. Tap the ► on the Drums row: you hear the drummer alone, with nothing masking the kick and snare.
5. Tap the speaker on the same row to mute the drums, then hit Play section and play in the drummer's place.

One thing: keep the 4 parts view. In Vocals + beat the drums are mixed into the beat and can't be muted on their own. The split song stays in Your split songs, so tomorrow it opens without waiting.

Learn the groove before you replace it

A good drummer doesn't play "something like it": they play that part. Isolated, the drums tell you everything. You hear where the kick lands, which snare hits are full and which are barely touched, when the hi-hat opens.

Here's the routine. Listen to the Drums row alone two or three times, until you can hum it. Bring everything back and play along with the real drummer using Play section: if you lock together, you're ready. Then mute them and hold the time yourself. If a hit escapes you, go back to the isolated drums and replay just that spot, narrowing the window. Watch the fills between verse and chorus above all: they're the first thing you forget, and the thing the rest of the band waits for.

A groove that never stops

Want to play for ten minutes on the same loop? Tap Pad on the Bass row and the section lands on a pad. Then in the PAD tab tap the pencil (the button that edits pads), open that pad and under Mode choose Loop: one tap sets it going forever, another stops it.

Why the bass? For a drummer it's the most useful part: it carries the time and the accents, and keeps you glued to it. Other carries the chords, handy for hearing where the chorus arrives.

A tip: start and end the window on the first beat of a bar (a group of four beats: 1, 2, 3, 4), so the loop doesn't limp. Bass and chords together take two pads and the sequencer: the karaoke backing track page walks you through it.

Transcript

1. 0:00 Pad modes: how each pad plays
2. 0:01 A normal vocal: tap and it plays to the end (One-shot)
3. 0:03 Pencil, Direction: Reversed. The same vocal, backwards
4. 0:10 Mode: While held. The loop plays only while your finger is down
5. 0:20 Loop: one tap starts it, one tap stops it

Is the passage too fast?

Open the pad with the pencil and under Tempo choose In time with the project: PadLoop finds the section's BPM (beats per minute) on its own. Then lower the BPM in the top bar. The loop slows down and the key stays put. It works best within about 30%: raise it a few beats at a time as your hands catch up.

Acoustic kit, e-kit or pads?

Acoustic kit. Plug the phone into a speaker loud enough to hear over the cymbals, or use closed-back wired headphones.

Electronic kit. If it has USB MIDI out, you can usually connect it to the phone like a controller (MORE → MIDI). For pieces that don't land on the right pad there's Map key → pad: hit the drum pad, choose the app pad and the mapping is saved.

Just the phone. Bank A (a page of 16 pads, free forever) already has kick, snare, hi-hats, toms and crash. Tap low on a pad for a full hit, higher up for a soft one. To train your fingers, see the finger drumming page.

Want the song's own hits? Tap Edit (the sliders icon) on the Drums row, choose a loop and tap Split on hits: kick, snare and cymbals land on neighboring pads, up to 16. In order you get the groove back; in a new order you get one of your own.

Transcript

1. 0:00 Sample a loop and play it in pieces
2. 0:01 SAMPLE tab: Import a file
3. 0:06 Pick a groove from your phone: WAV, MP3, M4A, FLAC or OGG
4. 0:08 Listen to it in the editor: the handles trim it
5. 0:16 Split on hits: the app finds 16 hits
6. 0:23 Pick the first pad: bank E, pad 1
7. 0:30 16 pieces on 16 pads: played in order, the groove comes back
8. 0:39 Change the order: repeat the bar, stutter, make it yours

Hearing yourself back

If you play on the pads, Record performance captures everything coming out of the app, backing included, for up to 30 minutes: a WAV to listen back to or send to your teacher. Like the split, it's part of the full version and works during the trial: your practice session as a file, backing and all. An acoustic kit goes through the microphone instead, which only records into looper tracks: the live looping page shows how.

Good to know

• To play in time, go wired or use the speaker. Bluetooth headphones add a delay of 100 to 300 milliseconds: with a cable the hit sounds when you strike it.
• What it takes: the Stem split plugin (79 MB, downloaded once), at least 3 GB of RAM on Android or 4 GB on iPhone, and a file of up to 6 minutes saved on the phone; full details on the Split a song page.
• Rights: practicing at home is fine with any song; publishing the separated backing needs the rights, as Split a song explains.

Questions about removing drums from a song

How do I remove the drums from a song?

Open SAMPLE in PadLoop, tap Split a song and pick the track. A few minutes later you have four rows: mute the Drums one and the song plays without them.

Where can I get drumless tracks to practice with?

Make them from songs already on your phone, so you practice the exact track you care about. The Ready beats work too: the 18 classic ones keep their drums on track 1, and the 6 complete ones give each instrument its own track: load one and mute the drums by tapping their track. Both are part of the full version and included in the 7-day trial.

Does it work without internet?

Yes. You need a connection once, to download the Stem split plugin; after that your phone does the separation, even in a rehearsal room with no signal, and the song stays on the device.

Can I slow the song down to practice a passage?

Yes: put the part on a pad set to In time with the project and lower the BPM in the top bar. It slows down without dropping in pitch, best within about 30%.

Is anything left of the drums?

Sometimes a few cymbal hits, mostly from low-quality files or live recordings. A good file and a sparse arrangement give you a clean backing.

Can I use an electronic drum kit?

Usually yes, if it has USB MIDI out: connect it to the phone like a controller and it plays PadLoop's pads over the backing. MIDI stays free after the trial.

Can I post a drum cover over the drumless track?

For practice at home any song is fine. The backing is still someone else's recording, though: putting it in a public video requires the rights.

Last updated: 21 October 2026