rimshot

A rimshot is a percussion technique in which a drummer strikes the drumhead and the rim of the drum at the same time, producing a sharp, bright crack. It most commonly occurs on the snare drum, where the stick hits both the head and the rim near the edge, though it can be performed on other drums or with rim hardware. The resulting sound is characterized by a pronounced attack and short sustain, making it useful for accents, punctuation, and emphasizing rhythmic cues. In notation, rimshots are indicated with percussion symbols or a note marked with an instruction to rimshot.

Rimshots are a standard part of many drum kits and are used across genres such as jazz, rock, and pop to cut through a mix. They can be executed with various sticking approaches, including off-center hits to alter tone or rim tension to modify brightness. In electronic production, rimshots are also widely used as sampled sounds or as triggerable events within drum machines and software, allowing the effect without a live drummer.

The term rimshot also appears in comedy and entertainment, referring to a sound effect used after a joke. The familiar onomatopoeia is often described as “ba-dum-tss,” representing a combined drum hit (and typically a cymbal accent) used to punctuate humor. While the musical rimshot is a deliberate acoustic technique, the comedic rimshot is typically produced as a recorded sound or live drum moment for effect.