MIDI GenieHow to Make a MIDI Beat for Your Vocals with AI
Short answer
Open Create in MIDI Genie, attach your vocal (an acapella, a hum or a voice note) and choose A vocal on its own. MIDI Genie reads the melody as MIDI notes. Pick the bars to build on, the key, the tempo and a set of chords, press Use this melody and chords, and ask for a beat. You get drums, bass and chords as MIDI written around your melody, that you play with your vocal and drag into any DAW.
A loop gives you a finished sound. MIDI gives you the notes: every drum hit, bass note and chord, on any instrument you like, in your own DAW. If you want to shape the beat yourself, swap sounds, or change one note in bar six, a MIDI beat built around your vocal is the way to go. This guide walks through it step by step, from a raw vocal to MIDI tracks in your project.
What you need
- A vocal on its own: an acapella, a sung or rapped hook, or a hummed idea, as a WAV or MP3 up to 20 MB and three minutes. No vocal yet? Hum one into the free Sing or Hum to MIDI tool first (see below).
- A free MIDI Genie account. New accounts get 20 free credits, no card needed.
- Any DAW: the beat is standard MIDI, for FL Studio, Ableton Live, Logic Pro, Cubase, Studio One, Reaper and the rest.
Why a vocal on its own? The melody is read note by note from your voice. With a beat or bass playing behind it, the notes come out wrong, so MIDI Genie checks first and tells you if it hears drums or bass under the voice.
How to make a MIDI beat for your vocals, step by step
Step 1: Open Create and attach your vocal
Log in at app.midigenie.com and open Create. Press Attach, or drop your WAV or MP3 onto the page. MIDI Genie asks What is it? Choose A vocal on its own.
Have a full song or a beat instead? Choose A full song or beat: it's listened to for its key, tempo and feel when you send, and used as a reference rather than read as notes.
Step 2: Pick the part of your melody to build on
MIDI Genie reads your melody as MIDI notes, right in your browser, and shows them with the part to build on highlighted: the bars you sing most often, usually your hook. Choose 4 bars, 8 bars or 16 bars, tap the notes to move the part, or nudge it a bar with ‹ ›. Press Play this part to hear it.
Step 3: Check the key, tempo and chords by ear
Under the notes you'll find everything the beat is built on. Play the part and listen:
- Key: three suggestions, likeliest first. If the chords clash with your voice, try another.
- Tempo: when two tempos are possible, both are offered. Turn on Click, play the part, and keep the one your vocal sits in. ÷2 and ×2 fix half or double time.
- Chords: sets of chords to try under your vocal, from Safe to Richer (or None). Tap one to hear it under your voice, and keep the one that sounds right. The beat is built on it.
- Hear: set how loud the click, your vocal, the melody and the chords play, to focus on one at a time.
If a note was read wrong, press Edit the notes to fix it in the piano roll. Then press Use this melody and chords.
Step 4: Describe the beat you want
Your melody and chords are now your own music in the session, read note for note, and the message box starts with A full beat around my melody:. Finish the sentence with the style, the mood and the sounds, then press Send. The credits it uses show on the button first.
Ideas to finish the sentence with:
- warm Afrobeats with log drums, shakers, a round bass and soft Rhodes
- a gospel groove with organ, a walking bass and live-feel drums
- a laid-back lo-fi beat with brushed drums, upright bass and a dusty electric piano
- an orchestral build with strings, low brass and big cinematic drums
- smooth R&B with a deep bass, finger snaps and lush pads
Step 5: Hear the beat with your vocal
A few moments later the beat appears as MIDI tracks: your melody and chords, untouched, with the new parts written around them (drums split into kick, rim, hats and more, plus bass and keys in this example). Press Play with With your vocal on to hear the beat under your actual voice, in step. If your vocal sits a touch early or late against the beat, nudge it with ‹ › beside In time, and set its level with the slider.
Step 6: Change anything in plain words
Not quite there? Type what to change and send it. Each change refines the beat as it is now; your melody stays as it was. For example:
- make the drums busier in the second half
- swap the Rhodes for warm strings
- give the bass more bounce, with slides
- drop the drums out in bar 5 for a breakdown
To write only one part, tag it with @ on its track. Every result is kept as a take, so you can always go back.
Step 7: Drag the MIDI into your DAW
Drag the whole beat into your DAW from Drag MIDI into your DAW at the top (or click it to save a .mid file), or drag single tracks by their own handles. Set your project to the same tempo, put your vocal on an audio track, and load each MIDI track onto the instrument you like. From here it's your beat: change any note, sound or part.
No recording yet? Hum it into the free tool
If the melody is only in your head, hum or sing it into Sing or Hum to MIDI, free and with no sign-up. It turns your voice into MIDI in your browser, finds the part you sing most, and lets you download the MIDI. Press Build a full beat around it to open MIDI Genie with that part attached, ready for step 4.
MIDI beat or audio loops?
| MIDI beat (Create) | Loops | |
|---|---|---|
| What you get | Separate MIDI tracks: drums, bass, chords and more | A finished audio loop (WAV) |
| Sound | Any instrument in your DAW | Ready to use as it is |
| Editing | Change any note, part or sound | Trim the bars, shift the key, nudge it |
| Best for | Producing the beat yourself | A fast, finished groove under your vocal |
Want audio instead? Follow the guide to making a beat for your vocals with loops that fit.
Tips for a better MIDI beat
- Record the vocal dry. No beat behind it, little reverb, a quiet room. Cleaner voice, cleaner notes.
- Build on the hook. Four or eight bars of your strongest part make a stronger beat than a whole verse.
- Choose the chords by ear. They decide how the beat feels; tap each set under your voice before you use it.
- Name the genre and two or three sounds. Then refine one thing at a time.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | What to do |
|---|---|
| "This sounds like it has a beat or bass in it" | Use the acapella version of your vocal. If it really is just a voice, press Read it anyway. |
| A few notes were read wrong | Press Edit the notes and fix them in the piano roll before you use the melody. |
| The beat feels twice as fast or slow | Back in the picker, try the other tempo, or press ÷2 or ×2. |
| Your vocal sits early or late against the beat | Nudge it with ‹ › beside In time. |
Frequently asked questions
Can AI make a beat from my vocals?
Yes. MIDI Genie reads your vocal's melody as MIDI notes and writes drums, bass and chords around it, in your vocal's key and tempo, as MIDI you can edit and drag into your DAW.
Can I turn a hum into MIDI?
Yes. Hum, sing or "la la la" your idea into the free Sing or Hum to MIDI tool or attach a recording in Create. It follows the notes of your voice, not the words, so humming works.
Is the vocal to MIDI part free?
Turning your voice into MIDI with Sing or Hum to MIDI is free, with no sign-up. Building the beat around it uses credits, and new accounts get 20 free credits to start.
Does it work with a full song?
Not for reading the melody: that needs the vocal on its own. You can still attach a full song or beat as a reference, and MIDI Genie listens to it for its key, tempo and feel.
Which DAWs does the MIDI work in?
All of them. It's standard MIDI on your tempo grid, for FL Studio, Ableton Live, Logic Pro, Cubase, Studio One, Reaper and any other DAW.
Can I use the beat in my releases?
Yes. You own what you make in MIDI Genie and can use it in your releases, commercially or not, with no credit needed. See the Terms for the details.
Is my vocal kept private?
Yes. Sing or Hum to MIDI reads your voice in your browser and never uploads it. In the web app, what you attach stays private to your account.
Related tools
- Make a beat for your vocals with loops: audio loops that fit your vocal.
- Sing or Hum to MIDI: a hum or an acapella to MIDI, free.
- Chord finder: the chords of any song, free.
- Start from your own music: everything you can attach in Create.
Keep reading
Published 21 October 2026.