what exactly makes music “funk”, or “funk-y”?

Question

I was showing a musician friend of mine some songs I’m listening to, and he told me: you like funk music.
I do have an idea of what kind of music is funk, and I have heard of James Brown before. However, I couldn’t say what the distinguishing features of funk music are. I have no background in music or musical theory at all.

So – what exactly defines funk music?

In: Other

Answer 1

Syncopation and swing are some of the main things that make music feel “funky”.

Swing refers to the idea of playing some notes or beats a little bit later than they would be when played “straight”. This gives the music a loose feel, making things sound a bit more playful.
If you want to hear this kind of effect on its own, try listening to some Swing music: https://youtu.be/62ZSQUyU00s?si=jUrzxRwg1bHkiTVM
Notice how things feel bouncy, and if you try to tap the groove, you’ll naturally group two taps together, like “tap patap patap patap” rather than just “ta-pa-ta-pa-ta”.

Syncopation is the idea of layering different time signatures within the groove. Part of the groove will be in 4/4 (most music you listen to is in 4/4) hitting each beat, but others parts might be in 3/4 or something else, with their “beat” shifting around.
This is quite common in some electronic music genres, like House. An artist who does this a lot is Deadmau5, it’s particularly notable in his track “Closer”: https://youtu.be/52Nla2rMuvA?si=dDv9fUxW2mtp84c2
Notice how the tune is shifting around the beat, creating an effect where the main beat is stable, but there’s a strange interaction with the tune that feels stable, yet also morphing over time.

Funk doesn’t swing as much as Swing, nor does it go all-in on syncopation like Deadmau5 does, but it uses these techniques to generate a “funky” groove, playful and loose, with interesting patterns between the drums, bass, guitars, horns, and vocals.
Funk is often played on the Blues scale, giving it a jazzy feel too, and features a lot of staccato (quick & short notes rather than sustained notes), and puts a lot of emphasis on the drums and bass in particular, typically featuring slapped bass and other flourishes rather than letting the bass sit in the background.
Hear how this all comes together with the one and only James Brown in Get On Up: https://youtu.be/BCCkb6k_aow?si=2IjcSl9mmtgkZo0D