You can take the funk exercise of this previous blog post and take it a step further. By adding a few notes here and there and a turnaround at the end, it can be developed to get a funky riff.
In addition to the single note attacks in the right hand, some double stops are added to the groove. This creates a change between the C minor and F major chord, which is a typical movement in funk and blues. A walk down from G to Eb at the and of the riff creates a turnaround which leads you back to the beginning of the riff.
To practice this rhythmical interlocking of the hands, start by playing only a few notes from the beginning very slowly. Once you can coordinate one section, add more notes, until you can play the whole riff. Don’t move too fast, otherwise you might get frustrated with the groove.
When you have mastered the back and forth between your left and right hands, you will be able to apply it to other funk tunes as well!