Hip-hop today has many different production methods used to craft the beats we hear. Today, we'll discuss some of these different methods in order to give you some ideas of how you can change up your production style. Feel free to experiment with some these popular production methods used in hip-hop:
Sampling: This style goes hand in hand with hip-hop ,and it is not going anywhere. Like the name suggests, sampling takes little pieces of music from other artists and adds a drum layer to it to give the song a hip-hop feel. Sampling can range from looping over a large segment of a song to only using micro-portions of a song and combining it with other samples to make an entirely new song. Some famous sample-driven artists include Puffy and the Hitmen, DJ Premiere, RZA, and Kanye West.
Layered Sampling: This style is very similar to sampling, except original layers of music are added on top of the sample. The resulting song sounds more original and less sampled as a result. A lot of Trackmaster's records follow this style.
Synth-Based: At the opposite end of the spectrum from sampling is synthesizer-based beats where electronic synths and drum machines are used to make beats. This style of production reigns supreme in the south and this line of production descends directly from Afrika Bambaata who pioneered the sound in hip-hop's infancy.
Interpolation: This has a close relationship to sampling except actual musicians are used to play the sample instead of taking a segment from an existing record. This gives the producer more flexibility with the sample ,and it gives the song a live feel. The pioneer of this production style is Dr. Dre.
Live Instruments: Hip-hop started off as an electronic art form, however, as it continues to evolve, it has shown potential to become an art that can thrive with live instruments as well. Like the name suggests, live instruments and musicians are used to produce original music. This is not to say that synths aren't used, because they are. The core difference is that the song recordings are usually played live in a studio versus using midi, and there is usually a real drummer versus a drum machine. The Roots are the most prominent band with this style of production.
Hip-hop has a variety of production styles and a good producer will experiment with many different styles in order to make him/herself more versatile.
Sampling: This style goes hand in hand with hip-hop ,and it is not going anywhere. Like the name suggests, sampling takes little pieces of music from other artists and adds a drum layer to it to give the song a hip-hop feel. Sampling can range from looping over a large segment of a song to only using micro-portions of a song and combining it with other samples to make an entirely new song. Some famous sample-driven artists include Puffy and the Hitmen, DJ Premiere, RZA, and Kanye West.
Layered Sampling: This style is very similar to sampling, except original layers of music are added on top of the sample. The resulting song sounds more original and less sampled as a result. A lot of Trackmaster's records follow this style.
Synth-Based: At the opposite end of the spectrum from sampling is synthesizer-based beats where electronic synths and drum machines are used to make beats. This style of production reigns supreme in the south and this line of production descends directly from Afrika Bambaata who pioneered the sound in hip-hop's infancy.
Interpolation: This has a close relationship to sampling except actual musicians are used to play the sample instead of taking a segment from an existing record. This gives the producer more flexibility with the sample ,and it gives the song a live feel. The pioneer of this production style is Dr. Dre.
Live Instruments: Hip-hop started off as an electronic art form, however, as it continues to evolve, it has shown potential to become an art that can thrive with live instruments as well. Like the name suggests, live instruments and musicians are used to produce original music. This is not to say that synths aren't used, because they are. The core difference is that the song recordings are usually played live in a studio versus using midi, and there is usually a real drummer versus a drum machine. The Roots are the most prominent band with this style of production.
Hip-hop has a variety of production styles and a good producer will experiment with many different styles in order to make him/herself more versatile.
About the Author:
Frank Lubsey is a hip-hop producer and jingle composer for the Jam Sonic sound crew. Visit his site for hip-hop beats for sale and to purchase beats.
No comments:
Post a Comment