The way to Create a Great Rap Song


It's probably fair to state that hip-hop continues to be the most globally influential kind of music since some young wag stepped on Elvis's blue suede shoes. Starting out as a voice for African-American and Latin communities in the us, hip-hop soon spread and became the soundtrack for the 80's, 90's as well as the new millennium. Hip Hop 2017 Annually its influence and penetration increase, from commercials to films, and from charts to bars. Within this section I'll explain the fundamentals of hip-hop production as well as 20 need to know ideas to make the best hip-hop tracks possible.

BEATS AND LOOPS

With hip-hop its all about the beats - so get inspired!

Beats will be the backbone of all hip-hop. You may be into the cheeky one-two of Dre's Eminem productions or perhaps the juddering steps of Dj Premier, you need to be sure that if nothing else is playing, your beat still stands up to scrutiny. As US comic Chris Rock input it: "If the beat's alright, they'll dance all night."

As we've already seen, hip-hop beats started off as breaks from records, beatboxes and sampling drum machines, so its super easy for hip-hop produced on a computer to sound just a little lifeless. Live playing and clever quantisation can fix this, though. The main trick is to ensure that it stays sparse and when there is a basic groove going, try obtaining different percussive hits before adding more.
Also, its important to make it simple. Should you pay attention to professional hip-hop productions, you'll notice that its rare for just two different percussive elements to play at the same time - unless its a layered clap and snare, and even then they'll alternate on the bar or two between both playing and then just one or another. You'll also hear many parts were a guitar being a shaker only plays for a small, and specific section of a looped bar, nearly as if the different percussive elements are taking turns. This really is no coincidence, as hip-hop culture is all about this kind of connection. Wether its DJs, MCs or breakdancers, hip-hop is, at its core, relating to this type of forwards and backwards interaction, and also this transfers to each and every production element including beats.

Detail by detail the drums

1-The first thing I really do when working on beats is set down a hi-hat pattern. Usually , I really do an eighth-note pattern and then go back and change it if necessary after I've laid down one other parts.

2-Next up will be the kick and snare . I have them simple at first because I know that I'll be utilizing a drum loop underneath. I start with a drum loop and add extra kicks and snares to bolster it. The kick and snare are both sounds that I re-use on many tracks.

3-Next I'll put in a sampled kick and snare to reinforce the stock kick and snare sounds. As a result the beat sound a little thicker and grimier. I additionally leave a little bit of 'air' around the tail end - this acts like 'sonic glue', giving the beat a more sampled feel.

4-The basic beat is now complete capable to send to the arrange screen, later on I'll use this pattern being a template for other sections of the song, were I'll add snare fills and rolls.

Detail by detail The loop

1-When using sampled breaks, I ensure they're either royalty-free, original approximately obscure they wont be recognized. This way I dont need to bother about sample clearance. I am a fan of busy drums so I'll usually choose an action packed two-bar drum break.

2-Now you have to match the tempo of the drum break for the tempo of your song. This can be achieved with any beat-slicing program.

3-Later on, after you've added vocals and such this can be drum break, were its needed during your song.

MELODIES, STABS, SAMPLES AND SYNTHS
Just like every other kind of music, hip-hop's gotta have hooks

Melody or bass: it's tough to state what type you can start focus on first, because hip-hop are at its best when its simple - great tracks frequently have a bassline but no melody or vice versa. And quite often the bassline is the melody.

Most hip-hop remains constructed with samples as the main musical hooks, but while these samples were, for some time, more often than not sections from classic records, nowadays they're usually a lot more obscure, edited and processed. Its not enough any longer to sample a piece off a 1980's rare groove hit and whack it over a beat.

While hip-hop remains greatly a sample-based discipline, there are numerous excellent synth-hop tracks available. If you have heard Kelis' milkshake, you will know how funky a great synth line can sound with the appropriate tight beats.

The critical thing to remember is not to over-egg your production pudding. For away one thing readily available lessons, its that hip-hop is meant to be simple but effective, so always try obtaining sections or notes prior to starting adding more. And don't forget hip-hop is about bringing seemingly disparate elements toegether - Run DMC's sampling of Aerosmith on Walk This Way, as an example - so dont be afraid to experiment. Even harp solos and steal band recordings make excellent melodies in the right hands.

Finally take into account that in hip-hop you can never head to far wrong if the riff plays about the first beat of a bar, is quickly muted, after which picks up again from across the third beat. Seriously, it is a winning formula - give it a try!

BASS,BASS,BASS

Busy, bouncing or otherwise not at all... its your decision!

While many other sorts of electronic music are only concerned with the ups and downs (well, in frequency terms, anyway), hip-hop definitely works from your waist down, and is all about punchy mids and high bass. Whenever you pay attention to a well produced hip-hip tracks in a club, the bass will shake the area to its core, frequently even more than much harder dance styles.

You will find three logic behind why hip-hop could possibly get away with having such heavy frequencies without it sounding like a muddy mess. First, the tempo is very slow, giving much more room for individual notes to breath. Second, the constitute of hip-hop is significantly sparser, often just a straightforward beat and bassline throughout. And third, the bass patterns are generally not as busy as other genres and therefore are often played so low the pitch of human notes aren't an easy task to recognize.

Naturally, there are a number of b-line flavours in hip-hop, however these days basslines are often used just to reinforce the beats, layered underneath, or at the conclusion of every few bars, creating one more groove under that of the beats. The golden guideline for hip-hop basslines would be to treat them as the second percussive element, instead of a melodic one. So that as with any drum pattern, everything you rule out is generally a lot more important than you allow in.

WHAT KIND OF BASS?

The issue of whether or not to keep the bassline simple or funky is a tricky one, and depends largely about what type of hip-hop you're making fast and funky Pharcyde-style tunes than you will get away with far more bouncy basslines. Similarly, in case you are sampling a huge of your famous record, you'll be able to bring your lead from that. But also for most other types of contemporary hip-hop, the bassline is a less complicated affair. Hip Hop 2017  If theres some type of sampled or played melody, then your bassline will most likely play in accompanying bursts. Another traditionally used trick is always to have simple sub-bass stabs every couple of bars, and then a complete bassline in the chorus. In fact, sometimes there's not even any bassline inside a track whatsoever.

Finally, for those smokers available, Cypress Hill as well as other similar artists were pioneers from the deep, slow and simple rolling bassline. Definely someone to consider. In short, the important thing with hip-hop bass is to keep it very sub-bass oriented and simple.