Hip hop production
Encyclopedia
Hip hop production is the creation of hip hop music
. Though the term encompasses all aspects of hip hop music, it's most commonly used to refer to the instrumental, non-lyrical aspects of hip hop. This means that hip hop producers are the instrumentalists involved in a work. Modern hip hop production uses samplers
, sequencers
, drum machines, synthesizers, turntables, and live instrumentation. A hip hop instrumental is casually referred to as a beat, and a hip hop producer is casually referred to as a beatmaker. However, in the studio, a hip hop producer also functions as a traditional record producer
, being the person who is ultimately responsible for the final sound of a recording.
became the first hip hop artist to use a digital sampler, the Fairlight
, in a song. The Roland TR-808
was introduced in 1980. The 808 was heavily used by Afrika Bambaataa
, who released Planet Rock in 1982, which gave rise to the fledgling Electro
genre. An especially notable artist is the genre's own pioneer Juan Atkins
who released what is generally accepted as the first American techno record, "Clear" in 1984 (later sampled by Missy Elliot). These early electro records laid down the foundations that later Detroit techno artists such as Derrick May built upon. In 1983, Run-DMC recorded "It's Like That
" and "Sucker MC's," two songs which relied completely on synthetic sounds, in this case via a Oberheim DMX
drum machine, ignoring samples entirely; much like early songs by Bambaataa and the Furious Five. The E-mu SP-12 came out in 1985, capable of 2.5 seconds of recording time. The E-mu SP-1200
promptly followed with a expanded recording time of 10 seconds, divided on 4 banks. One of the earliest songs to contain a drum loop or break was "Rhymin and Stealin" by the Beastie Boys
, produced by Rick Rubin
. Marley Marl
also popularized a minimal style of using one or two sampled loops in the late 80s. Dr. Dre
with World Class Wreckin' Cru
recorded 'Juice' and 'Before You Turn The Lights Out.'The Akai MPC60 came out in 1988, capable of 12 seconds of sampling time.
The Beastie Boys released Paul's Boutique
in 1989, an entire album created completely from an eclectic mix of samples, produced by the Dust Brothers
using a Emax sampler. De La Soul
also released 3 Feet High and Rising
that year. Their producer at the time, Prince Paul
, mixed sounds from funk, rock, disco and even children's records.
revolutionized the sound of hip-hop with incredibly dense production styles, combining tens of samples per song, often combining breaks with a drum machine. Their beats were much more structured than the early more minimal and repetitive beats. The MPC3000 was released in 1994, the AKAI MPC2000
in 1997, followed by the MPC2000XL in 2000 and the MPC2500 in 2006. These machines combined a sampling drum machine
with an onboard MIDI sequencer
and became the centerpiece of many hip hop producers' studios. The Wu Tang Clan's superproducer RZA
is often credited for snatching the eye of hip hop from Dr. Dre
's more polished sound in 1993, with his more gritty sound with low rumbling bass, sharp snares and unique sampling style based on Ensoniq
sampler . With the 1994 release of The Notorious B.I.G.
's Ready to Die
, Sean Combs
and his assisting producers ushered in a new style where entire sections of records were sampled, instead of short snippets. Records like "Warning" (Isaac Hayes
's "Walk On By"), and "One More Chance (Remix)" (Debarge
's "Stay With Me") epitomized this aesthetic. In the early 2000s, Roc-a-Fella in-house producer Kanye West
made popular the "chipmunk" technique, which had been first used by 80's electro hip-hop group Newcleus
with such songs as "Jam on It". This technique involves speeding up a vocal sample, and its corresponding instrumental loop, to the point where the vocal sounds high-pitched. The result is a vocal sample that sounds similar to the singing of the popular cartoon singing animals "Alvin and the Chipmunks
". West adopted this style from J Dilla
and the Wu-Tang Clan
's RZA
, who in turn was influenced by Prince Paul
, the pioneer of the style of speeding up and looping vocal samples to achieve the "chipmunk" sound.
and the Alesis SR-16. Others yet are a hybrid of the two techniques, sampled parts of drum beats that are arranged in original patterns altogether. Another mainstay in hip-hop is the use of the Ensoniq ASR-10
sampler to provide beats, particularly by The Neptunes
and the MPC 2000.
Some producers have drum kits all their own, such as Dr. Dre
, Timbaland
, DJ Paul
& Juicy J
, Swizz Beatz
and Neptunes. Some drum sounds, such as the TR-808 cowbell, remain as historical elements of hip hop lore used in modern hip hop to lend a more credible and mature sound to the recording.
, which sampled parts of dance act Kraftwerk
and experienced vast public acclaim. This was followed up on in 1986: then-Def Jam producer Rick Rubin
used Black Sabbath
and Led Zeppelin
loops in creating the Beastie Boys
' debut Licensed to Ill
, and the following year rap duo Eric B. & Rakim
popularized James Brown
samples with their album Paid in Full
.
The technique took a bi-coastal turn when discovered by a young Dr. Dre
, whose first gig was the DJ of Afrika Bambaata-esque electrofunk group, the World Class Wreckin' Cru
. In 1988, Dre began his use of sampling in hip-hop when he produced the N.W.A.
album Straight Outta Compton
, a landmark in the genre of gangsta rap
. In 1989, Jazz
-sampling pioneers Gang Starr
followed in 1991 by Pete Rock & CL Smooth
and A Tribe Called Quest
both appeared on the scene, popularizing their brand, and sampling took on a full role in hip-hop, spreading to prominence in high-profile projects like the Wu-Tang Clan
's Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers, Dr. Dre's The Chronic
, Nas' Illmatic
and Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die
.
In the 2000s, sampling began to reach an all-time high; Jay-Z
's album The Blueprint helped put producers Kanye West
and Just Blaze
on the map for their sampling of soul records. Gale: Black History Month., scoring early hits with "Through the Wire
" and "Jesus Walks
." His 2004 album, The College Dropout
, included two sampled hits featuring Twista
which led to the Chicago rapper's Kamikaze
selling platinum. On September 7, 2004, however, a U.S. Court of Appeals in Nashville changed the nature of musical copyright infringement by ruling that a license is needed in every case of sampling, where previously a small portion of the song could be copied without repercussion. The law immediately began rarefying samples in hip-hop; in a 2005 interview with Scratch magazine
, Dr. Dre announced he was moving more toward instrumentation, and in 2006 The Notorious B.I.G.'s 1994 debut album Ready to Die was temporarily pulled from shelves for a retroactive sample clearance issue. As a result, more major producers and artists have moved further away from sampling and toward live instrumentation, such as Wu-Tang's RZA
and Mos Def
.
during the G-funk
era. Modern use of synthesizers is rampant by producers such as Jim Jonsin
, Cool and Dre
, Lil Jon
, Scott Storch
, and Neptunes. Often in low-budget studio environments or environments constrained by space limitations, producers employ virtual Instruments in place of hardware synthesizers. Virtual Instruments are also now becoming more common in high-budget studio environments.
is standard for recording. The portastudio
s 4 tracks cassette recorders was the law in the in-house recording studios in the 80s. Digital ADAT
tape recorders became standard during the 1990s, but have been largely replaced by Digital Audio Workstations or DAWs such as Apple's Logic, Avid's Pro Tools and Stienbergs Nuendo and Cubase. DAW's allow for more intricate editing and unlimited track counts, as well as built-in effects. This allows producers to create music without the expense of a large commercial studio.
It should also be noted that many classic hip-hop songs were recorded with the most basic of equipment. In many cases this contributes to its raw sound quality, and charm.
Popular DAWs include:
. Before samplers and synthesizers became prominent parts of hip hop production, early hip hop hits such as "Rapper's Delight
" (The Sugarhill Gang
) and "The Breaks" (Kurtis Blow
) were recorded with live studio bands. During the 1980s, Stetsasonic
was a pioneering example of a live hip hop band. Hip hop with live instrumentation regained prominence during the late-1990s and early 2000s with the work of The Goats
, The Coup
, The Roots
, Mello-D and the Rados
, Common
, DJ Quik
, and OutKast
, among others. In recent years, The Robert Glasper
Experiment has explored live instrumentation with an emphasis on the instrumental and improvisational aspect of hip hop with rappers such as Mos Def
, Talib Kweli
, Q-Tip, and Common as well as neo-soul singer Bilal Oliver.
without vocals. Hip hop as a general rule consists of two elements: an instrumental track (the "beat") and a vocal track (the "rap"). The artist who crafts the beat is the producer
, and the one who crafts the rap is the MC
. In this format, the rap
is almost always the primary focus of the song, providing most of the complexity and variation over a more or less repetitive beat.
Instrumental hip hop is therefore hip hop music without emcee accompaniment. This format affords the producer the flexibility to create more complex, richly detailed and varied instrumentals, with less emphasis on vocals. Songs of this genre may wander off in different musical directions without the vocal constraints of the MC.
Although producers have made and released hip hop beats without MCs since hip hop's inception, those records rarely became well-known. Jazz
keyboard legend Herbie Hancock
and bassist
/producer Bill Laswell
's electro-inspired collaborations are notable exceptions. 1983's Future Shock album and hit single "Rockit
" featured turntablist Grand Mixer D.ST, the first instance of turntables in jazz fusion
and gave the instrument widespread exposure.
The release of DJ Shadow
's debut album Endtroducing.....
in 1996 saw the beginnings of a movement in instrumental hip hop. Relying mainly on a combination of sampled funk
, hip hop and film score
, DJ Shadow's innovative sample arrangements influenced countless producers and musicians. In recent years, artists such as RJD2
, J Dilla
, Pete Rock
, MF Doom
, Danny!
, Nujabes
, Madlib
, Wax Tailor
, DJ Babu
and Blockhead
have garnered critical acclaim with a number of instrumental hip hop albums.
Instrumental hip hop has yet to be fully recognized as a genre unto itself, and is often clumped in with trip hop
, breakbeat hardcore
, drum n bass, oldschool jungle
, downtempo
, electronica
, or industrial music
. This may in part be because it is so hard to classify, as when a hip hop beat is separated from rapping and varied enough to hold a listener's attention by itself, it can go off in many musical directions.
Due to the current state of copyright laws most of instrumental hip hop releases are being published on small or very small labels. Since Instrumental hip hop is usually made entirely out of samples, the sample clearances are causing major trouble for even relatively unknown labels such as Stones Throw.
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
. Though the term encompasses all aspects of hip hop music, it's most commonly used to refer to the instrumental, non-lyrical aspects of hip hop. This means that hip hop producers are the instrumentalists involved in a work. Modern hip hop production uses samplers
Sampler (musical instrument)
A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...
, sequencers
Music sequencer
The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...
, drum machines, synthesizers, turntables, and live instrumentation. A hip hop instrumental is casually referred to as a beat, and a hip hop producer is casually referred to as a beatmaker. However, in the studio, a hip hop producer also functions as a traditional record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, being the person who is ultimately responsible for the final sound of a recording.
History
1980s
Kurtis BlowKurtis Blow
Kurt Walker , better known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is an American rapper and record producer. He is one of the first commercially successful rappers and the first to sign with a major record label...
became the first hip hop artist to use a digital sampler, the Fairlight
Fairlight CMI
The Fairlight CMI is a digital sampling synthesizer. It was designed in 1979 by the founders of Fairlight, Peter Vogel and Kim Ryrie, and based on a dual-6800 microprocessor computer designed by Tony Furse in Sydney, Australia...
, in a song. The Roland TR-808
Roland TR-808
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer was one of the first programmable drum machines . Introduced by the Roland Corporation in early 1980, it was originally manufactured for use as a tool for studio musicians to create demos. Like earlier Roland drum machines, it does not sound very much like a real...
was introduced in 1980. The 808 was heavily used by Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa is an American DJ from the South Bronx, New York who was instrumental in the early development of hip hop throughout the 1980s. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the three originators of break-beat deejaying, and is respectfully known as the "Grandfather" and the Amen Ra of Universal...
, who released Planet Rock in 1982, which gave rise to the fledgling Electro
Electro (music)
Electro is a genre of electronic dance music directly influenced by the use of TR-808 drum machines, Moog keytar synthesizers and funk sampling...
genre. An especially notable artist is the genre's own pioneer Juan Atkins
Juan Atkins
Juan Atkins is an American musician. He is widely credited as the originator of techno music, specifically Detroit techno along with Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson...
who released what is generally accepted as the first American techno record, "Clear" in 1984 (later sampled by Missy Elliot). These early electro records laid down the foundations that later Detroit techno artists such as Derrick May built upon. In 1983, Run-DMC recorded "It's Like That
It's Like That (Run-D.M.C. song)
"It's like That" is a song by American hip hop group Run-D.M.C. It was first released in 1983 on a cassette backed with the track "Sucker M.C.'s". The release marked the start of Run-D.M.C.'s career and is widely regarded as ushering in a new school of hip hop artists with a street image and an...
" and "Sucker MC's," two songs which relied completely on synthetic sounds, in this case via a Oberheim DMX
Oberheim DMX
The DMX is a programmable digital drum machine introduced in 1981 by Oberheim Electronics.The Oberheim DMX was the second digital drum computer ever to be sold to the public as a product, following the Linn LM-1 in 1980...
drum machine, ignoring samples entirely; much like early songs by Bambaataa and the Furious Five. The E-mu SP-12 came out in 1985, capable of 2.5 seconds of recording time. The E-mu SP-1200
E-mu SP-1200
E-mu SP-1200 is a classic drum machine and sampler released in August 1987 by E-mu Systems, Inc. as an update of the SP-12, which was originally created for dance music producers...
promptly followed with a expanded recording time of 10 seconds, divided on 4 banks. One of the earliest songs to contain a drum loop or break was "Rhymin and Stealin" by the Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
, produced by Rick Rubin
Rick Rubin
Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and the co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records and also established American Recordings...
. Marley Marl
Marley Marl
Marlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...
also popularized a minimal style of using one or two sampled loops in the late 80s. Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
with World Class Wreckin' Cru
World Class Wreckin' Cru
The World Class Wreckin' Cru was an electro group, best known for its contributions to early rap and its association with future-N.W.A member, hip-hop mogul, and renowned producer Dr. Dre.-Early Career:...
recorded 'Juice' and 'Before You Turn The Lights Out.'The Akai MPC60 came out in 1988, capable of 12 seconds of sampling time.
The Beastie Boys released Paul's Boutique
Paul's Boutique
Paul's Boutique is the second studio album by American hip hop group Beastie Boys, released on July 25, 1989, on Capitol Records. Featuring production by the Dust Brothers, the recording sessions for the album took place in Matt Dike's Apartment and the Record Plant in Los Angeles from 1988 to...
in 1989, an entire album created completely from an eclectic mix of samples, produced by the Dust Brothers
Dust Brothers
The Dust Brothers are the Los Angeles, California based, Grammy Award winning producers, E.Z. Mike and King Gizmo , famous for their sample-based music in the 1980s and 1990s, and specifically for their work on the albums Paul's Boutique by the Beastie Boys, Odelay by Beck, and the soundtrack to...
using a Emax sampler. De La Soul
De La Soul
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
also released 3 Feet High and Rising
3 Feet High and Rising
3 Feet High and Rising is the debut album from American hip hop trio De La Soul, released in 1989.The album marked the first of three full-length collaborations with producer Prince Paul, which would become the critical and commercial peak of both parties. It is consistently placed on 'greatest...
that year. Their producer at the time, Prince Paul
Prince Paul
Paul Huston, better known by the stage name Prince Paul, is an American disc jockey and hip-hop record producer. He was also a founding member of the Gravediggaz where he used the name The Undertaker.- Biography :...
, mixed sounds from funk, rock, disco and even children's records.
1990s-Present
Public Enemy's Bomb SquadThe Bomb Squad
The Bomb Squad is an American hip hop production team, known for their work with the rap group Public Enemy. The Bomb Squad are noted for their dense, distinct, innovative production style, often utilizing dozens of samples on just one track...
revolutionized the sound of hip-hop with incredibly dense production styles, combining tens of samples per song, often combining breaks with a drum machine. Their beats were much more structured than the early more minimal and repetitive beats. The MPC3000 was released in 1994, the AKAI MPC2000
MIDI Production Center
Akai MPCs are a popular series of electronic musical instruments originally designed by Roger Linn and produced by the Japanese company Akai from 1988 onward. Intended to function as a powerful kind of drum machine, the MPCs drew on design ideas from machines such as the Sequential Circuits Inc...
in 1997, followed by the MPC2000XL in 2000 and the MPC2500 in 2006. These machines combined a sampling drum machine
Drum machine
A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...
with an onboard MIDI sequencer
Music sequencer
The music sequencer is a device or computer software to record, edit, play back the music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically :...
and became the centerpiece of many hip hop producers' studios. The Wu Tang Clan's superproducer RZA
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
is often credited for snatching the eye of hip hop from Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
's more polished sound in 1993, with his more gritty sound with low rumbling bass, sharp snares and unique sampling style based on Ensoniq
Ensoniq
Ensoniq Corp. was an American electronics manufacturer, best known throughout the mid 1980s and 1990s for its musical instruments, principally samplers and synthesizers.- Company history :...
sampler . With the 1994 release of The Notorious B.I.G.
The Notorious B.I.G.
Christopher George Latore Wallace , best known as The Notorious B.I.G., was an American rapper. He was also known as Biggie Smalls , Big Poppa, and The Black Frank White .Wallace was raised in the Brooklyn borough...
's Ready to Die
Ready to Die
Ready to Die is the debut album of American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released September 13, 1994 on Bad Boy Records. The first release on the label, it features production by record producer and Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chucky Thompson, DJ Premier, and Lord Finesse,...
, Sean Combs
Sean Combs
Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
and his assisting producers ushered in a new style where entire sections of records were sampled, instead of short snippets. Records like "Warning" (Isaac Hayes
Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the...
's "Walk On By"), and "One More Chance (Remix)" (Debarge
DeBarge
DeBarge was a sibling music group of American origin whose repertoire included R&B, soul, funk, and later gospel. Active as a professional recording group from 1979 and 1989, the group was one of the few recording acts to bring success to the Motown label during the 1980s.-Background:Hailing from...
's "Stay With Me") epitomized this aesthetic. In the early 2000s, Roc-a-Fella in-house producer Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
made popular the "chipmunk" technique, which had been first used by 80's electro hip-hop group Newcleus
Newcleus
Newcleus is an American electro and old school hip hop group that gained popularity in the early 1980s. They are primarily known for their 12-inch singles "Jam-On's Revenge", re-released as "Jam on Revenge " , and "Jam on It" ....
with such songs as "Jam on It". This technique involves speeding up a vocal sample, and its corresponding instrumental loop, to the point where the vocal sounds high-pitched. The result is a vocal sample that sounds similar to the singing of the popular cartoon singing animals "Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks (TV series)
Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated television series featuring The Chipmunks, produced by Bagdasarian Productions in association with Ruby-Spears Enterprises from 1983–87, and DIC Entertainment from 1988-90....
". West adopted this style from J Dilla
J Dilla
James Dewitt Yancey , better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan...
and the Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
's RZA
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
, who in turn was influenced by Prince Paul
Prince Paul
Paul Huston, better known by the stage name Prince Paul, is an American disc jockey and hip-hop record producer. He was also a founding member of the Gravediggaz where he used the name The Undertaker.- Biography :...
, the pioneer of the style of speeding up and looping vocal samples to achieve the "chipmunk" sound.
Drum beat
The drum beat is a core element of hip hop production. While some beats are sampled, others are created by drum machines such as the Roland TR-808Roland TR-808
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer was one of the first programmable drum machines . Introduced by the Roland Corporation in early 1980, it was originally manufactured for use as a tool for studio musicians to create demos. Like earlier Roland drum machines, it does not sound very much like a real...
and the Alesis SR-16. Others yet are a hybrid of the two techniques, sampled parts of drum beats that are arranged in original patterns altogether. Another mainstay in hip-hop is the use of the Ensoniq ASR-10
Ensoniq ASR-10
The Ensoniq ASR-10 was a sampling keyboard produced by Ensoniq between 1992 and 1994. It is the keyboard model of the ASR-10R rackmount module. It was a follow up product to the very popular Ensoniq EPS and Ensoniq EPS-16+ performance samplers, and was also available with a piano style weighted...
sampler to provide beats, particularly by The Neptunes
The Neptunes
The Neptunes are a record production duo consisting of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who are credited with contributing the sound for many successful hip hop, R&B and pop artists in the late-1990s and 2000s...
and the MPC 2000.
Some producers have drum kits all their own, such as Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
, Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
, DJ Paul
DJ Paul
Paul Beauregard, better known by his stage name DJ Paul, is an American rapper and record producer from Memphis, Tennessee. He is one half of the current Memphis-based rap group Three 6 Mafia. He is also the half brother of former Three 6 Mafia member Lord Infamous. He won an Academy Award for Best...
& Juicy J
Juicy J
Jordan Michael Houston, better known by his stage name Juicy J is an Academy Award winning American rapper and record producer from Memphis, Tennessee and is the co-founder and a member of the duo Three 6 Mafia . He is also the younger brother of Project Pat...
, Swizz Beatz
Swizz Beatz
Kasseem Dean , better known by his stage name, Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, DJ, rapper and painter. At the age of 17, he gained attention in the hip-hop world through his friendship with rapper DMX. Grady Spivey and rapper Cassidy helped launch his label Full Surface Records...
and Neptunes. Some drum sounds, such as the TR-808 cowbell, remain as historical elements of hip hop lore used in modern hip hop to lend a more credible and mature sound to the recording.
Sampling
Sampling has been integral to hip hop production since its inception. In hip-hop, the term describes a technique of splicing out or copying sections of other songs and rearranging or reworking these sections into a cohesive musical pattern, or "loops." This technique was first fully explored in 1982 by Afrika Bambaata, on the Soulsonic Force tape Planet RockPlanet Rock
Planet Rock may refer to:* "Planet Rock" , a 1982 song by Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force* Planet Rock: The Album, a 1986 album containing the song...
, which sampled parts of dance act Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
and experienced vast public acclaim. This was followed up on in 1986: then-Def Jam producer Rick Rubin
Rick Rubin
Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and the co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records and also established American Recordings...
used Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
and Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
loops in creating the Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
' debut Licensed to Ill
Licensed to Ill
In 1998, the album was selected as one of The Sources 100 Best Rap Albums.It is still the only album by a white hip-hop act to receive the coveted 5 mics from The Source....
, and the following year rap duo Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim were a hip-hop duo composed of DJ Eric Barrier and MC Rakim .Hailing from Long Island, New York, the pair are generally considered by hip hop enthusiasts to be one of the most influential and innovative groups in the genre...
popularized James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
samples with their album Paid in Full
Paid in Full (album)
Paid in Full is the debut album of American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, released July 7, 1987, on the Island-subsidiary label 4th & B'way Records. The duo recorded the album at hip hop producer Marley Marl's home studio and Power Play Studios in New York City, following Rakim's response to Eric...
.
The technique took a bi-coastal turn when discovered by a young Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
, whose first gig was the DJ of Afrika Bambaata-esque electrofunk group, the World Class Wreckin' Cru
World Class Wreckin' Cru
The World Class Wreckin' Cru was an electro group, best known for its contributions to early rap and its association with future-N.W.A member, hip-hop mogul, and renowned producer Dr. Dre.-Early Career:...
. In 1988, Dre began his use of sampling in hip-hop when he produced the N.W.A.
N.W.A.
N.W.A was an American hip hop group from Compton, California, widely considered one of the seminal acts of the gangsta rap sub-genre....
album Straight Outta Compton
Straight Outta Compton
The lyrics on the album were mainly written by Ice Cube and MC Ren. Critics of the album expressed their view that the record glamorized Black-on-Black crime, but the emcees stated that the group was simply showing the reality of living in the areas of Compton, California, and South Central Los...
, a landmark in the genre of gangsta rap
Gangsta rap
Gangsta Rap is a subgenre of hip hop music that evolved from hardcore hip hop and purports to reflect urban crime and the violent lifestyles of inner-city youths. Lyrics in gangsta rap have varied from accurate reflections to fictionalized accounts. Gangsta is a non-rhotic pronunciation of the word...
. In 1989, Jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
-sampling pioneers Gang Starr
Gang Starr
Gang Starr was an influential East Coast hip hop duo that consisted of the late MC Guru and DJ/producer DJ Premier. Their style combined elements of New York jazz and hip hop.-Background:...
followed in 1991 by Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth are a hip-hop duo from Mount Vernon, New York. They made their debut with their 1991 EP, All Souled Out and followed with 1992's Mecca and the Soul Brother LP.-The Golden Age :...
and A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006...
both appeared on the scene, popularizing their brand, and sampling took on a full role in hip-hop, spreading to prominence in high-profile projects like the Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
's Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers, Dr. Dre's The Chronic
The Chronic
The Chronic is the solo debut album of American hip hop artist Dr. Dre, released December 15, 1992, on his own record label Death Row Records, and distributed by Priority Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in June 1992 at Death Row Studios in Los Angeles and at Bernie Grundman...
, Nas' Illmatic
Illmatic
Illmatic is the debut album of American rapper Nas, released April 19, 1994, on Columbia Records. Following his signing to Columbia with the help of MC Serch, recording sessions for the album took place during 1992 to 1993 at Chung King Studios, D&D Recording, Battery Studios, and Unique Recording...
and Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die
Ready to Die
Ready to Die is the debut album of American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released September 13, 1994 on Bad Boy Records. The first release on the label, it features production by record producer and Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chucky Thompson, DJ Premier, and Lord Finesse,...
.
In the 2000s, sampling began to reach an all-time high; Jay-Z
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $450 million as of 2010...
's album The Blueprint helped put producers Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
and Just Blaze
Just Blaze
Justin Smith, better known as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop music producer from Paterson, New Jersey. Blaze is also the CEO of Fort Knocks Entertainment. He is most well known for producing Jay-Z songs on the albums The Blueprint, The Blueprint 2, and The Black Album. He is also known for...
on the map for their sampling of soul records. Gale: Black History Month., scoring early hits with "Through the Wire
Through the Wire
"Through the Wire" is a hip hop song performed by rapper Kanye West from his debut album The College Dropout . Released in 2003 as the album's lead single, it peaked at number fifteen on the Billboard Hot 100...
" and "Jesus Walks
Jesus Walks
"Jesus Walks" is a hip hop song by American rap artist Kanye West. It was released on May 25, 2004 as the third single from his debut album, The College Dropout. The song is built around a sample of "Walk with Me" as performed by the ARC Choir. "Jesus Walks" was well-received by music critics, who...
." His 2004 album, The College Dropout
The College Dropout
The College Dropout is the debut album by American hip hop artist Kanye West, released February 10, 2004, on Roc-A-Fella Records. It was recorded over a period of four years, beginning in 1999. Prior to the album's release, West had worked on rapper Jay-Z's The Blueprint , which showcased his...
, included two sampled hits featuring Twista
Twista
Carl Terrell Mitchell , better known by his stage name Twista, is an American rapper. He is known for once holding the title of fastest rapper in the world according to Guinness World Records in 1992, being able to pronounce 598 syllables in 55 seconds...
which led to the Chicago rapper's Kamikaze
Kamikaze (album)
Kamikaze is the fourth studio album by Chicago, Illinois, rapper Twista which reached the top of the US Billboard 200 album charts in early 2004 based on the success of the lead single "Slow Jamz". It was released on January 27, 2004. The album has received generally positive reviews from critics...
selling platinum. On September 7, 2004, however, a U.S. Court of Appeals in Nashville changed the nature of musical copyright infringement by ruling that a license is needed in every case of sampling, where previously a small portion of the song could be copied without repercussion. The law immediately began rarefying samples in hip-hop; in a 2005 interview with Scratch magazine
Scratch (magazine)
Scratch was a magazine about the art of creating hip-hop. It featured articles regarding producers, musicians and DJs that make beats for rap records, and details the secret methods, stories, partnerships, philosophies and equipment behind the music...
, Dr. Dre announced he was moving more toward instrumentation, and in 2006 The Notorious B.I.G.'s 1994 debut album Ready to Die was temporarily pulled from shelves for a retroactive sample clearance issue. As a result, more major producers and artists have moved further away from sampling and toward live instrumentation, such as Wu-Tang's RZA
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
and Mos Def
Mos Def
Dante Terrell Smith is an American actor and Emcee known by the stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey. He started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, which...
.
Studio parts
A producer's studio is the environment where they produce music. It can be as varied as a four-track sequencer and a collection of tapes or a multi-million dollar studio loaded with advanced sound processing hardware.Synthesizers
Synthesizers are used quite often in hip hop production. They are used for melody, basslines, as percussive stabs, and for sound synthesis. The use of synthesizers has been popularized largely by Dr. DreDr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
during the G-funk
G-funk
G-funk, or Gangsta-funk, is a sub-genre of hip hop music that emerged from Westcoast gangsta rap in the early 1990s. G-funk incorporates multi-layered and melodic synthesizers, slow hypnotic grooves, a deep bass, background female vocals, the extensive sampling of P-funk tunes, and a high-pitched...
era. Modern use of synthesizers is rampant by producers such as Jim Jonsin
Jim Jonsin
James Scheffer, better known by his professional name, Jim Jonsin, is an American Grammy award winning record producer, songwriter, record executive, and entrepreneur...
, Cool and Dre
Cool and Dre
Cool & Dre are a team of hip hop producers from Miami, Florida, consisting of Marcello "Cool" Valenzano and Andre "Dre" Christopher Lyon.-Epidemic Records:...
, Lil Jon
Lil Jon
Jonathan Mortimer Smith , better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, music producer, entrepreneur, and occasional disc jockey who was a member of the group Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz. Lil Jon formed the group in 1997, and the group released several albums between then and 2004...
, Scott Storch
Scott Storch
Scott Storch is an American record producer. He produces a variety of music, particularly hip hop, reggaeton, and R&B. His label, Storch Music Company responsible for signing Brooke Hogan and Nox...
, and Neptunes. Often in low-budget studio environments or environments constrained by space limitations, producers employ virtual Instruments in place of hardware synthesizers. Virtual Instruments are also now becoming more common in high-budget studio environments.
Recording
In hip hop, a multi-track recorderMultitrack recording
Multitrack recording is a method of sound recording that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources to create a cohesive whole...
is standard for recording. The portastudio
Portastudio
The TASCAM Portastudio was the world's first four track recorder based on a standard compact audio cassette tape.When the original Portastudio 144 made its debut in 1979 it was a revolutionary creative tool...
s 4 tracks cassette recorders was the law in the in-house recording studios in the 80s. Digital ADAT
ADAT
Alesis Digital Audio Tape or ADAT is a magnetic tape format used for the simultaneous digital recording of eight analog audio or digital audio tracks at once, onto a Super VHS tape that is used by consumer VCRs.- History :...
tape recorders became standard during the 1990s, but have been largely replaced by Digital Audio Workstations or DAWs such as Apple's Logic, Avid's Pro Tools and Stienbergs Nuendo and Cubase. DAW's allow for more intricate editing and unlimited track counts, as well as built-in effects. This allows producers to create music without the expense of a large commercial studio.
Vocal recording
Generally, professional producers opt for a condenser microphone for studio recording, mostly due to their wide-range response and high quality. A primary alternative to the expensive condenser microphone is the dynamic microphone, used more often in live performances due to its durability. The major disadvantages of condenser microphones are their expense and fragility. Also, most condenser microphones require phantom power, unlike dynamic microphones. Conversely, the disadvantages of dynamic microphones are they don't generally possess the wide spectrum of condenser microphones and their frequency response is not as uniform. Many hip-hop producers typically used the Neumann U-87 for recording vocals which imparts a glassy "sheen" especially on female vocals. But today, many producers in this musical genre use the Sony C-800 tube microphone, vintage microphones, and high-end ribbon microphones tuned for flattering, "big" vocal expression.It should also be noted that many classic hip-hop songs were recorded with the most basic of equipment. In many cases this contributes to its raw sound quality, and charm.
Digital audio workstations
DAWs and software sequencers are used in modern hip hop production as software production products are cheaper, easier to expand, and require less room to run than their hardware counterparts. Some producers oppose complete reliance on DAWs and software, citing lower overall quality, lack of effort, and lack of identity in computer-generated beats. Sequencing software often comes under criticism from purist listeners and traditional producers as producing sounds that are flat, overly clean, and overly compressed.Popular DAWs include:
- Ableton LiveAbleton LiveAbleton Live is a loop-based software music sequencer and DAW for Mac OS and Windows by Ableton. The latest major release of Live, Version 8, was released in April 2009. In contrast to many other software sequencers, Live is designed to be an instrument for live performances as well as a tool for...
- Adobe AuditionAdobe AuditionAdobe Audition is a digital audio workstation from Adobe Systems featuring both a multitrack, non-destructive mix/edit environment and a destructive-approach waveform editing view.-Origins:...
- Apple's Logic ProLogic ProLogic Pro is a hybrid 32 / 64 bit digital audio workstation and MIDI sequencer software application for the Mac OS X platform. Originally created by German software developer Emagic, Logic Pro became an Apple product when Apple bought Emagic in 2002...
- DigidesignDigidesignAvid Audio is an American digital audio technology company. It was founded in 1984 by Peter Gotcher and Evan Brooks. The company began as a project to raise money for the founders' band, selling EPROM chips for drum machines. It is a subsidiary of Avid Technology, and during 2010 the Digidesign...
's Pro ToolsPro ToolsPro Tools is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, developed and manufactured by Avid Technology. It is widely used by professionals throughout the audio industries for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television... - CakewalkCakewalk (company)Cakewalk, Inc. is a company based in Boston, Massachusetts that develops and sells music production software. The company's best known product is their comprehensive music sequencer named SONAR, which is designed for professional use. SONAR incorporates multi-track recording and editing of both...
SONARCakewalk SonarCakewalk SONAR is a digital audio workstation made by Cakewalk for recording, editing, mixing, mastering and outputting audio. The latest versions of the software are SONAR Home Studio 7, SONAR Home Studio 7 XL, SONAR X1 Producer Edition, SONAR X1 Studio Edition, SONAR X1 Essential Edition, and... - SteinbergSteinbergSteinberg GmbH is a German musical software and equipment company based in Hamburg. It mainly produces music recording, arranging and editing software as used in digital audio workstations and VSTi software synthesizers.- History :...
Cubase - Image-Line's FL StudioFL StudioFL Studio is a digital audio workstation developed by the Belgian company Image-Line. FL Studio features a graphical user interface based on a pattern-based music sequencer...
- Propellerhead Software ReasonReason (program)Reason is a music software program developed by Swedish software developers Propellerhead Software. It emulates a rack of hardware synthesizers, samplers, signal processors, sequencers, and mixers, all of which can be freely interconnected in an arbitrary manner...
- SonySony, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
ACID ProACID ProSony ACID Pro is a professional digital audio workstation software program. It was originally called "ACID pH1" and published by Sonic Foundry, but is now developed and sold by Sony Creative Software.... - Apple's GarageBandGarageBandGarageBand is a software application for Mac OS X and iOS that allows users to create music or podcasts. It is developed by Apple Inc. as a part of the iLife software package on Mac OS X.-Audio recording:...
- Motu Inc. Digital PerformerDigital PerformerDigital Performer is a full-featured Digital Audio Workstation/Sequencer software package published by Mark of the Unicorn of Cambridge, Massachusetts for the Apple Macintosh platform.-Ancestry:...
- CockosCockosCockos, Inc is an American digital audio technology company founded in 2004 by Justin Frankel. The company's stated goal is: "to develop software sustainably while preventing profit rationale from forcing engineering compromises...
REAPERREAPERREAPER is a digital audio workstation created by Cockos. It is distributed with an uncrippled evaluation license with a nag screen explaining the license cost. It is currently available for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X...
Live instrumentation
Live instrumentation is not as widespread in hip hop, but is used by a number of acts and is prominent in hip hop-based fusion genres such as rapcoreRapcore
Rapcore is a subgenre of rap rock fusing vocal and sometimes instrumental elements of hip hop with punk rock .-History:...
. Before samplers and synthesizers became prominent parts of hip hop production, early hip hop hits such as "Rapper's Delight
Rapper's Delight
"Rapper's Delight" is a 1979 single by American hip hop trio The Sugarhill Gang. While it was not the first single to feature rapping, it is generally considered to be the song that first popularized hip hop in the United States and around the world. The song's opening lyric "I said a hip hop, a...
" (The Sugarhill Gang
The Sugarhill Gang
The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop group, known mostly for their 1979 hit, "Rapper's Delight", the first hip hop single to become a Top 40 hit. The song uses the instrumental track from the classic hit "Good Times" by Chic as its foundation....
) and "The Breaks" (Kurtis Blow
Kurtis Blow
Kurt Walker , better known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is an American rapper and record producer. He is one of the first commercially successful rappers and the first to sign with a major record label...
) were recorded with live studio bands. During the 1980s, Stetsasonic
Stetsasonic
Stetsasonic was an American hip hop group formed in 1979 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It is remembered as one of the first hip hop crews to use a live band, and the group's positive, uplifting lyrics made it forerunners of alternative hip hop and jazz hip...
was a pioneering example of a live hip hop band. Hip hop with live instrumentation regained prominence during the late-1990s and early 2000s with the work of The Goats
The Goats
The Goats were an alternative hip-hop quartet from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Their members included rappers Oatie Kato , Madd , and Swayzack...
, The Coup
The Coup
The Coup is a political hip hop group based in Oakland, California. It formed as a three-member group in 1992 with emcees Raymond "Boots" Riley and E-Roc along with DJ Pam the Funkstress. E-Roc left on amicable terms after the group's second album but appears on the track "Breathing Apparatus" on...
, The Roots
The Roots
The Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...
, Mello-D and the Rados
Mello-D and the Rados
-Founder:Hip-hop band Mello-D & the Rados was founded by Darnley “Mello-D” Hodge in Richmond, Virginia in 1996. Mello-D was born August 1, 1977 in New Haven, Connecticut. In 1980, he and his family moved to Alexandria, Virginia. At the age of nine Darnley started playing clarinet and saxophone....
, Common
Common (rapper)
Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. , better known by his stage name Common , is an American hip-hop artist and actor....
, DJ Quik
DJ Quik
David Martin Blake , better known by his stage name DJ Quik, is an MC and record producer. According to Quik himself, his stage name reflects his ability to produce records in short time....
, and OutKast
OutKast
Outkast is an American hip hop duo based in East Point, Georgia, consisting of Atlanta native André "André 3000" Benjamin and Savannah, Georgia-born Antwan "Big Boi" Patton. They were originally known as Two Shades Deep but later changed the group's name to OutKast...
, among others. In recent years, The Robert Glasper
Robert Glasper
Robert Glasper in Houston, Texas is an American jazz pianist and record producer.-Career:Glasper’s earliest musical influence was his mother, Kim Yvette Glasper, who sang jazz and blues professionally. She would bring him with her to club dates rather than leave her son with babysitters...
Experiment has explored live instrumentation with an emphasis on the instrumental and improvisational aspect of hip hop with rappers such as Mos Def
Mos Def
Dante Terrell Smith is an American actor and Emcee known by the stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey. He started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, which...
, Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...
, Q-Tip, and Common as well as neo-soul singer Bilal Oliver.
Instrumental hip hop
Instrumental hip hop is hip hop musicHip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
without vocals. Hip hop as a general rule consists of two elements: an instrumental track (the "beat") and a vocal track (the "rap"). The artist who crafts the beat is the producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, and the one who crafts the rap is the MC
Master of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
. In this format, the rap
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
is almost always the primary focus of the song, providing most of the complexity and variation over a more or less repetitive beat.
Instrumental hip hop is therefore hip hop music without emcee accompaniment. This format affords the producer the flexibility to create more complex, richly detailed and varied instrumentals, with less emphasis on vocals. Songs of this genre may wander off in different musical directions without the vocal constraints of the MC.
Although producers have made and released hip hop beats without MCs since hip hop's inception, those records rarely became well-known. Jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
keyboard legend Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
and bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
/producer Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
's electro-inspired collaborations are notable exceptions. 1983's Future Shock album and hit single "Rockit
Rockit
"Rockit" is a song recorded by Herbie Hancock. It was released as a single from his 1983 album Future Shock. The song was written by Hancock, bass guitarist Bill Laswell, and synthesizer/drum machine programmer Michael Beinhorn.-History:...
" featured turntablist Grand Mixer D.ST, the first instance of turntables in jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
and gave the instrument widespread exposure.
The release of DJ Shadow
DJ Shadow
Joshua Paul Davis better known as DJ Shadow is an American music producer, DJ and songwriter. He is considered a prominent figure in the development of instrumental hip hop and first gained notice with the release of his highly acclaimed debut album Endtroducing....., which was constructed...
's debut album Endtroducing.....
Endtroducing.....
Endtroducing..... is the debut studio album by American hip hop artist DJ Shadow. It was released on November 19, 1996 by Mo' Wax Records. The album was conceived as an effort by Shadow to make an album completely based around sampling...
in 1996 saw the beginnings of a movement in instrumental hip hop. Relying mainly on a combination of sampled funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, hip hop and film score
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
, DJ Shadow's innovative sample arrangements influenced countless producers and musicians. In recent years, artists such as RJD2
RJD2
RJD2 is an American music producer, singer and musician. RJD2 was born in Eugene, Oregon, and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He currently resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was signed to the Definitive Jux label where he released two largely instrumental hip hop albums and has produced tracks...
, J Dilla
J Dilla
James Dewitt Yancey , better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan...
, Pete Rock
Pete Rock
Peter Phillips , better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s as one half of the critically acclaimed group Pete Rock & CL Smooth...
, MF Doom
MF Doom
Daniel Dumile is a hip hop artist who has taken on several stage names in his career, most notably MF DOOM, where the "MF" stands for metal face, and for tracks he has produced, metal fingers...
, Danny!
Danny!
Danny!, also known as D. Swain , is an American rap performer and record producer from Columbia, South Carolina, a former student of the Savannah College of Art & Design and, previously, a recording artist for Definitive Jux Records. L.A. Weekly has called Danny! "the best new artist that Def Jux...
, Nujabes
Nujabes
was a Japanese hip hop producer and DJ who recorded under the name , the reverse spelling of his name in Japanese order. Nujabes was also owner of the Shibuya record stores, T Records and Guinness Records and founder of the independent label Hydeout Productions....
, Madlib
Madlib
Otis Jackson Jr. in Oxnard, California, known professionally as Madlib, is a Los Angeles-based DJ, multi-instrumentalist, rapper, and music producer...
, Wax Tailor
Wax Tailor
Wax Tailor is the alias of French trip hop/hip hop producer, Jean-Christophe Le Saoût . He started in 2004 with two EP's . The first album Tales of the Forgotten Melodies was released in March 2005, mixing hip-hop, downtempo, trip-hop with samples extracted from movies...
, DJ Babu
DJ Babu
DJ Babu is a Filipino-American DJ. One-third of the hip hop group Dilated Peoples , Babu is also a member of the Beat Junkies DJ crew, and together with rapper Defari forms the duo the Likwit Junkies. DJ Babu, Evidence and Pharoahe Monch also feature in the song H! Vltg3 on Linkin Park's...
and Blockhead
Blockhead (music)
Blockhead is an American Hip hop producer based in Manhattan, New York. Aside from his solo efforts released on the Ninja Tune label, he is most associated with producing for Aesop Rock, a rapper for the Definitive Jux independent hip hop label. He has also previously worked with rappers C-Rayz...
have garnered critical acclaim with a number of instrumental hip hop albums.
Instrumental hip hop has yet to be fully recognized as a genre unto itself, and is often clumped in with trip hop
Trip hop
Trip hop is a music genre consisting of downtempo electronic music which originated in the early 1990s in England, especially Bristol. Deriving from "post"-acid house, the term was first used by the British music media and press as a way to describe the more experimental variant of breakbeat which...
, breakbeat hardcore
Breakbeat hardcore
Breakbeat hardcore is a derivative of the acid house and techno, of the late 1980s and early 1990s, that combines four-to-the-floor rhythms with breakbeats, and is associated with the UK rave scene.-The rave scene:...
, drum n bass, oldschool jungle
Oldschool jungle
Jungle is a genre of electronic music that incorporates influences from genres including breakbeat hardcore, and reggae/dub/dancehall. There is debate as to whether jungle is a separate genre from drum and bass as many use the terms interchangeably...
, downtempo
Downtempo
Downtempo is a laid-back electronic music style similar to ambient music, but usually with a beat or groove unlike the beatless forms of Ambient music. The beat is sometimes made from loops that have a hypnotic feeling...
, electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
, or industrial music
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
. This may in part be because it is so hard to classify, as when a hip hop beat is separated from rapping and varied enough to hold a listener's attention by itself, it can go off in many musical directions.
Due to the current state of copyright laws most of instrumental hip hop releases are being published on small or very small labels. Since Instrumental hip hop is usually made entirely out of samples, the sample clearances are causing major trouble for even relatively unknown labels such as Stones Throw.