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Fair Use Borrowing In Music Was the Norm Among Classical Musicians In the Eighteenth Century —…
Borrowing didn’t just occur randomly in music in eighteenth century England, it was standard practice, even for great composers the likes of Bach and Mozart:
o…
Sampling, AI Training, and Fair Use: The Misplaced Notion of Ethical/Non-Ethical Training
Immediately after any new major technological advancement emerges, people take sides. They become entrenched in hardcore positions that are based more on their…
Fair Use and the Music Industry
With regards to fair use and the music industry, particularly as it pertains to sampling, there has been a huge disconnect between what fair use is — i.e. its…
Originality and the Presumption of A Proprietary Authorial Impulse
What if I told you that your concept of originality isn’t really your own, would you believe me? What if I told you that the concept of originality that you…
Musicianship (Creativity) Above Technology
The mythology of music making gives cover to those who make music. Put another way, most musicians benefit from the aura of authority and perceived genius,…
Grandmaster Flash Battled Mozart At the Fever, and Mozart Got Burned
A note about the title of this article:
Battles are an important part of hip hop culture. In hip hop/rap music specifically, head-to-head battles have taken…
Fair Use Borrowing In Music Was the Norm Among Classical Musicians In the Eighteenth Century —…
Borrowing didn’t just occur randomly in music in eighteenth century England, it was standard practice, even for great composers the likes of Bach and Mozart:
o…
Sampling, AI Training, and Fair Use: The Misplaced Notion of Ethical/Non-Ethical Training
Immediately after any new major technological advancement emerges, people take sides. They become entrenched in hardcore positions that are based more on their…
Fair Use and the Music Industry
With regards to fair use and the music industry, particularly as it pertains to sampling, there has been a huge disconnect between what fair use is — i.e. its…
Originality and the Presumption of A Proprietary Authorial Impulse
What if I told you that your concept of originality isn’t really your own, would you believe me? What if I told you that the concept of originality that you…
SOURCE MATERIAL
Sample Flips: Diamond D – “The Hiatus” (Prod. By Diamond D)
Diamond D is a producer and a rapper from The Bronx, New York who came up in the '90s. He is one of the original members of the hip hop collective D.I.T.C. The collective featured Lord Finesse, O.C., Big L, Fat Joe, Buckwild, Showbiz and A.G. Diamond D was known for his beats, but he also rhymed. In 1992, he released his debut solo album,…
SAMPLING & COPYRIGHT LAW
Fair Use and the Music Industry
With regards to fair use and the music industry, particularly as it pertains to sampling, there has been a huge disconnect between what fair use is — i.e. its fundamental purpose and what it was intended to protect— and what most music professionals falsely claim that it is. Since 1998, when the RIAA had its kerfuffle with the sample-based music…
SOUL CONTROL
Soul Control: Isaac Hayes – “Soulsville”
"Soulsville," from the movie Shaft. This is my favorite Isaac Hayes joint. The scene in Shaft where this song plays is so appropriate. The images — which are certainly no Hollywood props, but instead real glimpses of early 1970s impoverished Harlem — are heartbreaking and encouraging at the same time. And what makes this montage rise and resonate…
FUNK THAT GOES
Funk That Goes: The Meters – “Soul Machine”
Formed in 1967 in New Orleans, The Meters are among the founding architects of funk music. One listen of "Soul Machine" by The Meters, and you will recognize the roots of the hip hop/rap music. Drums and rhythm galore. What also stands out is the arrangement and the way The Meters keep the groove. Around the 0:16 mark, pay careful attention to…
SAMPLE FLIPS
Sample Flips: Diamond D – “The Hiatus” (Prod. By Diamond D)
Diamond D is a producer and a rapper from The Bronx, New York who came up in the '90s. He is one of the original members of the hip hop collective D.I.T.C. The collective featured Lord Finesse, O.C., Big L, Fat Joe, Buckwild, Showbiz and A.G. Diamond D was known for his beats, but he also rhymed. In 1992, he released his debut solo album,…
Stable & Fresh
Check This: Showbiz & AG – “Fat Pockets”
When Showbiz & AG dropped "Fat Pockets" in 1992, I hadn't yet owned an Akai S950. I was still a teenager, and technically I couldn't even get into The Fever (infamous Bronx nightclub) yet. Even still, I used to roll up to the Bronx, at least once every week, just hoping to bump into Show, Fat Joe, AG, ANYBODY FROM DITC or Forest projects and…
EDITOR'S CHOICE
Sampling, AI Training, and Fair Use: The Misplaced Notion of Ethical/Non-Ethical Training
Immediately after any new major technological advancement emerges, people take sides. They become entrenched in hardcore positions that are based more on their opinion (what they feel) and far less on fact. And more often than not, the immediate reaction is that the new technology is bad for artists and creativity.
Centuries ago, when print…
What Is De Minimis?
De minimis — which is short for the Latin maxim de minimis non curat lex: “the law cares not for small things” or “the law does not concern itself with trifles” — is a legal…
Gensu Dean: Production Master, Music Traveler, Perennial Record Borrower
What comes across the most when speaking with Gensu Dean is a sense of community. Not simply how much he cares for the beatmaking community, but how many individuals in this…
Fair Use Borrowing In Music Was the Norm Among Classical Musicians In the Eighteenth Century — Before “Nuisance” Lawsuits Began
Borrowing didn’t just occur randomly in music in eighteenth century England, it was standard…
Sampling, AI Training, and Fair Use: The Misplaced Notion of Ethical/Non-Ethical Training
Immediately after any new major technological advancement emerges, people take sides. They become…
Fair Use and the Music Industry
With regards to fair use and the music industry, particularly as it pertains to sampling, there has…
Originality and the Presumption of A Proprietary Authorial Impulse
What if I told you that your concept of originality isn’t really your own, would you believe me?…
Musicianship (Creativity) Above Technology
The mythology of music making gives cover to those who make music. Put another way, most musicians…
Grandmaster Flash Battled Mozart At the Fever, and Mozart Got Burned
A note about the title of this article:
Battles are an important part of hip hop culture. In hip…
Musicianship (Creativity) Above Technology
The mythology of music making gives cover to those who make music. Put another way, most musicians benefit from the aura of authority and perceived genius,…
Grandmaster Flash Battled Mozart At the Fever, and Mozart Got Burned
A note about the title of this article:
Battles are an important part of hip hop culture. In hip hop/rap music specifically, head-to-head battles have taken…
Hip Hop/Rap Art Music vs. Club Music; Favoritism vs. Empirical Evidence: How Taste and Sonic…
Marley Marl, Easy Mo Bee, DJ Premier, RZA, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, Large Professor, DJ Quik, DJ Toomp, J Dilla, Madlib — These are all important figures in the…
Source Material As A Black Cultural Space: The Link Between Continuum Record Collections and the…
Marley Marl, the father of hip hop/rap’s music modern beatmaking tradition and the man who spearheaded hip hop/rap music’s major sampling era, remembers his…
Classic Samples: Nas – Illmatic
Illmatic, arguably the greatest hip hop/rap album ever recorded, features some of the biggest pioneering names in the history of beatmaking: DJ Premier, Large Professor, Pete Rock (of Pete Rock & CL Smooth), Q-Tip (of a Tribe Called…
Check This: Showbiz & AG – “Fat Pockets”
When Showbiz & AG dropped "Fat Pockets" in 1992, I hadn't yet owned an Akai S950. I was still a teenager, and technically I couldn't even get into The Fever (infamous Bronx nightclub) yet. Even still, I used to roll up to the Bronx, at…
Fresh Ears & Classics: Black Moon – ‘Enta Da Stage’
Editor’s note: I'm a strong advocate for music that stands the test of time. When new music is released in a particular period, each subsequent generation of listeners is entitled to its own opinion of the music that became before them.…
The Old New: Bronze Nazareth’s ‘School for the Blindman’
BeatTips Rating: 5/5
"Roll dice in old piss" —Bronze Nazareth
We often like and celebrate an album because of its power to take us somewhere. The vivid images that it calls up; the memories that it inspires; the emotions that it…