Cross-Generational Jam Sessions: The Main Reasons Why Sample-Based Beatmakers (producers) Sample

Every musician, every artist, working from within a specific tradition or medium makes the decision whether or not to stick to or scale away from the fundamental techniques and philosophies of that tradition or medium. In this way, sample-based beatmakers (producers) are no different. We make the choice to create beats in a way that help us maintain a connection to the hip hop DJ style and allows us to use the backbone compositional technique of hip hop/rap music.

Although the DJ’s role in hip hop/rap music has been dramatically reduced from its heyday — when the DJ was the music’s figurehead and chief composer — the essence of the hip hop DJ lives on through sample-based beatmakers (producers). And although recent electronic music production tools have helped to bring about new approaches and techniques for making beats, the fundamental process of digging for and finding new songs and other source material to flip remains the same for most sample-based beatmakers (producers).

There’s also the sound of sampling itself. Sample-based beatmakers (producers) are drawn to the one-of-a-kind sound and sonic quality that only older songs can provide. We sample for the one-of-a-kind “blue notes” that appear on old songs, especially the blue notes heard on soul and funk songs. (In Chapter 8, I describe in more detail what blue notes are.) The blue notes that we hear on the songs cannot be replayed with the exact same feel or the exact technique.

So what’s literally being sampled is a moment in time, a sound being performed by an individual representing the most monumental era’s in the history of Western popular music. What’s being sampled is not simply a disposable musical part that can simply be replayed in a modern recording studio by today’s musicians.

So the very essence of the sampling aesthetic is not only about engaging with history, it’s also about sampling rare musical moments (even mistakes), from rare musicians who were recording music under circumstances vastly different than today. So the sampling aesthetic allows sample-based beatmakers (producers) to make music with older generations; it allows sampled-based beatmakers (producers) to play with musicians from eras gone by. And from out of these cross-generational jam sessions, if you will, emerges new music.

The preferred music eras among most sample-based beatmakers (producers) is situated roughly between 1960 and 1975. For those of us who prefer to sample soul, funk, and rhythm & blues in particular, we like the feeling that this particular music gives off. We like our grooves and rhythms to cook with soul and feeling. And the sound of the ‘60s and ‘70s represents a sonic quality that deeply appeals to us. Not to mention the fact that these years represent exceptional achievement in Western popular music. Thus, the sound of these periods share one important common characteristic: An analog sound and feel that can’t truly be duplicated today.

Besides the fact that current recording, engineering, and mastering trends lean heavy towards the digital side of things, the other reason why it’s difficult to re-create the sound that so many sample-based beatmakers (producers) prefer is the fact that the talent pool of musicians, who could reference or approach an specific historical sound with all of the nuance and resonance of that era and moment in time, is limited. There are simply not that many musicians today who can play, convincingly, in the same manner or feel. Also, the number of recording engineers who might be able to recapture that particular sound is dwindling. And while some may feel that replays of recordings are a decent alternative (for the best example, think Dr. Dre’s “Nothin’ But a ‘G’ Thang”),the truth is that replays are rarely a real substitute for the aesthetic sound of older recordings.

That said, however, live-instrumentation sampling is becoming a bit closer to the aesthetic sound and feel of older recordings. Moreover, with AI technology, remaking the style and sound of the ‘60s and ‘70s is no longer out of reach.

Finally, another important connection that sampling holds for sample-based beatmakers (producers) is this. It answers the desire of those musicians who want to actively interact with history. Historical fiction writers are celebrated for their ability to engage with history. These authors have long referenced history, commented on it, and reworked it. In doing so, they have brought new or alternative histories that have entertained, informed, and provided fresh perspectives on the human condition, all while reminding us (more or less subtly) of the original history they’ve sampled.

In a similar vein, sample-based beatmakers (producers) are celebrated for their ability to reference, comment on, and rework fragments of old songs and other sound recordings. By using pulses, snippets, sound-stabs, and phrases from old songs — many long forgotten or overlooked — sample-based beatmakers (producers) are able to engage with history in ways that remind us of the past and the importance of cultural heritage, while demonstrating how to combine the valuable old with the valuable new.

For a more in-depth discussion of the art of sampling, read my book The Art of Sampling: The Sampling Tradition of Hip Hop/Rap Music and Copyright Law, 3rd Edition.

The Art of Sampling: The Sampling Tradition of Hip Hop/Rap Music and Copyright Law, 3rd Edition – DOWNLOAD eBook/PDF