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Editor’s Choice
All the top picks of the site chosen by The Art of Sampling’s editor-in-chief.
Are Sample-Based Beatmakers Musicians?
A “musician” is simply one who creates (makes) music. It’s someone who is conscious of the notion of music as well as at least one type of music-making process. Whether one likes a particular music form, or prefers the methods used to make…
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 community have helped to shape his understanding of the art of…
Rhythm Roulette: Large Professor
"I'm not just gon make some bullshit." —Large Professor
This is one of the best installments of Mass Appeal's Rhythm Roulette series. It finds Large Professor, one of the pioneers of beatmaking, flip records that at first seem…
Did Kanye West’s “Five-for-Five” Album Release Strategy Hinder Teyana Taylor’s K.T.S.E.?
Very few people can be the leader of the creative production behind the music on a given album and the marketing force behind said album at the same time. Normally, these roles are given to multiple people because it’s best to split…
Today’s Fun Hip Hop is Good, But It Needs a Deeper Message (Sometimes)
Trap music, modern-day "R&B", and drill music are cool. I listen to it. Whether I'm at a party, out with friends, or at home alone, it gets regular spins. I enjoy the music just like most of my generation. The music sounds good, it…
Jump N Funk: DJ Rich Medina and His Celebration of Afrobeat
To speak with Rich Medina, a world renowned DJ, producer, and poet, is to receive a lesson in culture, politics, humility, and, of course, music. Rich is smart and endearing, the type that knows something about everything and everything…
Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers Taught Me How To Shuffle
The Jazz Messengers are one of the richest sources of musical knowledge that we still have available to us. Initially Co-fronted by drummer Art Blakey and pianist Horace Silver, Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers (the moniker that was…
Pete Rock & CL Smooth Discuss the Making of “They Reminisce Over You” (T.R.O.Y.)
Pete Rock & CL Smooth's "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" is was one of the rare rap songs (and sampling gems) that everyone likes. It's an undisputed classic that makes you emotional just as much as makes you knod your head and…
Marco Polo: The Journey of a Sampling Pioneer
Editor’s note: This is an epic long read! But worth it. This interview contains a combination of a series of interviews I conducted with Marco Polo (on several dates) over the past four years, the lengthiest and most recent being in…
Marquee Names: The Soul of Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield helped reshape the direction of soul music in America and brought forth one of the most celebrated music catalogs in popular music. His gentle musicality, contrasting style, and powerful lyricism made him one of the most…