Calling All Producers: Tips for taking your production to the next level Pt. 2
This is Part 2 of our series of tips for producers and how to turn their aiight' beats into DOPE instrumentals that any artist would want to buy. This series is written by our frequent collaborator Scotty Banx...
Aspiring to be the next legendary and transcendent producer like J Dilla, Pete Rock, Alchemist, Dr. Dre, DJ Premier, Kanye West, or NoID? We asked friend of the brand and frequent contributor Scotty Banx to share his tips for taking your production to the next level. This is Part 2 in this series; you can read Part 1 here.
Scotty Banx is a very DOPE producer, artist, and engineer from Baltimore, MD. In 2008, at 13 years old Scotty recorded his first mixtape after convincing his mother to let him go to the studio by leaving a few demo songs he recorded on an MP3 player up on his computer. By age 14, he was performing in night clubs around the city where he soon realized that rapping over other rappers beats won’t get you that far. “If you go to the show and you do a freestyle over the hottest beat out, there will always be at least one other artist over that same beat and you won’t stand out anymore.” says Scotty. However, in 2012, Scotty decided to take producing seriously after seeing his favorite rappers J.Cole and Big K.R.I.T produce their own projects by themselves.
“I think that's what did it for me. Seeing them have that creative freedom for their projects is beautiful. Making something for yourself is great because you know exactly what you want".
1. Getting Started (Drums first vs. Melody first)
There’s an ongoing debate among producers about whether you should start with the melody first or lay the drums down and then create the melody. The truth is, it doesn’t matter. When you’re having fun making your music, just have fun. There is no distinct formula that has to be followed each time. If you come up with a crazy drum beat before you come up with a melody, cool. If you come up with a crazy melody before you come up with a drum beat, cool. Run with it. It doesn’t matter how you start, just get started!
2. Use Layers
Ever wonder how or why you cant find a certain sound you hear in the beats to all your favorite songs? It might be two or three sounds layered together. Layering is having multiple sounds play the same exact melody. Sometimes they might be in different octaves, but they’re playing the same melody. This helps to add depth to the track. Sometimes when I produce, I make a layer out of three different sounds, pan one left, one right and keep one dead center. That way each sound stands out as it’s own more.
3. Use Effects
Sometimes the only thing you need to take your track to the next level is an effect on one of your instruments. One of my favorite things to do is add a low pass filter during the end of a verse section before the beat drops. You want to have a beat that leaves enough space for the artist to be able to work, but also have enough going on to keep the listener interested.
4. Alter Your Snare & Clap
As stated above, keeping the listener interested is important. One way to do this is to choose when to have a snare and when to have a clap. What I like to do is, during the first four bars of the verse, leave all drums out and only have the clap there. After that four bars, bring the kick and 808 in hard as hell and switch that clap for a nice crisp snare. That little change will set the mood for the track. It changes the energy and keeps the listener interested without being too dramatic.
5. Have A Memorable Tag
Having a tag is by no means necessary, but this is a nice way to easily set yourself apart from people. Your tag can be your name, or it can be a phrase (“If young Metro don't trust you..”) whatever it is needs to be something that will make listeners know that it’s you when they hear it. If you can’t make a cool one by yourself, get a girl or a little kid to say whatever you want them to say and run with it (“Jahlil beats, holla at me!”). It’ll be a fun process and the end result is always rewarding.
6. Sampling Is For Lovers, Not Businessmen
Nothing screams “Hip-Hop” more than a sampled beat. You find a dope sample from some unknown 60’s group, flip it and hopefully Nas picks it up, right? That would be so dope, but what wouldn’t be dope is dealing with getting that sample cleared and potentially losing more money than you make just from paying for that clearance. I won’t get too deep into sampling in this post, but understand the legalities that go with that before you decide to spend hours chopping and flipping. Sampling is dope, but don’t expect money from that.
7. Make Your Own Samples
What I like to do is take a few hours on a Sunday and just make beats I could hear Luther Vandross on. I keep the tempo around 40 - 80 BPM and just let the vibes come to me. I never add drums because thats the worst thing to deal with when flipping a sample. Once the beats are done, I render them, bring them into another session and flip them just like you would any other sample. This way the beat has the same feel I'm looking for, but I have no clearance to worry about. One less headache for me!
8. Fear The Eight Bar Loops
When producing, the worst thing you can do is have a generic ass eight bar loop that never switches up. Even if the beat is fire, you need some flavor in it. Find a way to make things switch up. This is what took Kanye’s production to the next level. His mentor told him to do more than just an eight bar loop and the music industry has never been the same since.
9. Fake It Til You Make It
If you’re like me and you can’t really play piano as well as you’d like to, you have to find a way to make your piano sections sound believable. Once you do your musical typing or placement in the piano roll or whatever you like to use, all the keys will most likely be played at the same velocity. That’s not how a piano is really played and it’s your job to replicate the real sound. So take time and go through to adjust velocities in the piano section. This of course only matters for songs that require a piano to sound “real”, a trap beat doesn’t necessarily need that.
10. HAVE AN EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE
I first started making beats on one of those little $250 netbook laptops you get from target. I thought it would last forever since I was only using it to make beats. I wasn't downloading anything on it or going on the internet either, thinking that would stop viruses from getting onto my laptop. Little did I know, the laptop wasn't made to store as many files as I had on there. Now, whether you have a little netbook, or a desktop it doesn't matter. You need to back all your files up in three places. I learned this the hard way when my netbook overheated and never turned back on after me doing two years worth of music on it. Take it from me, save every time you make a change, get an external hard drive and back up ALL your files, it’s well worth the investment.
QUICK Three with Eclectric Vibe Tribe (EVT)
Eclectric Vibe Tribe (EVT) or Jake Dew is an incredibly talented electronic music producer out of Charlotte. We connected with him to ask a QUICK Three and to showcase his new single 'In The End'. For more about EVT, check out his DOPE Plug feature.
Carlton Boyd
Where did the name Eclectic Vibe Tribe come from? EVT: The name Eclectric Vibe Tribe came from my eclectic compilations of music. I'm passionate about any and all genres and didn't want to limit myself to just one. I combined the words eclectic and electric to describe myself as an artist and as a person. 'Vibe Tribe' is meant for my listeners to feel a part of the music. Without their support and feedback, I wouldn't be the great artist I am today. I want them to know that they're more than just a fan, they're a part of the tribe.
In three words, how would you describe your music? EVT: Psychedelic, electric, and refreshing... I hate to have to narrow it down to just three, but I believe that the three that I chose are a good start. I say psychedelic because I have done a lot of experimenting with the panning of my music to make you feel immersed in the production. I want to give the listener a new experience every time my record is played, so I put a lot of very subtle sounds and effects in the background of my tracks. I say electric due to the heavy electronic influences that can be heard throughout my work. My music is refreshing simply because it is in a league of its own.
What are your goals and aspirations for your music in 2016? EVT: Year to year my goals stay the same; produce better quality music and promote a positive environment for our tribe. For 2016, ultimately, I aspire to share with thousands of festival lovers the passion I put into my music and to hopefully gain more tribe members in the midst of it all.
Q&A with murkury
murkury is an Undergrowth Foundation affiliated producer whose style combines futuristic, bass-heavy sound design with chill melodies and hard-hitting drums. His minimalist yet groovy style has been entrancing audiences in the Western Carolinas for over four years. We caught up with murkury to find out how the Undergrowth Foundation came about, how he became interested in music, and much more.
Carlton Boyd
Tell me about the Undergrowth Foundation. How did this collaborative network come about? M: What a story. I can't even begin to describe the many tiny, seemingly-random life events that eventually snowballed into this idea. I mean, this time last year, I didn't even know the other founders of The Undergrowth. Fast-forward to this summer: on a whim, I followed my gut to Asheville. Almost immediately, I met this visual artist, Jakeb, by chance, and at my first show I was introduced to his friend Greg, a DJ. We all hit it off and Greg invited us to spend 4th of July at his cabin outside Asheville. That weekend, we spent hours on end listening to Greg mix vinyl, exploring the woods, drawing, and talking about music, art, and the universe. We saw great talent in each other and felt like if we combined those skills, we could do great things. Not only this, but we felt the need to unite other likeminded artists who were talented but didn't have a platform to express themselves. We felt some force beyond our comprehension leading us to the understanding that this was to be our purpose in life. It was only given a name after we were inspired by "Life In The Undergrowth", a wildly profound BBC documentary that illuminated the lives of the insect world. This undergrowth scene, we thought, was just like the underground music scene. Overlooked and underrated by mainstream society, it's actually what holds everything together. It's the place where every good musician rises up from. It just made sense to us, and the rest is history.
What's the music scene like in Asheville? M: Well, keep in mind, I've only been living in Asheville for a few months, yet every day I'm in the city, I'm working overtime to make my way deeper into the scene. I know first-hand what it's like to not have a recognizable name in Asheville...and while that's difficult in any city, it's still amazing to even be here as an artist. The people who are established are friendly and very open to discovering new talent from all genres. You just have to know where to look. There's so much opportunity for someone to make music in Asheville...way more than Boone, which is why I moved to begin with. And when you aren't getting shows, you can busk. With the right people behind you, you can even create your own scene, like we are with The Undergrowth. It's just a great place to do something different and there's inspiration on every corner. People in Asheville are very open to hearing new sounds and experimenting with new artists, which is perfect for an electronic junkie like me.
When and how did you become interested in music production? M: I think producing was just a natural progression for me as an artist. I always played instruments growing up (piano, guitar, drums) and then in college at App State, my passion for music turned into DJing. We threw parties wherever I lived and somebody had to be the DJ, so why not me? I've always loved the idea of setting the vibe and taking people on a journey through sound. At first, I didn't have any equipment of my own, so the mixing was rudimentary at best. I did this for a long time for lots of different people, eager to take the next step but without the resources to do so. To compensate, I got some production software and learned how to make edits and bootlegs so it would be easier for me to mix live. That evolved into making remixes, and eventually, after watching countless hours of tutorials, I started producing originals. Finally, I got some equipment of my own and started to branch out and find a style to call my own. Most of the material I've made will probably never see the light of day, but it's all practice. Even the tracks I released this past month. It's all just practice trying to convert the visions in my head into organized sound. Game day only happens when I play live.
Do you have a dream collaboration? M: Cashmere Cat or Tipper. I know those styles seem contradictory, but honestly, I just want to get in their studios and see how the hell they make their music because I have no idea how they do it. Here are some dudes who propel the consciousness of anyone around them to some next level ish, and that's what I want. 99% sure it'll never happen, but it's nice to think about.
What's next for you and your music? M: Apart from a new EP and several more singles, remixes, and bootlegs, I'll be collaborating with the rest of the Undergrowth crew on our first official mixtape, to be released in 2016. It will be chocked full of drippy, trippy, undergrowthy vibes, so be on the lookout for that. I also hope to play my first music festival next year. Dreaming big got me this far, so why stop now?
Connect with murkury: Website Facebook Soundcloud