when you give rappers beats to write to...

dont know if this belongs in this forum... if not can a mod move it please?

anyway, when you give out beat cd's how do you set up the track? seems like nobody likes the way i do it hahaha! i only give 2 minutes & i dont really put it in song format. i usually give them intro, 16 bar verse, hook, & then let the beat ride out for the rest of the two minutes.

they complain that they cant write to that or that its too repetitive

my thing is... more than likely the song isnt actually going to get made so why should i put in all this effort just so you can listen to the beat in your car?

so... do i need to change my ways or are these people just not seeing the vision?

If they want the beat sell it to them.

When you sell it though u should do your full
part and put it in song format though.

If you are giving it to them free then they have no room to complain
cause the alternative is - you aint GOTTA give them jack?!

They should be grateful to get ANYTHING in the first place.

i fukking hate rappers...for the most part. "it's too repetitive?" wait what genre do they make again? oh yeah hip hop...one of the most repetitive genres today.

tell them to deall with it and fork over the loot, or find better rappers.

Well, that was 2 f**ked up replies.
It has nothing to do with if they are paying or not.
If you want someone to write give them something to write to.
Most rappers that can actually write are actually imspired by the track as well as the transitions and structure.
Many can't come up with an effective hook without having a structured track to guide them or focus their thought.
If you don't want to give them something functional then let them go to someone who will.
If hip hop is repetitive it's because someone makes it that way not because there aren't hip hop songs that are structured.
Just because you are giving someone a free meal doesn't mean you should burn the food or not cook it completely.

Disagree if you want but it's the reality.
You say just for them to listen to in their car, but if you were on a level higher than that you wouldn't be giving them the free tracks to write to.
Just put things in a real perspective and go from there.
They grow, you grow.

The easiest way to do it is to just lay down an accapella and build a rough sketch around that. It's easy enough to change later but it'll give you and the rapper enough movement to go with.
Good topic though. On a similar note, how do people present their beat discs? Full tracks, snippets, loops?

i record my beats w/ a few intros/changes at first and then let it loop awhile for the bit the mc will determine as the 'main' verse..they can vibe w/ that loong loop write some ish, i come back lay the changes and whatever live according to the lyric structure...work together as much as possible..

THE ADVERSARY wrote: but if you were on a level higher than that you wouldn't be giving them the free tracks to write to.
Just put things in a real perspective and go from there.
They grow, you grow.

Working producers give out beat CDs to artists all the time. Hi-Tek isn't going to charge you just to get a beat CD. However, Hi-Tek isn't just going to give a beat CD out to any yokel, either.

Nonetheless, I think you have to put it in some kind of format, because 9 times out of 10:

a) the artist/writer writes to what's on the CD, and
b) most young(er) artists/writers have zero clue about measures and structure.

Regardless of the genre, I usually put the hook and verse twice, and an intro or bridge/break if there is one. It makes it easy for everyone, but especially you, in the end.
Peace

let em grooove

a little intro, then an open beat, with just a little variation for the hook at the end....

if they like it then they can hit the repeat button on their CD playa and write to it like that....

format it so u can rap to it with a verse & chorus ive read a pro say to keep demos around 3 min so it doesnt drag on

repetetive?!?!?!? of course it is- the beat is teh foundation, the rap gives the rhythm and the change ups...they obviously repetitive rappers...

why not have them round and jam it, they can then suggets what's to happen next, you can program that on the fly and audition- much better then the way you are doing it

greg

Ok...Now I know giving out Beat CD's is a way to market your sound, Talent, and to give people a feel for you...I want to add to my mans question and ask do you copyright your stuff before you give it out? To me thats a no brainer unless you just say "Here.. Gimme a G for these 3+ tracks" and be done with it and therefore relenquish any and all ownership of the beats correct?.....
Or Sell with Royalty stipulations etc...
I don't have a book on how the biz is yet, but i am soon...I may sound a lil ignorant on the subject and this is why.

but I want to hear what you experts think.

man, i make my beats so i think they're dope with a rapper or without.

fukk repetetive beats. Don't just make a loop and repeat it. Color it, give it character, changes, throw in a vocal sample for your emcee to get an idea for the lyrical content.

I give my emcees the full beat, just how i want it. We almost always go back and restructure, and add samples, drops, etc. Sometimes they love that shyt just how it is and write their lyrics to the beat in the format i give them.

Make your shyt hottttt. Give them music that they can't help but rap to.
that way if they can't write to heat you know it's time to find someone who can.

BTW, who on here doesn't like bumpin a beat they made while ridin in their car?

john morris is spot on, **** repetitive beats....they are the curse of rap music, equally as bad as repetitive emcees

like young jeezy.

I've seen producers do it both ways... MadLib, for example, sends out beat CD's that have around 90 tracks on em, kinda like a mix tape, and each "song" is really only about 30 measures. It's kinda a pain in the ass for the MC's, but the upside is that there is a ton of stuff on there to pick from. But that's madlib, so he can pretty much do what he wants.

If the MC is on his shite, he will have the resources to loop out parts longer if he wants to extend it, but it is nice to give them a decent amount to write to so they dont have to keep interrupting their creative process by starting the track over again.

I would say loop out the beat for at least 5 mins for em. Who cares if it is repetitive... it's just for them to write to... then by the time they are ready to lay down the lyrics, the producer can come with more of an arrangement.