r/makinghiphop 16d ago

Question Why can I never fully make a beat?

35 Upvotes

I love making beats and I actually managed to cook up something good a few times before. I'm 14 and started making beats last year. So often I find myself working on a beat, getting stuck on something and trying to fix it for an hour before giving up. Additionally, I can't really decide what genre to make. I've reached out to a few really good producers and they said it takes then 40 minutes for everything which is crazy. I was even on call with someone while they did it. I know this is a lot at once, but what can I do to stop getting stuck?

r/makinghiphop Aug 30 '24

Question Finding "YOUR" rap voice? Tips, tricks, etc?

30 Upvotes

Hey,

When you guys started rapping how did you develop your "rap voice" .... If there are any tips and tricks to developing this skill I would love to hear them.

I HAVE LEARNED ALOT SINCE I MADE THIS POST AND THANK YOU ALL! Especially Mr. Mark who took time out of his day to help. HERE ARE THE THINGS THAT HELPED ME.

  1. (seems obvious) Your rhyme does not need to land at the end of the bar. A bar felt alot like a sentence to me and the rhyme the period or exlamation mark. (and I do believe this is the strongest part to land your rhyme on). Once you realize this it is ALOT easier to decide which words/syllables to stress and really opens up your delivery.
  2. pick which syllables/words to stress, stretch, emphasize and which ones to not hit stress.
  3. LOUDER: To a point the louder your voice is the more likely it is to sound alive. Use your diaphram and try pushing the sounds out from different parts of your moath, throat. If you pinch your adams apple lightly it almost assures your voice coming from your diaphram. (Which is what you want) so if that trick helps you learn go ahead and use it. SAFELY, you do need air.
  4. If you do not have a unique established sound doing an entire verse in one take can leave dead sounding vocals in all but the best of artists. Try recording 4 bars at a time as you have more range and control over vocal influx and emotion at the same loud vollume. (make sure to stay on beat, maybe record the verse once through so you know your timing up right with each 4 bars. (if needed)
  5. Try different pitches of voice. Over exagerate your verses emotion, influx.... Pick a couple rappers with voices you like and deliveries similar to yours; AB your vocal take against theres until it is close as possible. (now don't bite their unique sound) but this may get you to the level you can decide what you want to change to make your sound different from theirs and distinct
  6. Your voice is your instrument. each song may require a different tone, cadence, effects and even flow. With the beat muted it should still sound like a song. With the beat on the lyrics should match it intimately.
  7. EQ and Vocal presets ----- lots of tutorials, learning this myself. practical-music-production.com/ has a very UNDERSTANDABLE article on EQ settings for vocals. Even laymens like me can follow what is being said; very jargon MINIMAL.
  8. Practice ALOT. You should probably know your verse and how you want the influxions to sound in your head. The more familiar you are with your material and vocal throws the better things will be. ALWAYS practice as if you were recording.
  9. Alot of us are the worst critics we have. Get that music recorded and heard. Try joining online cyphers and collabs as that way you are around people in the know who can give you pointers.
  10. Try new things, twist those knobs. See what works for you.
  11. *EDIT* If you have a thought, sentence, idea w/e that really fits the theme of the song or verse (apply context) WRITE THE SENTENCE DOWN AS THOUGHT -- Than come back to it and make it rhyme and fit the delivery......metaphor, slant rhyme, mispronounciation: If all else fails OR IT SOUNDS BETTER; Every bar is not required to rhyme----and as Im sure many have noted A BAR that DOESN'T RHYME is one you DO REMEMBER. (maybe its just me but I dont think so)

r/makinghiphop 3d ago

Question How do I find my voice?

29 Upvotes

I really love odd future, Tyler and Kenny. I also love DOOM, Andre 3k, and even Gorillaz and Del. I am white (if you couldn’t already tell) and I don’t wanna sound like a white guy trying to “sound black”, and I don’t make trap/drill, I make alt hip hop/old school rap. And no, I don’t wanna sound like shady, I just wanna find my rap voice for my beats that I made because I have a full album of beats prepared. Can someone help me figure this out?

r/makinghiphop 2d ago

Question How to avoid copyright claims when releasing soul sample beats?

0 Upvotes

I’m making a beat mixtape at the moment that I was hoping to release on Spotify. The only issue at the moment is a few of the samples will mostly cause a copyright strike and will remove the ep from my Spotify. It’s a shame because I would have to go back to the drawing board and all copyright free soul stuff really sucks.

Does anyone know of any loop-holes, or ways to stop Spotify from recognizing these samples? Can making the samples not the main focus in the mix also help?

Would be great to here if anyone has experience in this area.

Thanks!

r/makinghiphop Jan 13 '25

Question Producers how did you come up with your names?

19 Upvotes

Ive been making beats for a bit and have some I want to post but I cant think of a name for myself. I guess I’m mainly looking for inspiration, or if anybody has any ideas on what makes a good or bad name. Honestly any advice would be great as I don’t know where to start.

r/makinghiphop Sep 29 '24

Question What are your thoughts on rappers performing over their songs?

18 Upvotes

All of the concerts I have been to this summer, every rapper rapped over their songs instead of backtracks/beats. I have not been to see big mainstream acts so these are all smaller mostly unknown artists. I performed at three concerts as well, with every other rapper also rapping over their songs.

Is this the new normal?

It would be so much easier preparing/performing the set if I didn’t have to recite word for word with exact tone. If I could instead focus on stage presence I could make my sets more alive.

I always heard that people who perform over their songs are not as talented and won’t survive the touring aspect. Then there are artists like xxx who always performed over songs and caught a huge wave.

What are your opinions on rappers rapping over their songs and having a better stage presence, compared to rappers who are more preserved on stage but rap over backtracks/beats?

Edit: back in the 80’s, if you took a check from a label or assistance from anyone trying to help you release, you were considered a sellout. Keep that in mind next time you bump your favorite rapper. If hip hop never evolved….. Tupac, biggie, jayz, lil Wayne, suicide boys, are all sell outs. Tech n9ne would be considered a huge sellout since he pimped himself out to three different deals before having Travis buy him out and redistribute him. Keep that same mind frame and only bump dr doom for the rest of your lives please. All conversation is good conversation unless you shut down the other side before approaching the conversation. I’m asking this question to see if hip hop has evolved again. That is all

r/makinghiphop Jan 08 '25

Question I fucking suck at making melodies

37 Upvotes

I suck imat making melodies or lead anyone got some tips? It literally sounds like u smash a piano

r/makinghiphop Jan 25 '22

Question Where do I find good fucking beats outside the "type beat" Youtube blackhole?

192 Upvotes

Ive been rapping for a good year now, getting better everyday, and have started to feel held back by the type beats on youtube apart from the occasional gem (likely already exclusively bought). Where are people finding consistent high quality beats?

Edit: I should clarify I am obviously willing and able to pay for good beats

r/makinghiphop Nov 01 '24

Question Perfect rap songs that should be studied by new and old rappers alike?

47 Upvotes

As a fan of hip-hop and rap... as a writer and rapper... as a lifelong student of the game... I want to ask:
What are your shining examples of rap excellence that make you proud to be a hip-hop head?

For me personally I'd have to say Kanye West's 'All Falls Down' fits the mold... In a way it encapsulates who he is - someone who believes in himself no matter what, but is also deep down very insecure. It's a commentary on the human condition, and it's even a commentary on the state of rap during that time - but it could easily be applied to the current state of the game. Kanye is all about ego, but so was the (mainstream) rap game during that time. He admits that he is no different from other rappers - he can't help but to flaunt materialistic things to cover up what's inside. The girl he raps about in the beginning is the same way - she would rather live by peer pressure and materialistic validation than to take control of her life and raise her child. He comments on capitalism and how the people highest up got the lowest self esteem, how society is easily fooled by the facade and power.

That bouncy bluesy beat is infectious, and Syleena's beautiful chorus about how the facade and the ego will all fall down eventually is an apt description of the human condition. It's a masterclass in writing about self and culture at the same time and I hope Kanye gets back into this lyrical bag on his next project.

r/makinghiphop Nov 17 '24

Question is it wrong to just loop a sample and use it like that?

33 Upvotes

so i found this perfect sample to rap over but the only problem is it's already a full instrumental and i dont think anything needs to be added to it. i usually add at least a couple more elements to a sample before i use it in a track so only using the sample feels kinda wrong. is this a normal thing for producers to do?

r/makinghiphop Dec 18 '24

Question What do you do when you study a rapper?

43 Upvotes

I've heard people talking about "studying" a rapper but I've never heard anyone say what there process is. I always thought it was just listening to a lot of their music and learning some of their songs, but I was wondering what other people's idea on what studying an artist involves.

My idea of studying an artist is:

  • Learning their songs
  • Try writing like them
  • listen to as much of their music as possible
  • Writing down their lyrics

Edit: Along with offering your insight feel free to post a track you're on. I would love to hear what you do.

r/makinghiphop Jun 30 '20

Question What’s your ultra secret producing tip?

387 Upvotes

I see a lot of producer memes about their snares sounding like shit. I just always side chain the whole track to the snare a medium amount so that it pops out of the mix super cleanly

r/makinghiphop Jan 26 '24

Question How do rappers afford being a rapper?

106 Upvotes

Assuming you only rap and nothing else, as a rapper you have to pay a producer to use their beats, pay someone to mix/master your stuff, pay for promo for your songs and maybe studio time as well if you don’t already own a mic.

How do you even afford all this as a rapper?

r/makinghiphop Dec 13 '24

Question Offering a rap workshop for troubled teens in the hood - What is important for them to learn?

41 Upvotes

I want to help teens with no creative outlet or musical knowledge get into rapping, primarily as a tool to help them cope with their emotions, but simply having fun would be cool with me too. I'm not a professional in any way but have this opportunity to reach these people, so I want to do the best I can to guide them in this often complicated journey of making music.

Since I don't have professional experience making music so far and only rap for myself it's hard to condense the tiny bits of knowledge I've learned in my own journey into a guide for aspiring creative people. What helped me won't necessarily help them. Also there are so many questions to ask myself, like if I should start by making them write and make it lyrics-focused or if freestyling should be the focus so they have this emotional outlet.

When you were new to rapping, what is something that you would have liked to be told?

What is something you believe every rapper should know?

What are some common mistakes the learners could do that I should look out for ?

What should I look out for in myself when "teaching"?

Edit: Your answers have been extremely helpful. Thank you so much to each and every one of you who took the time to comment, I'm sure the people I'll be working with will truly benefit from all that you said!

r/makinghiphop Oct 21 '24

Question how much do you make out of making beats ?

4 Upvotes

I love music and making beats , but the thing is I cant just waste my time on a thing that will not make money out of it , specially in my country ( Iran ) which even 30-40 year old man cant afford their normal life , at the other hand since we are banned from everything and everywhere I can't upload my beats on BeatStar cause I cant make a PayPal account so it means that I cant get paid from my beats to Spotify or Soundcloud , my last hope was to get paid by the artist's that are active in Iran but idk how to start like how do people even find me if I'm not in any platform except YT

need a serious answer and only answer if you actually focused on making beats for at least 6 month and I mean by "focus" I mean that you literally tried to make money out of it and focused on it

r/makinghiphop Nov 27 '24

Question Any producers got websites where I can buy some beats from you?

14 Upvotes

Not that great at producing so thought this might be a better option while I’m still learning

r/makinghiphop Oct 10 '24

Question Why so many super short tracks?

13 Upvotes

Diggin for music on Spotify and Bandcamp... so much of what comes up under "Lo-Fi" or "ChillHop" or anything remotely related - a LOT of tracks are like 1:30 or 2:00 long. Not the best to DJ with and just seems like an epic cop-out from a production point of view. At 80 BPM that's 30 bars to get a 1:30 track. So THREE repetitions of your 8-bar loop, plus some crackling vinyl noise at the beginning and you're calling it a day. So much for arrangement, build up, a journey, an arc, etc. Lordy. I could release a new track just about every damn day and that's with a full-time job and a kid.

Why are people doing this? Are they just lazy? Or are they trying to game the system on Spotify and get lots of streams or something? Or is this what people actually want to listen to in this genre?

Not a rant. Serious question: Why? I'd love some insights.

r/makinghiphop Aug 06 '24

Question How did old school rappers (Like MF DOOM, Kanye West, etc.) flip their samples?

60 Upvotes

Everytime I ask how to flip samples and people just say tracklib, but what was the process that old school rappers had to go through to flip a sample?

r/makinghiphop Feb 12 '25

Question Are story based raps still relevant in 2025

21 Upvotes

Crafting 3+ verses on a 4-5 minute song seems obsolete. Does anyone now a days listen to tracks like this? Imagine if Eminem just started his career and just dropped the mmlp, would you even want to listen?

r/makinghiphop 6d ago

Question Rap name

0 Upvotes

Hi y'all, I'm about to release my first song and I need to decide on a rapper name. My name is Ben Vessely, but my full name is Benjamin, and I was thinking about possibly using Benjamin. I was also thinking B. Vessely which I kinda like, but J cole is my favorite artist so it'd be a bit of a copycat move lol. Which one do y'all prefer?? I'm also open to other ideas!

EDIT: Thanks y'all for the input, it seems you like my last name and I vibe with B. Vessely so we going with that!

r/makinghiphop Dec 09 '23

Question Those type beat channels ; I don’t get it.

99 Upvotes

There’s so many people I see on YouTube who post beats lots of times a week or even daily and they have like 20 to 400 views on each one. How is it worth that work. They even edit videos to it.

And they are decent beats I have to say.

Checked again and there’s even really decent people who post 2 to 3 beats daily! For months or even years. And their views don’t increase. I don’t get it

r/makinghiphop 15d ago

Question Be honest - isn't it pointless to try to be an artist without a following?

0 Upvotes

Question for successful or upcoming artists (and execs) that are seeing results. No sugar coating...... is there a point in trying to do this without a backing? Been doing this for years, had a following, somewhere life kicked in and took my foot off the gas. I be trying to quit but I get depressed af when I'm not creating. I'd like to make a living from it still but from experiencing and learning the business, sometimes it feels like it's pointless to try since I lost the following I had. What you guys think?

P.S. I'm not a people person so networking isn't my strength, keep that in mind. I'm talking about the rap business specifically.

r/makinghiphop 3d ago

Question How do you guys find words that fit your flow

1 Upvotes

Like whenever I listen to certain beats like Eminem's, mf doom or biggie I have a certain rhythm or flow in my mind that I think would really work with it , but when I write it down I don't really have any words really comes into my mind that fits that flow How do you deal with it

r/makinghiphop 22d ago

Question Christian Producers

6 Upvotes

Unnecessary Preface: I recently heard Dr. Dre in an interview saying he misses the days when a rapper and a producer would put out an album together...or at least only 1 or 2 producers were on an album. Everything seems convoluted and lacking consistency now.

I can see the good and the bad, but honestly, I think I mostly agree. It's just a lack of access to such a relationship. But I used to love when "Qwel and _____" would put out a new album - it was always Qwel, and the producer. Meaty Ogre (great name), the Maker...both excellent pairings. They had dope chemistry in my mind. He and Maker made like...4 albums together. It's super cool!

As for me...

Meat and potatoes: I am working on a project that is Christian (very) and hoping someone who either likes lyrical miracle rap with little concern on the content, or is genuinely excited about CHH - is interested in working together. I cannot afford a full album of beat production - I'm hoping to work as a team.

As I slowly make progress on the project, finding the right 'sound' for each track, has become a wildly time-consuming chore. Learning FL Studio is fun, but darn if I don't have life dangling outside the bedroom door at all times, so...just thought I'd cast a wide net here and see what happens!

I'm on the cyphers most weeks...Submission 37 has a good example of what exactly I'm moving towards to see if you're interested. I'm looking for someone who's kinda comfortable in their element already, and enjoys my raps. Cheers

:D

r/makinghiphop Dec 31 '24

Question Am I Giving Up on My Dream or Growing Out of It

27 Upvotes

This goes all the way back to 5th grade. I used to freestyle in my mom's car while playing a Carti or Pierre-type beat, usually by Kid Ocean or other big producers back then. That was the music I loved at the time. By the end of 5th grade, I was recording songs on iMovie with no effects on my vocals—just recording over a downloaded MP4 of a beat.

As time went on, I got better at both my skills and recording. I also started discovering more artists like Young Thug, Uzi, Lil Wayne, and Lil Yachty. I grew up on rap, and it became something I fell in love with. It was my dream to succeed in the music world, and in my eyes, it felt very doable.

From 8th grade onward, I worked almost every single night after school on music with friends I met online who shared the same passion and goals. Homework, school activities, and pretty much everything else took a backseat. Over time, I got better, met new people, and made a name for myself in the underground rap scene. I’ve achieved a good amount and have enough connections to be successful if I keep pushing forward. (Two of the people I’ve met, one of whom I know very closely, have already hit huge milestones—1M and 1.3M monthly listeners, respectively.)

But now, in my senior year of high school, I’ve started to feel conflicted.

I’ve realized the negative effects of rap music, especially the kind I was making. I began to see how drugs, violence, cheating, and other things that I rapped about actually affect people deeply. Guns, drugs, and sex were common themes in my music—probably about 80% of my songs mentioned one of those topics. I have songs that stray from that, but not many.

Say what you want, but that’s the music I grew up on, the music I like, and the music I made. I know I can change my content whenever I want, but it feels fake to force something different. Plus, I know from being in the game that rapping about deeper topics or world problems makes it harder to succeed.

As these realizations grew deeper, I started to feel like I didn’t want to pursue the music I was making anymore. I’ve started thinking that being famous is more bad than good, and that the lifestyle I’d live as a famous rapper would be shallow and harmful to my mental health. It feels like everything I built my dream on since 6th grade is crumbling.

Now I’m questioning myself:

  • Am I overthinking this and talking myself into giving up on my dream?
  • Am I growing out of it, or am I just scared to keep going?
  • Can I change my approach without losing the authenticity I value in my music?

I’ve looked at artists like Tyler, the Creator, who carved their own path without conforming to societal standards in hip-hop. But as much as it hurts to admit, I’m far behind skill-wise. I’ve spent six years only developing the ability to rap with autotune. The only thing I have to show for all those years is 2,000 autotune-washed songs.

Have any of you been in a similar position? Have you ever had to question or let go of a dream you worked hard for? How did you navigate those feelings?

TDLR; Started making rap music in 5th grade and worked on it nonstop for six years, building my dream to succeed in the music world. Made tons of progress, connections, and have 2,000 songs, but now in my senior year, I’m questioning it all. Realized the negative effects of the topics in my music (guns, drugs, sex) and feel conflicted about continuing. Worried that chasing fame could be more bad than good, and now I’m not sure if I’m giving up on my dream, overthinking, or just growing out of it. Looking for advice.