Friday, May 1, 2009

The Recipe: 50% Lyrics, 50% Rap Instrumentals

By Eugene Costovi

It doesn't matter if you're a songwriter, a producer or a recording artist. If you're in the hip-hop field at all, then you need to concern yourself with rap instrumentals. While a lot of listeners will notice the lyrics first, don't kid yourself - your music is equally important. If those lyrics don't have a great beat behind them, no one's going to care about the message. If you're a producer, then rap instrumentals are your business, quite literally. Making the right beats for the right rhymes is what it's all about - so learning a bit more about how to use the tools of the trade will make all the difference to your career.

Remember that good lyrics and good words shouldn't be wasted on rap instrumentals that are not worthy of them. The problem is that no matter how good your words are, the wrong beats can drag the whole song down. Using the wrong beats, you'll find that your song can become difficult to understand, choppy and completely uninteresting to the listener. Look for a rap beat that matches the song and that will carry it. You are not looking for something that will just cover the song, you are looking for something that is going to really suit the music you want to make.

There are those who think that they can buy their way to good beats - and it's true that there are some good beats you can buy. But it's your own original beats which will really get your demo noticed. Making your own beats demonstrates your creativity and your dedication to your music and an understanding of how the music industry works. If you've got great lyrics, that's wonderful - but your rap instrumentals have to be every bit as good as your lyrics if you want the end result to be something truly great.

You'll need to get a handle on the new technologies, both in the form of hardware and software which make it child's play to make your own rap instrumentals. You can make any kind of beat you're looking for. From old school boom-bap to the latest in crunk to beats which you create that will spawn their own subgenre of hip-hop, the only limit is your own creativity.

What are your career goals in the music industry? If you're aiming for success in hip-hop, then work on your lyrics, by all means - but don't forget that your rap instrumentals are just as important and need just as much hard work put into them. Lyrics plus beats sounds like a simple recipe, but there are an infinite number of variations. Having the right tools can help you to make the beats you've always dreamed of making which will let you rise to the top. - 20760

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