Winner of IASPM's 2005 International Book Award Based on ten years of research among hip-hop producers, Making Beats was the first work of scholarship to explore the goals, methods, and values of a surprisingly insular community. Focusing on a variety of subjects—from hip-hop artists' pedagogical methods to the Afrodiasporic roots of the sampling process to the social significance of "digging" for rare records—Joseph G. Schloss examines the way hip-hop artists have managed to create a form of expression that reflects their creative aspirations, moral beliefs, political values, and cultural realities. This second edition of the book includes a new foreword by Jeff Chang and a new afterword by the author.

Unleash your creative potential and start producing hip hop music today. This beginner’s guide breaks down the basics of music production and gives you the tools to start creating. Beat making isn’t a linear process, and there’s no exact science or method. Slime Green Beats provides a complete overview of the equipment, strategy, and mentality that you need to produce mind-blowing music, all without stifling your creativity. Whether you’re looking to produce your own music or start a career in music production, this handbook is a must-have. Learn beat making rules for different genres and musical styles, including hip hop, trap, R&B, and rap. You’ll learn: Setup - How to set up your home beat making studio - Tips for sound selection and melody creation - What drum layers make up a hip-hop beat - The stylistic difference between 808s and basslines Finishing - An introduction to mixing instrumentals - How to create vibrant, clean beats without over-compressing - Music theory rules for arranging - How to find and implement reliable feedback Sharing - Online marketing strategies for self-promotion - Email marketing tips to build industry connections - How to license, lease, and sell your beats - What to expect when selling exclusive beats, including track outs …And more! How to Make Beats explains music theory and technical software in easy-to-understand terms. The language of music production often feels elite, but Slime Green Beats breaks down barriers for new creators. Learn the lingo with an extensive terminology section in the back of the handbook and links to suggested resources. About the authors Slime Green Beats is led by 3E Wave and Stunna, two highly acclaimed music producers with an extensive fanbase on YouTube. With nearly a decade of beat making experience between them, their technical tips and recommendations are proven to work in the real world.

From a Los Angeles hospital bed, equipped with little more than a laptop and a stack of records, James “J Dilla” Yancey crafted a set of tracks that would forever change the way beatmakers viewed their artform. The songs on Donuts are not hip hop music as “hip hop music” is typically defined; they careen and crash into each other, in one moment noisy and abrasive, gorgeous and heartbreaking the next. The samples and melodies tell the story of a man coming to terms with his declining health, a final love letter to the family and friends he was leaving behind. As a prolific producer with a voracious appetite for the history and mechanics of the music he loved, J Dilla knew the records that went into constructing Donuts inside and out. He could have taken them all and made a much different, more accessible album. If the widely accepted view is that his final work is a record about dying, the question becomes why did he make this record about dying? Drawing from philosophy, critical theory and musicology, as well as Dilla's own musical catalogue, Jordan Ferguson shows that the contradictory, irascible and confrontational music found on Donuts is as much a result of an artist's declining health as it is an example of what scholars call “late style,” placing the album in a musical tradition that stretches back centuries.

MAKING BEATS: SKILL PACK teaches you how to make infectious modern beats from start to finish using popular beat making software such as Native Instruments Battery, Apple Logic Pro, Steinberg Cubase, Propellerhead ReCycle, Audacity, and others. This book explains the detailed process of beat making, what tools make a beat stand out, and how to use digital audio workstations to develop beats and loops that will make listeners nod their heads. You'll learn to edit, play, sequence, quantize, layer, and mix beats with easily accessible plug-ins within Logic, Cubase, and Reason. You'll discover the uses of opensource software such as Audacity, and find out how to utilize royalty-free drum samples and files from the Internet to assist with the beat making process. You'll find clear instructions on how to set up your software so that it works properly with your MIDI hardware. No stone is left unturned. The established beat making author shares his tips, advice, and personal anecdotes for your benefit. And for a completely immersive, hands-on experience, this book includes a companion website that contains song files for each drum plug-in within each digital audio workstation covered.

'The BeatTips Manual' (Amir Said) is the definitive study of the art of beatmaking (hip hop production). Brilliantly divided into five major parts - a riveting History part, an extensive Instruction (how-to) part, an insightful Interviews part, which features exclusive interviews with DJ Premier, DJ Toomp, Marley Marl, 9th Wonder and more, an explosive Music Theory part, and a Business part - 'The BeatTips Manual' is robust, detailed, and comprehensive. Containing a sharp analysis of the origins of beatmaking, as well as its key aesthetics, principles, priorities, and predilections, 'The BeatTips Manual' is an incisive look at the art of beatmaking - and an intense read. Not only the most complete examination of the hip hop/rap music process, it's also among the leading studies of hip hop culture itself. Destined to expand and transform traditional ideas about musicians, musicianship, and musical processes, 'The BeatTips Manual' is one of the most important and innovative music studies ever published.

It's here at last! Tony Horgan's Volca Drum guide will turn anyone into an expert. Every feature is explained and illustrated clearly, with inspirational tips and tricks to get you making big beats in an instant. Quick-start guides, over 50 patches, Wave Guide effects, hidden features and hacks, and detailed sequences reveal everything there is to know about this mighty little drum machine. This is the most visual Volca Expert Guide yet, with a treasure trove of concept images to back up the crystal clear text.

(Berklee Guide). Whether you're into hip-hop, urban, rock, alternative, dance, electronic, jazz, blues, or country, drums play a prominent roll in the production and arrangement of a song. This book will help to explain everything you'll need to know to produce your own killer beats, from describing individual drums and how they are most commonly played, to MIDI drum sequencing tricks used by the pros, and the proper use of compression, EQ, and group effects when mixing drums. Over time and with steady practice, you'll be able to make these drum production techniques your own, taking your song production skills to the next level while at the same time becoming a master beat-maker.

The first novel-writing guide from the best-selling Save the Cat! story-structure series, which reveals the 15 essential plot points needed to make any novel a success. Novelist Jessica Brody presents a comprehensive story-structure guide for novelists that applies the famed Save the Cat! screenwriting methodology to the world of novel writing. Revealing the 15 "beats" (plot points) that comprise a successful story--from the opening image to the finale--this book lays out the Ten Story Genres (Monster in the House; Whydunit; Dude with a Problem) alongside quirky, original insights (Save the Cat; Shard of Glass) to help novelists craft a plot that will captivate--and a novel that will sell.

This ultimate insider's guide reveals the secrets that none dare admit, told by a show biz veteran who's proven that you can sell your script if you can save the cat!

Many DJs, gigging musicians, and electronic music producers understand how to play their instruments or make music on the computer, but they lack the basic knowledge of music theory needed to take their music-making to the next level and compose truly professional tracks. Beneath all the enormously different styles of modern electronic music lie certain fundamentals of the musical language that are exactly the same no matter what kind of music you write. It is very important to acquire an understanding of these fundamentals if you are to develop as a musician and music producer. Put simply, you need to know what you are doing with regard to the music that you are writing. Music Theory for Computer Musicians explains these music theory fundamentals in the most simple and accessible way possible. Concepts are taught using the MIDI keyboard environment and today's computer composing and recording software. By reading this book and following the exercises contained within it, you, the aspiring music producer/computer musician, will find yourself making great progress toward understanding and using these fundamentals of the music language. The result will be a great improvement in your ability to write and produce your own original music!