Basics of creating a rap track in Fl Studio. “We get splashes of hype”: people who write hits for Russian rappers - about their work Who writes the beats

Beatmakers in rap are soldiers of the invisible front: they are not asked for autographs on the streets, they are rarely known by name, and most often they do not even have a couple of photographs. But without these people, your favorite artist's songs wouldn't be what they are.

The Flow asked popular Russian artists and producers to talk about promising beatmakers, in their opinion. The result is a list of 10 names - it does not give a comprehensive picture of what is happening, but it can give you an idea of ​​who you need to keep an eye on.

“I’ve known both participants in the project for about nine years. Fortunately, our city is small and everyone who has been involved in rap for more or less a long time knows each other. Undoubtedly, in the process of such a long communication, we influenced each other in one way or another, in terms of musical taste. Therefore, our views on music more or less coincide - cloud, grime, chill trap, glitch-hop. The guys have developed their own unique style, a certain combination of dark electronic sound and melody.

The last track that Dark Faders and I worked on was released just before the new year - the single “Night”. They made an atmospheric beat, I was inspired and wrote my verse pretty quickly. In principle, this is how our work process usually always proceeds.”

If you are interested in battle rap, Scady's music should be familiar to you. Oxxxymiron and Johnyboy, Billy Milligan and Andy Cartwright read to his beats - and he also wrote the music for the Versus Main Event screensaver. In addition: work with ST and Bahh-Tee + recent instrumental EP “FVTV MORGVNV”, which has a noticeable EDM influence. Let's summarize: a musician who, from the niche of Internet battles, is making his way to a wider audience.

"Scady is, of course, a unique beatmaker. Besides the fact that he himself is a very funny guy, with whom there is always something to laugh about, he is also wildly talented. 80% of the minuses that he offers me, I immediately want to use, because We are on the same wavelength and feel the hit. The beats are always the most powerful.

Of my tracks, he produced “#Don’t Find a Danger”, “Party for the Whole Night” and many others. They are all really powerful, different from each other, where a lot of tools merge into one crazy mechanism. And if he reads this text, let him complete two negatives for me, damn it - he knows which ones."

Half of the Belarusian group LSP, Roma also wrote arrangements for his more popular compatriot, Max Korzh. He was also a sound engineer on the Oxxxymiron concert tour. Before working closely with rap artists, he played in an electropunk band, and his background gives him away: the Englishman's beats are an explosive mixture of EDM, dubstep and (to a lesser extent) hip-hop.

“I worked with Roma mainly as a sound engineer, and not as a beatmaker, with the exception of “I'm bored with life.” But I can say for sure that the person takes the theory of music and sound very seriously.

Every time he starts loading me up with “progressions” and other things that are not obvious for a rapper, he raves about live instruments, but most importantly, he delves into the entire spectrum of modern music, from ultra-commercial to wildly underground and heavy. Well, in general, the presence of cultural baggage has a strong impact. He is also very meticulous about post-production and adding compositional features. In short, this is what music is, not just beats. But for the same reason, Roma’s strength lies more in experimental EDM than in hip-hop."

Member of the Kazakh party Jillz, formed around Scryptonite. Rumor has it that Strong Symphony hired Bust and Smokey Moe to work on their latest album. Therefore, in some tracks he sounds surprisingly dark and industrial. “Trap from Kazakhstan” is usually compared to Travi$ Scott, and such a comparison has already become a commonplace, but this is the case when it is possible.

“I love when music can surprise. How much delight and surprise was inside me when I first heard “Jealousy”” by Vladi (the magic of these drums still works), the “French” sound of “Karat-Te” (did Marat know, what creates a standard for an entire generation?) or the funk instrumentals of BMB (where the hell does this black groove come from from a 16 year old St. Petersburg boy?).

In 2014, exactly the same revelation for me was the sound of a new Kazakh school, the flagship of which is rightfully Strong Symphony. Are you hungry for some new, "defused" R&B? Do you need rocking hip-hop with a nod to the “old school” or trendsetter trap? It seems that he is able to do everything without losing his face and recognizable handwriting. Black harmonies, 808 drums that sound surprisingly unbanal and unvulgar, attention and love for detail. No wonder, according to rumors, it was Strong Symphony that was hired to work on the recently released album of two Russian rap titans, which sounds surprisingly fresh, relevant and very stylish. Ahead is the album of Scryptonite, Strong Symphony's closest creative ally. And I really want to be surprised. Listen and not understand how it's done. Just like I don’t understand now why the future of hip-hop music is being forged somewhere in the Kazakh steppes. PVL stand up!".

The Portuguese-born Londoner has written instrumentals for many British grime artists - his credits include Ghetts, P-Money, Naughty Boy and even The Prodigy's Maxim. Russian listeners are known as the person who is on stage with Oxxxymiron during his concerts - and also the author of the music for “Tumbler”, “Lie Detector” and several more of his tracks. Also: Porchy worked with L"One on his latest album, Lonely Universe.

"Ask Kanye West: if you want a modern sound, go to London. Porchy is from there. He is a genius: his finger on the pulse, his musical taste is excellent. We are on the same wavelength in terms of music. He is very musical. He has a great sense of melodics in choruses, perhaps because he sings himself, and sings excellently!

Once I came across his video clip “Grindin”, I immediately decided to write and ask for instrumentals. I’m kind of sorry that on “Lonely Universe” there is only one “New Day” under his production! Believe me, there were even crazier things in the package he sent me!”

Author of almost all the music for last year's album by Guf and Rigos "420". BluntCath’s instrumentals would be hard to call “fashionable”, but, on the other hand, they don’t have that mothball “like in the 90s” vibe either. The tactful definition of “classic” is best. At the same time, we are promised a “very modern sound” on Rigos’ upcoming album.

“It’s difficult to overestimate the role of musicians in an artist’s career. There are any number of examples of how important the combination of “MC/beatmaker” is in order for the product to be original, holistic and interesting. I’ve been receiving a lot of music by email lately. Sometimes I receive letters with beats and text a la “I hear your voice on this beat”, “here I wrote for you” With BlunthCath we build a vibe completely differently. Andryukha is not a beatmaker, but a producer-arranger: he knows the artists with whom he records compositions, but does not “write under ", but shows his style from different sides - depending on the style of the MC and the mood of the track. He assembled "Ram's Horn" from scratch in thirty minutes of hard rocking, and when he added chorales, I clearly began to hear that they were singing something like " mi lord." After the next half hour, the structure of the song was built - and by the end of the evening the song took on its final form. This is the whole BlunthCath: he is not very productive, but it is easy for the artist to write to his instrumentals, revealing his best qualities."

The calling card (and for some, the reason to immediately give up on a person) of beatmaker Monte Molotov is the Big Russian Bo$$ song “Cannibal Bitch.” A heartbreaking composition, not least thanks to the operetta sample used here as a tool to build up suspense. Monte regularly releases solo releases - and this is the very case when the beats do not need recitative at all. The music is complex, woven from the smallest vignettes and sounds unearthed from God knows where.

“As a musician evaluating another musician, my main criterion is envy. Of course, in a good way: you envy this snare, the distortion in the right place, the construction of the instrumental. I can say about Monte Molotov - he’s cool, I envy him.

The guy has his own approach to writing music and many non-standard solutions. If earlier he was in the role of “the first Russian Clams Casino,” then over these couple of years he has grown greatly into an independent musician, recognizable by his sound.”

The man who wrote most of the instrumentals for Guf’s third album “Sam and...”, and then worked a lot with the bands the Chemodan and Caspian Gruz. What distinguishes his music is, first of all, its diversity: one track may have a sad piano, another - African tribal drums.

Gross: “Vadim respects the sound quality, and most importantly, has his own style. This is important for the performer and the listener. He simply has the best bass in the tracks. From my own experience, I know that before creating the next beat for our album “Side A” / Side B" I discussed with him how I would like to see this beat. And in the end everything came out exactly as I imagined in my head and sometimes even better. He managed to combine the saxophone and opera singing. And it sounded very organically."

Ves: “He’s one of those musicians who don’t turn up their noses. And they have exactly the same respect for the people they work with as they do for their brainchild, that is, for their beats. I can’t help but agree that Vadim has his own vision of writing music, be it in underground beats or in more popular directions. Vadim knows how to not only listen, but also hear, which is important not only in music, but also in the relationship between the artist and the beatmaker. Not having a constant opportunity to write a beat, I envy in a good sense of the word to Vadim). He is not only musically gifted, but also technically skilled."

A beatmaker who works not only with domestic trap artists, but also for export. His beats were used by the Atlanta-based Migos, and now “negotiations are underway” with other popular foreign rappers. It’s not difficult to guess what kind of music he writes: trap, the author of which does not give away his Zelenograd residence permit - everything sounds so “branded” and American.

“In general, it would have been more logical to ask Rich the Kid for Breezey. Or Migos. In the end, Kevin Gates. Well, even if the name 2 Chainz, who turned to him for beats, doesn’t mean anything to you, then it certainly doesn’t mean anything to me there is nothing more to say.

Roma's beats are an honest and powerful sound straight from Russian trap house. They were written anywhere and on anything, but at the same time they sound more “branded” than the bulk of such sterile recordings. The ordered chaos of the rhythm section, combined with signature deep basslines, sets a clear groove, which is supported by hit, but not primitive melodic solutions. Moreover, Roma manages to balance between minimalism and compositional overload: every sound knows its place, starting from the lead synthesizer and ending with the classic sample from “Dilemma”. Breezey easily captures new trends in American music, quickly and organically adapting them to his sound, and the impressive results that he achieved despite his geolocation (Zelenograd, fireworks!) only emphasize his talent."

Valery Tekkel, a multi-instrumentalist musician, worked a lot with artists from Respect Production (Casta, Vladi, Zhara). Moreover, he was responsible for the biggest hits - “Make Dreams” or “Noise Around”. These two names, in general, are the best recommendation: SoundBro makes “music for the masses”, so the narrowing scope of “hip-hop beatmaker” is unlikely to suit him.

“Unfortunately, the majority of domestic MCs do not belong to the most solvent category of artists in the country. So, sooner or later, the desire of most beatmakers to go beyond beats for rappers is understandable. For example, on the stage you can get more money for producing one song than for producing an entire rap album. But not all beatmakers succeed. The reason is simple: many are simply not musicians, they are not even familiar with the basics of musical literacy and solfeggio.

That is why Valera SoundBro is one of the most important figures in Russian rap. Being a hereditary musician, he not only did not exchange Russian rap for other, more lucrative genres of music, but also made every effort to bring the “correct”, in his opinion, rap to the masses. Valera is the co-author of the hits “There’s Noise Around” and “Compose Dreams,” iconic songs for Casta and Vladi. He also worked with a large list of pop artists, most often creating arrangements for their songs together with rappers. For example, he is the producer of the joint song Elka and Zhara. If I need a live sound, a noble sound, rich harmonies, then I need to turn to Valera. Watching him work in the studio is a pleasure: being a multi-instrumentalist, Valera very easily records guitar parts over the newly recorded background, and can immediately finish playing something on sax or bass. Virtuoso, in a word."

American rap legend Eminem needs little introduction: he is one of the best-selling artists of our time. This guy has received 11 Grammy awards and, moreover, he is the best performer of our time according to Billboard 2009. Em's work always combines good rap lyrics and catchy choruses and hooks. However, behind all the numerous hits there is a whole team of specialists. Co-authors of the compositions are his constant partners Dr Dre, producer-musician Mike Elizondo(Mike Elizondo), keyboardists-arrangers Mark Batson(Mark Batson) and Louis Resto(Luis Resto). It should be noted that the performer tried to write music for his tracks on his own, however, the rapper did not get the desired result and trusted professionals.

The main sound engineer for the track is Marshall Matters. Mike Strange.

He has been working with the artist for quite a long time: since 2001. The sound engineer revealed his cards and admitted that he still works in Pro Tools. Strange told how he and Eminem work in the studio and how the whole work process generally happens.

Mike: The only time we work on the computer is when we're recording Eminem's vocals, I record them to the producer's two-track mix (demo). At this point I stay in Pro Tools, it makes it easier to switch between songs while writing and recording. Then I ask the producer to give me a rough song track by track and distribute the tracks via the SSL remote control. We use Pro Tools as a tape recorder. We use some plugins, but mainly to clean up noise from parts. In the end (for information) we use hardware and an SSL remote. The main thing is the creative creation of the song, and not an attempt to achieve some incredible sound.

Their own trick is layering instruments after mixing. However, this style of work is not common in world practice. First, the producer sends them a combination of rhythm parts and instrumental arrangement. This can all be either in its rudimentary form or in its entirety, with or without a chorus melody. These parts are recorded into a single stereo track. The next step is for Eminem to record all of his vocals except the chorus hooks. This is usually recorded as a double track. And only then the entire composition is built track by track from the initial production blanks, mixing and overdubbing of guitars and keyboards is performed.

The sound engineer also revealed the secret of what kind of microphone the star uses. This Sony C800, and the rapper has remained faithful to him for many years.

Eminem's vocals are edited very rarely; Strange does not need to cut and splice takes: Eminem always knows what he wants and understands how to achieve it. A double track of vocals is recorded only for musical reasons - to thicken the sound.

After the information, Louis gets to work. He's recording overdubs. It should be noted that Louis plays live, he has a serious collection of hardware and software synthesizers ( Oberheim OB8, Yamaha Motif, Roland Fantom G). Luis's contribution is to expand upon the already established production arrangement.

Eminem works with various talented producers, including the young Boi-1da, who works with Drake, Lil Wayne, Kanye West.

Producer Boi-1da prepared the composition Not Afraid. In the picture below you can see a screenshot of the project for this track.

In the first week of release, the track was downloaded 380,000 times and instantly became the number 1 song on the Billboard chart.

As for drum processing, the team didn’t discover America: everything here is more or less standard: equalizers and console compressors SSL, Antares Auto-Tune, Digidesign Trim and EQ III plugins, various reverbs.

Eminem is very sensitive to the creation and recording of his songs, so he is present in the studio at all stages of the creation of the compositions.

Unfortunately, that's all we've been able to find out about Em's hit-making work so far.

In this article we will look at the basics of creating a rap minus, and also find out what it is beats And bars in Fl Studio and why you need to adhere to a certain pattern or pattern in music.

First of all, there must be a pattern or pattern in music, and you can notice this in many famous rappers and other performers. Listen to the music and you will hear the sequence of actions.

Let's first look at what is used to create rap minus Well, at the end of the article we’ll look at the template.

On a note:

There are no boundaries when writing music as it is a creative process. And therefore, remember that there are no rules and you don’t need to listen to everyone (something like you did something wrong or you should have done it differently) except for the key of the notes. Creating music, as I wrote above, is a creative process and it is different for everyone. But this also does not mean that by drawing a bunch of inharmonious notes and placing them in you will create a masterpiece.

Instruments used in rap style:

The creation of a rap minus is based on instruments. This is the basic set of tools that we will now look at. But first, be sure to download this fl project. For a visual example.

• Bit– in any music, the beat plays an important role in creating the rhythmic picture of your backing track. We hear the beat throughout the music and therefore we need to pay attention to it. The beat is based on Kick, Clap or Snare, Hat. Can also be used as additions to Shaker, Cymbals, Percussions. They are mainly used to diversify the beat.

• Bass– gives a large amount of low frequencies from which your rap minus breaks. A necessary element in rap music.

• Pad– needed to create volume for your minus. But not in large quantities. They usually play with a long, extended sound.

• Lead or Instrument– this is the main instrument that will play for you throughout the entire composition. You can choose absolutely any instrument you like.

• Strings or Instrument 2,3,4- these are melodies that will complement the main melody. They will play on the backing track, in the chorus, at the beginning of the main melody. This is necessary so that the minus becomes more diverse and does not quickly bore the listener.

Select instruments by ear, as I don’t know any other method.

I want to tell you right away that you should not limit yourself to this list. Just keep in mind that this set of tools can grow. It all depends on your imagination and your creativity.

This is what the rap minus template looks like. It may be slightly different. It all depends on the author's idea.

I didn’t include Vocal since we are only considering rap minus, but of course it should be there. It is written down after the minus itself has been compiled.

Also, when recording vocals, they do backing vocals, where each rapper uses his own tricks and sounds. Backing vocals are an addition to the main vocals.

In general, rap minus is most often used as a basis samples. Samples are excerpts of various instrument sounds cut from songs. Here, in essence, everything is simple and the template of the tools can be said to be the same. It’s just that here you won’t have to think about how to compose chords, but if you add additional instruments, you will need to find out in what key the sample is playing in order to play a melody under it. Next, you just need to competently trim the audio track and prepare several samples to scatter them in .

Minus rap template.

I think not everyone knows what a rap minus template should look like. And so let's look at it. But I want to warn you right away that this example, which is presented below, is the most common in the rap style and it may differ from the disadvantages of other genres since each genre has its own layouts.

What are beats and bars in Fl Studio? Beats and bars is a musical time interval in a track. Without them it would be hard to write negative comments. And therefore they are needed for the convenience of creating music in general.

The figure below shows in detail the division into bits and bars, as well as the rap minus template itself.

Remember, in order for your rap minus to be catchy and the listener after listening to it wants to listen to it again and again, you need to do it.