Boom Bap Style Hip Hop
Boom Bap style hip hop is very distinct style compared to other styles of hip hop. Boom Bap often has a 'drunken' or 'trippy' quality to its rhythm. This is down to the use of something called syncopation, which in simple terms is a way of creating an offbeat effect on the track. The drums are usually arranged in a 4/4 pattern, with the kick and snares going Kick-Snare-Kick-Snare, and usually the samples are selected from either 70s-80s disco and jazz beat (sampling the break beats) or from selecting samples from drum kits and programming them in using a DAW. the main melody is usually taken from the same track, for example J Dilla would take elements from the samples he'd find and play them on his own musical instruments, or from the composition and recording of instruments. Boom Bap also features ghost notes, where two kick or snare hits are played in quick succession but the first hit is usually lower in velocity lower in velocity. Sometimes, a good baseline can add to greatly to the song, but it isn't necessarily needed. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
Song Research & Analysis
J Dilla - Life(Instrumental)Life by J Dilla is one of my all time favourite example of Boom Bap hip hop. It's a simple track, using the same sample cut from Blue In Green by Miles Davis over and over throughout the track, with a pause towards the end of the track. The drums I believe are programmed in using either a Music Production Controller or a Drum Machine. I feel that this track really captures the essence of Boom Bap hip hop, with kicks and snares that snap hard over a low quality sample. It may seem repetitive to most people but without a rapper MC'ing over the beat, most hip hop tracks sound repetitive.(7)
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Slum Village - The Look Of LoveSong Name: The Look of Love
Artist: Slum Village Produced by: J Dilla Year Released: 1997(8) The Look of Love by Slum Village is again a perfect example of boom bap hip hop, and a perfect example of J Dilla's skill as a hip hop producer. He uses samples from Barney Kessels 'The Look of Love' and Doug E. Fresh's 'The Show'. The drums are looped from the 'The Show' and is the same snappy, hard hitting drums that is telling of a boom bap track. The sample has obviously been put through an MPC and been mixed and time stretched correctly. You can also here the pitch has been shifted down when comparing the two songs. I believe that a shaker loop was added as well to give flow to the song.(9)
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Joey Badass - Like Me(Feat. BJ the Chicago Kid)Song Name: Like Me
Artist: Joey Badass Produced by: The Roots Year Released: 2015(10) Like Me by Joey Badass is a boom bap style track that has a more modern feel to it. Released in 2015, it has a more current feel to the song due to all the musical techniques created over the last 20 years. It uses the same sampling techniques as used by the old school hiphop, such as with the drum and melody sample, but has lots of elements added to the drums such as the ghost kicks and shaker, which i assume was programmed in. Also I believe the chords where recorded by the producer.
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Joey Badass - Funky Ho'sSong Name: Funky Ho's
Artist: Joey Badass Produced by: Lord Finesse Year Released: 2012(11) Funky Ho's by Joey Badass uses samples the bass from Hank Crawfords 'All Night Long', and believed was then programmed to create the bass line. The drums a very sharp and punchy and were sampled from Steve Miller Band 'Fly Like an Eagle', which indicates that it is definitely a boom bap style. Originally the song was performed by Xeperado.(12)
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