Mark Ronson: How Sampling Transformed Music

[DreamMerchant12]

What are your thoughts on sampling and its effect on music? Is it a positive thing, or has it been negative? Does it help future generations learn about other forms of music and/or other artists in general, or is it just lazy music making?

[GeneralZod]

It has a place and has made great tracks like T.R.O.Y or Mind's Playin' Tricks On Me but its way overdone

[kiaba360]

I love it. At worse, a producer takes a long segment of a track and makes few or no changes. At best, a producer takes segments from multiple songs and creates a collage. The former would be considered lazy and the latter would be considered creative. Just because something can be sampled, doesn't mean it will sound good. Sampling can only truly be appreciated by those who listen to many genres and time-periods, and those who enjoy researching. You even have a site called "WhoSampled".

[DreamMerchant12]

I love it. At worse, a producer takes a long segment of a track and makes few or no changes. At best, a producer takes segments from multiple songs and creates a collage. The former would be considered lazy and the latter would be considered creative. Just because something can be sampled, doesn't mean it will sound good. Sampling can only truly be appreciated by those who listen to many genres and time-periods, and those who enjoy researching. You even have a site called "WhoSampled".

I love the **** outta WhoSampled. I wouldn't know half the samples I know if it weren't for them.


I'm also in agreement that sampling is a great thing when done right, especially the way cats like J Dilla, Premier, Madlib, Mark Ronson himself and Just Blaze are able to make crazy banger after banger but like Zod said, sometimes it can be too overbearing or even some producers will sample songs already used ten fold and make a lazy ass beat around it, i.e.
that joint with Jeremih, Rick Ross and Wale that used Curtis Mayfield- Give Me Your Love, or that one song that was on the radio for a while that sampled the Chi-Lites That's How Long that Blaze already used for December 4th, and both times the songs in bold had mediocre beats behind them when they could've at least done more to it, or use a different one altogether.

[GeneralZod]

Like who the hell told Drake it was okay to sample That Thing? Is the man insane? Cube mighta got away with sampling The Message, but he worked the beat into his own classic.

[DreamMerchant12]

Like who the hell told Drake it was okay to sample That Thing? Is the man insane? Cube mighta got away with sampling The Message, but he worked the beat into his own classic.

I guess since he's got money out the ass, most cats who he clears samples with have no problem with the royalties sent his way. As for cube, he def made it into his own classic yet that was also a time in Hip-Hop where nothing really changed as far as the sample usage goes, yet it's still a golden track nonetheless.

[kiaba360]

Like who the hell told Drake it was okay to sample That Thing? Is the man insane? Cube mighta got away with sampling The Message, but he worked the beat into his own classic.

Cube also made a classic out of this:



Another producer that does sampling well is Alchemist. As already stated, the problem with most producers is that they'll sample something that has already been flipped ad nauseam. Alchemist rarely samples from popular songs, and if he does, he tries to approach the song differently from other producers.

[DreamMerchant12]

Cube also made a classic out of this:



Another producer that does sampling well is Alchemist. As already stated, the problem with most producers is that they'll sample something that has already been flipped ad nauseam. Alchemist rarely samples from popular songs, and if he does, he tries to approach the song differently from other producers.

Alchemist is a monster on the boards. His beats are always on point no matter they're for Wayne or Dilated Peoples.

I think sampling popular songs has been played the **** out, but sampling in general has been able to survive mostly from the birth of sampling from obscurity, or at least from lesser known artists from labels in the past decade or so.

[RetroSpeed05]

I sample when i make my beats, its always fun making music, chopping a sample and reconstructing it, adding different effects seeing what you could do it manipulate the sound and still make it sound good. To me its a art-form, almost like a puzzle.

[DreamMerchant12]

I sample when i make my beats, its always fun making music, chopping a sample and reconstructing it, adding different effects seeing what you could do it manipulate the sound and still make it sound good. To me its a art-form, almost like a puzzle.

Exactly. I do the same when I make mine; it's always fun trying to figure out what the end product of a sample turns out to be.