Sampling Ain't Dead: Hip-Hop Producers Break Down The Formula
More Videos
- 00:05:52
Just Blaze Unpacks His Samples for Beyoncé And Jay-Z
- 00:05:41
9th Wonder Breaks Down His Beats For Kendrick Lamar's 'Duckworth.'
- 00:07:03
DJ Dahi Unpacks His Spiritual Samples for Pusha T and Kendrick Lamar
- 00:05:30
DJ Premier's Sonic Inspiration In Three Samples
- 00:06:21
Salaam Remi On Sampling For Nas and Amy Winehouse
As an art form, sampling has been evolving for 35 years now. That's about how long ago it's been since the legendary producer Marley Marl revolutionized hip-hop production when, almost by accident, he figured out how to sample a drum beat from an existing record. It makes this a perfect time to look at the legacy, but also the trajectory, of sampling through a handful of snapshots.
The NPR Video team conceptualized this series, The Formula, that takes us into the home studios of several iconic producers, or producers of iconic songs, to talk about their approach to sampling and how they've evolved as producers. From talking to Just Blaze, 9th Wonder, DJ Dahi, DJ Premier and Salaam Remi, what we ended up discovering is so much more — the stories behind the music, yes, but also how they've kept sampling authentic but also vital in a genre where styles and trends change and transform faster than any other.
The fifth and final video will premiere on Saturday. In the meantime, we've also been asking some of our favorite writers to "sample" an element of each video themselves and spin it off in a new direction. Watch the videos above and read the accompanying essays below.
Read The Essays
Because You're Mine: Searching For The Children Of Screamin' Jay Hawkins
NPR"Jay Hawkins was a performer, first and foremost. Someone who gave a version of himself to the world and didn't save much of himself for those he loved — those he played a part in bringing to the world. In that way, it is undoubtedly difficult to determine where love begins and ends, or the way death echoes."
Kendrick Lamar's 'Money Trees' Is A Time Machine
NPR"It's a rare song that consumes the oxygen and alters the ultra-violet. A simple sample reversal set off a chain that yielded one of the most definitive L.A. rap songs of this decade or any other."
Kendrick Lamar Thinks Like A Jazz Musician
NPR"On the surface, DAMN. isn't knitted to the jazz world the way Butterfly was, but Kendrick is no different than Miles, Coltrane and Herbie before him: though he's rooted in rap, he pushes his art to unforeseen places, bending the culture to what he's doing."
'I Hate You, Man': Questlove On Just Blaze's Maddening Genius
NPR"I must have seen that video [for TLC's 'Diggin' On You,'] a million times. But never once did I make a mental note to myself: 'Yo ... run to a studio and sample this NOW!!!!!!' "
