Sampling and Hip Hop Music

"Blog Article"

The different forms of hip hop music has always used samples from back in the day. Some producers have sampled beats or musical compositions from old vinyl records. Other producers rely on the hooks of old records for inspiration.  It is important if you use samples and plan making the recording for sale in a commercial environment you may want to get the sample cleared before proceeding.  Back in the day you could sample old records with out facing consequences because no one was really sure how to handle samples. But after many years of litigation and lawsuits there are many precedents for samples in the music business today.  Still many producers continue to sample without checking into clearance for their samples which is setting themselves up for real problems.  When sampling other artists you need to make sure you have the proper clearance because in most cases you have to get permission to use other artists music and you probably going to have to pay somebody.

In the music business now you should clear every sample you use even if just a second long. If you are just doing beats in your bedroom for fun and you are not trying to seriously consider a career in music then you don’t need to get permission to use samples.  But if you are putting together beats that are going to be released on record label you might want to get permission.  If you are the producer, it is your responsibility to let the record label and artists know which samples you used. You don’t want the record label and artist to get sued because you didn’t let them know your song was chalked full of samples.

Who pays for the samples? When it comes to putting up the funds for samples used in beats both the artists and the producer shell out the funds for clearance of samples. Not all samples are created equal. Sampling a piece of music from some unknown R&B group from the seventies will probably cost you a lot less than sampling from a major hit by Stevie Wonder or Michael Jackson. Let us pretend you are producing a beat for Rick Ross and you use a sample from a George Clinton song. Clinton’s publishing company may want half of the publishing rights since George Clinton was one of the biggest recording artists in black music in the eighties. Rick Ross might not want to give up half his publishing and may even want to turn down the track or beat based on that factor alone. To compensate Rick Ross and label might negotiate where you as an up and coming producer might not get publishing rights or points off the album.

Sampling is definitely a creative way of making music. I would smack anyone who says sampling is not an art form. Sampling is not for every producer. Producer like Kanye West built there careers on sampling and PDiddy was sampling force back in the 90’s. Producers with a lot of money and Artists with big budgets don’t mind using samples and giving up a part of their publishing for a hit record, usually because they have a lot of money.