4 Tips to Picking the Right Beat.
Lets be honest, we have all spent countless hour scouring the web to find the perfect beat to write our next hit too. Am I right? How many times have you picked a beat, downloaded it, loaded into your D.A.W., and started writing, only to hate the song an hour later? I know I am not the only one who wrote some verses I really love but suddenly hate the beat I am on. I have put together a list of 4 tips that I live religiously by which I really think will help you on your way to the Grammys.
1. Within the first few seconds I have found that if a beat doesn’t grab me within the first few seconds, or at least by the time I hear the “drop”, then it is not the beat for me. When I hear the perfect beat, I am fighting back the urge to start freestyling, my feet start tapping, I am already humming melodies for the hook, and it just seems like a “hit”. If the beat you are listening to does not do this for you within the few first couple of seconds then it is not worth listening to any longer. From a super nerdy point of view, mathematically speaking, you will find a beat that inspires you the way I said previously just by not wasting time trying to make it work with lesser beats… ya know?
2. Pull a hook Once you have found a beat that makes you start dreaming of lights, you need to write a hook. I suggest doing this before you purchase the beat that way you can make sure you are able to get a hook that matches your awesomeness. If you buy a beat and start writing verses, you may end up feeling discouraged come time to writing the hook. Because you were so focused on the bad ass trap hats that were sure to show off your rap skills you maybe didn’t notice the weird thing the melody does in the middle of the hook. Now you spent a few hours writing 16 bar verses maybe even got a bridge or whatnot, but you can’t land this hook because of some weird instrumental malfunction and there is no getting around it. Don’t be that guy. Don’t be me. Yes, I did that. Its lame. and expensive. Long story short, write the hook before you buy the beat. Trust me.
3. Step outside your comfort zone Not all tight rap songs are done on trap beats. And to be honest when I am at a show, I get sick of trap beats and boom bap beats quick. They all start blending. Also, often the sound system isn’t the greatest and the beat is the only comprehensive part of the live song. So, ask yourself… Do I want to sound exactly like the last 4 rappers to go on? No one is going to hear all your lyrics but will still be expecting you to give them something to talk about. So, pick a beat that is different then all your other beats and make it stand out. Okay?
4. Know how you like it Do you know what tempo you lean more towards when you are making your own beats? Do you have a key or chord progression that you like the way your voice sounds when you combine the elements? Have you ever experimented with different time signatures? I you answered no to any of these questions you are not even ready to buy beats. I mean come on. Why waste time looking for beats when you don’t even really know what you like. Go and try all these things until you know exactly how you are going to prove to me you are different and better then the rest. Thanks.
-written by Pistol Page
