Blog, page 5
How to Master a Song: Loudness, Chain and Streaming
Mastering takes a finished mix and prepares it for the outside world: tone, dynamics and a level that holds up on streaming. Here is what it can fix, the order of the chain and where home masters go wrong.
How to Make a Trap Beat: Drums, 808s and Melody
A trap beat is three layers: a sparse drum groove, an 808 that plays the bass line instead of the kick, and a loop on top that survives repetition. Here is how each one works and where producers usually get it wrong.
Kirby's Dream Land Music on the Game Boy: Composers and Themes
Kirby's Dream Land music was written for a machine with four sound channels and nowhere to hide. Jun Ishikawa and Hirokazu Ando built the series' themes around melody first, and producers are still borrowing the recipe.
How to Clear a Sample: Cost, Steps and Interpolation
Clearing a sample means two permissions, not one: the master from whoever owns the recording and the composition from the writers or publishers. The steps, the money, the paperwork, and the honest alternatives.
How to Rap on Beat: Timing, Pocket and Practice Drills
Rapping on beat is placement, not talent. Land the stressed syllables against the snare, decide once whether you sit on the grid or behind it, and practise on one looped bar instead of a whole song.
How Much Does a Beat Cost? Lease and Exclusive Prices
The same instrumental can cost $25 or $1,000 depending on the licence you pick, not on the beat. A plain breakdown of lease tiers, exclusive buyouts and the four things that move the number.
How to Write Rap Lyrics to a Beat: A Practical Guide
A working order for writing a verse: pick the beat you can talk over, map the eight-bar blocks, rap the rhythm in nonsense syllables, write the hook before the verse and record yourself before you commit.
Japanese City Pop: A Starter Guide and a Top 10 of Songs
What city pop covers, why Japan called it cheesy for thirty years, the sad story of Miki Matsubara and Stay With Me, and ten songs with official videos to start the genre with.
Make Beats With Suno AI: What You're Really Paying For
Paid Suno plans grant commercial rights, but the recording still cannot be copyrighted, Bandcamp will not host it and Tidal will not pay for it. The maths of renting a generator versus licensing a beat.
How to Record Vocals at Home: Room, Chain and Clean Takes
Most home vocals fail on the room and the level, not on the microphone. Here is the order that gets a usable take out of a bedroom in one session.