One of my favorite rap songs is “The World Is Yours” by Nas from his classic Illmatic, produced by the great Pete Rock.
Here’s Tracklib’s sample breakdown:
See also a study of groove melody
Chords work differently in grooves than they do in songs and linear compositions. In his book Everyday Tonality, Philip Tagg proposes that chords in loops are mainly there to signpost locations in the meter. By his theory, the metrical location of a chord matters more than its harmonic function. This idea aligns with my experience of listening to and making groove-based music. I’d like to develop it further, to form a general theory of how groove harmony works.
I don’t plan to try to explain every kind of groove there is, but I do want to look for widely recurring patterns. My main goal is to save my students the many years of trial and error that it took me to figure out this vast and understudied area of musical practice.
Disclaimers: this isn’t any kind of complete theory, it’s me thinking out loud about a bunch of examples. I chose those examples because I like them and find them interesting, not because I’m trying to be systematic.
Here’s a question from the always insightful Debbie Chachra:
@ethanhein I just realized you are the right person to ask this–are there great analyses that make the connection between Bach's Art of Fugue and sampling in hip-hop?
— Deb Chachra (@debcha) June 12, 2020
@ethanhein [Query prompted by hearing DJ Dahi talk about the key elements of sampling being looping, chopping, and reversing: https://t.co/hsUH3hB3Ml , and bearing in mind my understanding of "Art of Fugue" mostly comes from Hofstadter's GODEL, ESCHER, BACH]
— Deb Chachra (@debcha) June 12, 2020
Debbie’s intuition is correct, there is a connection between sample flipping and fugue writing. This connection supports a core argument of my dissertation research: hip-hop is a valuable area of study not only because it’s significant in and of itself, but also because it provides a set of methodologies you can use to understand other kinds of music as well. Let’s dig in!
This summer, I’m teaching Cultural Significance of Rap and Rock at Montclair State University. It’s my first time teaching it, and it’s also the first time anyone has taught it completely online. The course is cross-listed under music and African-American studies. Here’s a draft of my syllabus, omitting details of the grading and such. I welcome your questions, comments and criticism.
I was asked on Quora to give a list of my favorite hip-hop songs, because what better source is there than a forty-year-old white dad? (I am literally a mountain climber who plays the electric guitar.) I did grow up in New York City in the 80s, and I do love the music. But ultimately, I’m a tourist in this culture. For a more definitive survey, ask Questlove or someone. These are just songs that I like.
Hip-hop at its best is about truth-telling. It doesn’t get any realer than “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)” by Pete Rock and CL Smooth.