Sampling is dope. In all of the years that I've been making beats, sampling is one of those things that just makes my beats sound great and unique. However, there are times when sampling can be a real pain, but it's still something I continue do. I guess it's some sort of love/hate relationship, but here's 5 reasons why I hate sampling.
1. It's Hard
Many times I've seen beat making rookies ask for advice on how to sample, what to sample, and how to put it all together. At first I would think to myself, "sampling is not that hard, what's their problem?", but then I realized that sampling is actually pretty hard, and for a person just starting out, it can be very frustrating.
When I sit down in the lab and look for samples, it's something I enjoy doing but it's also difficult because there are just tons of really wack music out there. Most of my time is spent sifting through music that is just not possible for me to sample because it either doesn't fit with the style that I'm producing, or there's nothing worthwhile at all.
2. It's Time Consuming
What I enjoy most about making beats is just that - making beats! That's why sampling sucks because it takes a lot of time to find something that sounds good. If I could just load up Maschine and have a bunch of samples just sitting there, that would be great because then I could just hit the pads and create something dope.
The problem is that before I can get to that part, I have to first find a sample that I can use. I browse my folders or go through my vinyl but I'm mainly just wasting time. Time I could be spending having fun making beats.
3. It Sounds Bad
For some, sampling is not something they like doing because they want to have the cleanest possible sounds in their beat, and I completely understand that. However, for me, I prefer to have dirty sounds in my beats, but the problem is when the samples are just TOO dirty and I end up with lots of clicks and pops.
For instance, when I would make all of my beats strictly on my computer, I would chop up a sample in Cool Edit Pro (yes, that's old), and then apply a filter to remove clicks, pops, and hiss. It did a pretty good job, but I was left with a really muffled sound, and a lot of times it didn't even get rid of the dirt, so I was left with no choice but to scrap the sample and find something else.
4. It's Hard To Fine-Tune
Just the other night I was making a beat and I found a few dope samples. One was piano and the other was bass. I chopped them both up and was ready to go, but when I played both the piano and bass together, it sounded like shit. That's because they were completely out of tune. I know there's tools to help fix that, but with samples it's a bit more difficult.
I mainly like to keep things simple, so I try to stay away from lots of plug-ins, and instead focus on just the samples I have in front of me. They were both dope but I had to let go of one of them, which really sucked because they were both great on their own.
5. It's Been Sampled Before
One of the most frustrating parts about sampling is that a lot of music has already been sampled. Take for example, "Tidal Wave" by Ronnie Laws. I was busy doing something the other day and this track came on, and I thought to myself, "Yo, I should sample this, this shit is dope", not realizing what song it was. As the song continued I then remembered that sample, which was of course used by Black Moon on "Who Got Da Props".
That is why it's hard to find good samples because a lot have been taken already whether you realize it or not. I've heard many stories of beat makers finding a dope sample, flipping it and making it sound dope, only to find out later on that it was used by a famous producer.
Add to the fact that it's not just the Hip Hop genre that is using a lot of samples, and you have a big issue to deal with when you go digging either for vinyl, or online via YouTube.
Conclusion
Even though these points explain some of the reasons why I hate sampling, I also love it. It's like anything that you love, I guess. With every positive, there's a negative. I think that's something Einstein said. Long live sampling!
Further Reading Related to Sampling
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