Sampling the future \ Chris Reynolds

ill o.g.
Battle Points: 3
In a decision affecting Hip-Hop producers and artists, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Nashville created what it called a "new rule" in copyright law on Sept. 7.

The "new rule" states that Hip-Hop artists must pay for every sample that they use to create their composition -- regardless of the size of the sample or how it has been altered.

This lawsuit is one of many brought by Bridgeport Music, who is in the business of exploiting musical composition copyrights, and others against approximately 800 defendants for the use of samples without permission in Hip-Hop recordings.

The case centers on the NWA song "100 Miles and Runnin'," which samples a three-note guitar riff from "Get Off Your Ass and Jam" by '70s funk artist George Clinton and Funkadelic.

In the two-second sample, the guitar pitch has been lowered and the sampled piece was "looped" and extended to 16 beats. The sample appears five times in the song.

NWA's song was included in the 1998 movie "I Got the Hook Up," starring Master P and produced by his movie company, No Limit Films.

The lower court in 2002 said that the riff in Clinton's song was entitled to copyright protection, but the sampling "did not rise to the level of legally cognizable appropriation," and granted a summary judgment, which is a judgment given when there is no material issue of fact and the judge finds no need for a trial. The district court found that "no reasonable juror, even one familiar with the works of George Clinton, would recognize the source of the sample without having been told of its source."

No Limit Films has argued that the sample was not protected by copyright law.

Bridgeport Music and Westbound Records, which claim to own the copyrights for the Funkadelic song, appealed the lower court's summary judgment in favor of No Limit Films.

In the decision, the appeals court says, "If you cannot pirate the whole sound recording, can you 'lift' or 'sample' something less than the whole? Our answer to that question is in the negative." The court went on to say, "Get a license or do not sample. We do not see this as stifling creativity in any significant way."

Previous to this decision, the precedent regarded samples in much the same way as other copyrighted works, in that there is no unlawful infringement for copying work unless a substantial portion of the work (in quantity or quality) is copied without permission.

This decision changes that distinction as applied to music.

N.C. State graduate Robert Mooney, co-founder of Four Four Records on Hillsborough Street, likened sampling to writing a paper, something as familiar to a college student as sampling is to a Hip-Hop producer.

"You can go to the library and Xerox a half a page or a page of a book, but if you Xeroxed the whole book, then you're breaking the law," Mooney says. "Within the confines of our copyright laws, there's supposed to be room for you to be able to cite a sentence or a quote in your paper or book. That's allowed, but once you steal their whole composition then you're breaking the copyright laws."

Since the advent of digital music the last decade has seen the record industry clamoring to get legal injunctions against music downloading and subsequently sample artists. Of this Mooney goes on to say, "They don't have the foresight to think 'How can we work with artists to make more money?' They just want to stop it."

"This is more just a reactionary act, the people who own these [copyrights] feel that they're loosing their grip through all of the digital evolution," Mooney concludes. "Just saying, 'We're gonna shut it down' is not going to work."

Many feel that this type of ruling will force more artists underground, producing local level "mixtapes." Mooney echoes this sentiment saying, "People are already bypassing the system, and that's probably for the best."

Jamie Proctor, manager of WKNC radio says of the ruling, "I think it's unfortunate, because there are a lot of creative people who are going to be hurt by it. There are whole styles of music devoted to this idea of taking sounds and samples from other places."

In a Reuters article, Shawn Gee, co-manager of the Roots says, "Sampling is so important. It's the foundation of Rap and Hip-Hop." The earliest rappers like Grandmaster Flash and Sugarhill Gang rhymed over existing music. Gee explains that as Hip-Hop evolved, "sampling became the instrument" to create new sounds.

Some wonder if the ruling is actually a victory for labels who own copyrights. At first glance it appears so -- however, while the ruling protects a copyright owning label, it also can turn them into defendants. Among the 800 sued, all the major labels were among the defendants.

Proctor also points out, "If anything, recognizable samples have been shown to help sell records. They make people hear all these old songs that they haven't heard in 20 years, and there are kids now buying James Brown records because they heard a sample somewhere."

It is apparent to most that a decision like this reaches deep into the Hip-Hop community.

As a Hip-Hop producer, employing samples extensively, and a Ph.D. student in ethnomusicology, Wayne Marshall has a lot to say about the ruling. "It seems that the law is simply out-of-step with common practice at this point, and that's unfortunate -- for it breeds disrespect for the law.

"Historically, the law has had to adapt to cultural practice lest the scales of justice seem tipped. Judges and lawmakers should recognize that technology has changed the way people make and think about music. At any rate, with turntables outselling guitars and music-making software proliferating, I think the cat's out of the bag. Every new ruling is another finger in the dyke."

Luca Riccioli, a beat maker studying sociology at La Sapienza University in Rome, Italy, believes that in order to get past this ruling, sampling must evolve.

"Sampling can't die, it might just evolve. But as long as you force yourself to find new ways of hiding through filtering, chopping, pitching and reversing those sounds, nobody can come to your door asking for money. So at the same time, you really test your skills and improve as a beat maker and a musician," Riccioli says.

"Things have changed, sampling has changed and therefore beat making has changed," Riccioli concludes.

The "100 Miles and Runnin'" case has been remanded to district court for further proceedings and a decision of possible damages. No Limit Films can also seek reconsideration by the U.S. Supreme Court, but has not yet announced their intentions.
 
ill o.g.
Im sick of this wack ass shit. People need to get their heads out of their asses. Its like back in the day with napster, they were getting harrased like hell and forced to stop evt., while there were dozens of clones already out and in use who didnt get attacked at all. Not to mention that I actually bought some CDS BECAUSE i was able to check them mp3s out first.

Now this wack shit, what are they gonna do next, copyright chord progressions, or copyright the way a certain drummer hits his snare?!? "I am sueing you, you used that 2pole lowpass filter exactly the same way I used it!" "Oh man, you better pay me some money for using those drum sticks on those drums in that tune, I used the same ones before you". Partly thanks to sampled hiphop, I got interested in George Clinton, James Brown, Maceo Parker, Miles Davis, and these in turn opened me up to countless more funk/jazz/blues artists.

I think we need to make a stand. I say hiphoppers that make beats all over the world should unite, sample the shit out of every goddamn thing in existence, and flood the net with it. How is anyone going to stop this? Who will they sue or force responsibility on?

There was already a project like this, check it out:
http://www.downhillbattle.org/3notes/

Not exactly what i meant, but a nice idea regardlessly.

And another thing, there is a big difference between how puff daddy or p. diddy or whatever the fuck his name is now samples whole entire 80s hits and how N.W.A. used that guitar riff. And furthermore, N.W.A., public enemy, etc dozens of others artisists earlier works could never have been made without samples, some of their tunes are nothing but samples. How are they gonna suddenly say now we can't do this no more?
How the hell are they gonna make me pay for chopping the ole funky drummer and using those fill snares in my beats? I play drums, i can record myself playing that beat in the exact same way and compressing it just like they did, this shit is wack.

HIPHOPPERS UNITE!!!!

Peace
 

FuzE

i make beatz
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 99
Fuc Dat shyt, hip-hop music was built off of sampling. Imma sample til the day i die recognizably or unrecognizably. That ruling makes me feel like "the system" is just taking shots or retaliating against hip-hop because of how powerful its become. I agree wit dysphuncktional, we need a hip-hop samplers coalition where all of us like-minded muphuckaz can come together and tell "the system" to kiss our asses!!
 

Formant024

Digital Smokerings
ill o.g.
dudes, I place my bets on the 90% of hiphop artist that sample, and those 10% in the charts having the money to clear the wack ass samples. And they sample crap, look at all the covers they're doing and we're getting the fire for being true samplists.
 
D

DaFunkDocta2004

Guest
Just like dude said in the article, this decisions will DO NOTHING BUT BREED DISRESPECT FOR THE LAW. And you best believe I could give less than a flyin', fryin' figgidy fuggedy fuck about a JUDGE! NO ONE TELLS ME HOW TO EXPRESS MYSELF. NO ONE.

NO ONE.
 

RigorMortis

Army Of Darkness
ill o.g.
I would like to meet this entity you refer to as ''NO ONE''.

But about the article dont believe that guy he is posing as the brother of Burt! ALL HAIL BURT!
 
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