Samples


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The One Man Band
As I was driving the other day, there as an interesting debate about artists using samples of ol' school hits to produce hits nowadays.

1. Do you think an artist is not creative if (s)he uses samples?
2. Do you feel that artists use samples to try to hook listeners from the jump??
3. Do you think songs that use samples can undisputedly be called 'classic'???

I will post my thoughts later.....
 
I personally am not a big fan of sampling...I feel that they are not being creative when they sample. These songs that sample absolutely cannot be called a classic. I would think a classic would be something original with original beat and hooks and everything. I feel the same way about re-makes. Make your won song and leave those that have been hits alone. I a friend say this and I was inclined to agree with her..."If it was hit once then its going to be a hit again so that to me does not prove your creativity to remake a song" i.e Shaq remake of the ROb Bass song "It takes two."
 
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BEAT JACKERS

Artists that straight out jack a beat are lacking in creative artistry. For example, Mariah Carey has sold millions of albums off of other people's hard work, sweat and tears. She releases a watered down pop version for VH-1 and she jacks the hottest beats from the 80s, throws the rapper of the minute on there...dresses like a slut in her video and sells millions. Puffy has made millions off of sampling old 80s songs. Dr. Dre thinks he's brilliant. But it seems like every month I'm finding an old school song and I'm saying "Damn, Dre bit that beat too"

If you're gonna sample, at least blend it in so well that you can't tell that the song was sampled. Pete Rock is great at doing that.

I hate beat jackers. If I wanted to listen to Candy, I'll put out my old Cameo tapes.

Thats why I like hip hop by The Roots, A Tribe Called Quest, The Fugees, Talib Kweli, etc. They may sample....but there is so much else going on in the song, you're not hit over the head with an entire old school song. Some people don't even wait for the song to get 6 months old either.
 
Would you argue that Ice Cube's Today Was a Good Day was not a classic? It includes a sample of an old school song. I'm not necessarily disagreeing with you both, but the point can be made that classics can arise out of samples.
 
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