|
>(long... but skimmable) > >many people break down hiphop into 'beats and lyrics.' this is >careless though, it should be 'beats and rapping' > >right now i'm concerned with the SOUND of rapping, as opposed >to what the actual message of the words is > >a few loose terms are usually thrown about >- flow >- delivery >- cadence > >most (not all) people take flow to mean the rhythm, cadence to >mean pitch, and delivery to mean the quality of the voice or >else an umbrella term for all the other sound aspects > >these are aight for some purposes. the main problem is they >are not singular elements, but folk fall into the trap of >thinking they are. really they're comprised of many >sub-facets, or subsets of something else. > >if you think about video games that simulate car >driving/racing, you might think 'it's all just 1. steering 2. >sense of speed 3. prettyness' but that doesn't even begin to >capture the complexity. apparantly the most recent racer >calculates everything from suspension ratios down to >individual tyre temperature, and it all affects handling etc, >yet earlier games achieved similar gameplay making completely >different calculations. > >at this point some will no doubt say i'm thinking about this >rap shit too deeply, or i'm putting emceeing in a box >(shout-out to Lil Roof), but in my experience if people knew >better how other musicians or other writers engaged with >detailed analysis/criticism they wouldn't dream of saying >that. complexity is just a challenge, not a dead end. > >i mean think about piano playing. ever taken lessons? the >techniques are numerous >- posture, arm/wrist/hand position, dynamics, fingering, >pedalling, counting, phrasing, rubato, accent, syncopation >- more advanced stuff like right-hand rubato, colouring >and it doesn't all happen at the same time necesserily. some >famous pianists disregard certain aspects of technique, like >Gould playing all stacatto or Horowitz playing with flat >fingers > >piano method is largely 'exterior' or visible whereas rapping >is all interior >enough rambling though >i see it like this > >- RHYTHM: >---> pattern. this is why we listen to rap, this is rap's >melody. putting the words down in a definite way that the >listener will recognize, esp. if you repeat it. it's like drum >patterns. >---> timing. you could have the illest patten planned out for >your lines but timing is the millisecond's difference that >separates a great rapper from an amateur >---> flow control. (ŠImcvspl) stringing patterns together for >a whole verse basically. on a basic level to avoid having to >stop abruptly or cram in words, but ultimately to craft >brilliant verses. this one is a common reason why seemingly >dexterous rappers often don't strike you as being particularly >dope. >---> pacing. rapping ahead of the beat or behind it. what does >that mean? the results are complex but the principle is simple >- someone like Canibus tends to rhyme exactly on the beat, so >his lines start exactly on the first beat of the bar each time >and the rhythm fairly steady; Slim Shady era Eminem would >start all his lines midway into the bar, creating a feeling of >aloofness from the beat which he would then compensate for >accelerating to catch back up or/then decelerating to do the >same next line. good if you want to sound pensive or laid back >(like you just don't give a fuck) rather than >assertive/straight-talking > >- TONE >---> cadence. the trend of the notes your voice actually hits. >'stick the needle to the groove and i'm forced to fuck it up, >my style carries like a pick up truck' - Deck's voice clearly >started high and got progressively lower. not actually much >change in pitch, more just to create the impression than >anything. Rakim would keep all his cadences low and controlled >to create a monotone impression (wasn't true monotone though, >still lots of expression in his voice). El-P, Illogic, Ras >Kass use a sort of arced cadence constantly which i'm not a >fan of. I think it's best used to compliment the patterns, or >provide an occassional unique-sounding line >---> volume. fairly self explanatory. fluctuates all the time >of course but can also be built into a cadence >---> regularity. all the stuff i described in the 'rhythm' >section could be replicated just by hitting a wooden block or >something. if you think of an actual drumkit though, there's >usually at least half-a-dozen different drums which produce >different sounds, which is much more appealing. rappers can >achieve this effect by being disciplined with the pitch/tone >of their words, like they've got a vocal drumkit. B.I.G. was >particularly good at this I think.... 'pass that before you >get your grave dug / From the main thug, .357 slug' starts >with a symbol crash then has main rhymes hit with a vocal >kick-drum, if you know what i mean... >---> melody. sometimes rappers start singing melodies in the >middle of a rap. Myka Nine, Pharcyde... or maybe they'll >'quote' a melody from a popular song. not required practice by >any means... but i thought i should list it > >VOICING >---> energy. Enter the Wu Tang featured pretty high energy >rapping; although Rakim is called monotone there's plenty of >energy in his expression; MF Doom has a fairly low level of >energy; Killah Priest is justabout true monotone. high/low >energy is neither good nor bad though... and the preference of >the listener comes into play too... but you've got to be >master of your own energy, know what sounds good with your >voice. when this fails you sound uncool, basically. >---> enunciation. can your words be clearly heard? >---> intonation. putting that little human touch into the >voice to sound 'incredulous' or 'sad' or 'flippant' or >'serious' or whatever >---> accent. those southern drawls and stuff > >RHYMING >---> rhyme scheme. which word positions in the lines rhyme >with eachother. leaving out the 'content' side of rhyming >cause we're concerned with sound here, rhyming will draw out >the patterns in the line a lot >---> accuracy. how well the two words rhyme. in hiphop the >rhymes are allowed to be pretty loose (compared to Broadway >musicals). hard to make any rules about... but seeming lazy is >not good. >---> assonance, alliteration etc. creates a feeling of >intricacy or craftmanship which is easy on the ears. can also >create mental impressions through sound... like 'season of >mist and mellow fruitfulness'... doesn't that just SOUND like >autumn? there's probably other uses but they're hard to >detail. > >so..... anything i missed out or messed up? > >*attaches life-jacket to post*
~
"Fuck being hard, Posdnous is complicated" - Pos
Top 5 MC's:
1. Ras Kass 2. Aceyalone 3. Talib Kweli 4. MF DOOM 5. Phonte
GOAT Album: Ras Kass' "Soul on Ice"
|