Hottest Flips: Samba, Tibetan Folk, 60s Soul Vocals & Brazilian Bossa

Made With Tracklib

Hottest Flips: Samba, Tibetan Folk, 60s Soul Vocals & Brazilian Bossa

A monthly breakdown of new music with Tracklib samples. This time with samples scoured from library music, a cameo by Three 6 Mafia’s Juicy J, Japanese funk-inspired beatmaking, French deep house, and more.

By

Tracklib

·

October 6, 2021

Travis Thompson - 7-11 (ft. Juicy J)

“I realized that if i cut the sample off at the right moment, it could be construed as talking about doing illegal shit, which very much fit with the rest of the song.”

—Tyler Dopps

Seattle emcee Travis Thompson hooked up with Three 6 Mafia’s Juicy J for the opening track of his new album, BLVD BOY**. Smart chopping by producer Tyler Dopps recontextualized the contents of the string-laden 60s song “When Times Are Bad (We Turn To Love)” on** Philly Groove Records.

“Last June, Travis and I got a little cabin out in the middle of nowhere to work on stuff with as little distraction as possible. He had already written the hook idea acapella, so for me it was about producing around that initial idea, and trying to make it feel as impactful as I could. We knew the initial instrumental loop felt really good, but we wanted something on the front end of the song to make it ‘drop’ when the first hook hit. I thought it would add to the ‘in-your-face’-ness of the song if we just let a sample run as an intro. Naturally, Tracklib was the first choice for browsing for the right sample.

This sample by Coupe De Villes was particularly special because of the lyrical content. I realized that if i cut it off at the right moment, it could be construed as talking about doing illegal shit, which very much fit with the rest of the song. The entire BLVD BOY album opens with this sample. This wasn’t my most technically impressive flip, though [laughs]. I’m pretty sure all I did was pitch it up a semitone or two, and maybe add some light EQ.”—Tyler Dopps

Engelwood - Pineapple

“I sped up the BPM and just left it as-is for the most part. Looping a few intervals of the track that I liked, upping the pitch, and making the drums more samba-y.”

—Engelwood

Inspired by Japanese funk and fellow beatmakers such as Vanilla and Flamingosis, producer Engelwood cooks his beats with the sunny side up: an uplifting blend of tropicana, soul, and chillhop.

“I immediately thought this is everything I could ever want out of a sample. The type that you just listen to on loop and walk around your room knowing you’re about to flip it into a banger. I believe I found the song in one of Tracklib’s curated collections. It was focused on easy listening/bossa nova/lounge which is usually what I sample in my music.

The production process was really smooth for this one. I always try to chop up samples first, but found it wasn’t flowing how I wanted it to. I initially went with a more classic boom bap style but found the sample to be too upbeat for that type of track. So I sped up the BPM and just left it as-is for the most part. Looping a few intervals of the track that I liked, upping the pitch, and making the drums more samba-y.”—Engelwood

Synapson - Mohan

“When I’ve found the sample and sound I want, I resize it on my sequencer with a drum kit to find the right groove.”

—Synapson

**Brazilian bossa meets Bollywood vocals on “Mohan” by French electro/house duo Synapson (Alexandre Chiere & Paul Cucuron). They describe their own music as a "mix of atmospheres,"ranging from deep house to nu-disco, and from jazz vibes to dancefloor anthems.

“I was looking for something with a Brazilian vibe and I directly fell in love with this song. The sample we chose starts right at the beginning of the track. It’s a real thunderbolt. Before I sent it to Alex, l first cut the sample and added a basic drum kit over it. After that, Alex got this crazy idea to add Indian vocals on top of this Brazilian sound.

l prefer working on samples which I don’t tweak too much. So I take some time finding the right sound and inspiration that I need. When I’ve found the sample I want, I resize it on my sequencer with a drum kit to find the right groove.”—Synapson

Coast Modern - Sunshine Time

“The bridge is made from a different section played in reverse I pitched up and down. I kept it very simple. With such good source material I just had to let it shine.”

—Luke Atlas

A Tibetan folk sample makes for a logical choice when you hear the music of Luke Atlas and Coleman Trapp: under the moniker of Coast Modern, they blur the lines between numerous styles like electro-pop, hip-hop, psychedelic music, and indie rock.

“I get a thrill out of sampling things that I feel like no one in their right mind would touch— cheesy lounge music, easy listening, et cetera. Somehow I stumbled on a cache of Tibetan orchestral folk music on Tracklib, and ‘The Bright and Shining Moon’ title stuck out to me. The music immediately took me to a place—it sounded like a nostalgic spring day right before summer. Some samples are so obvious they slap you in the face. That was the case with this one. How could something so pure and beautiful be unknown to most people? It’s like spotting gold in the pan! I felt an instant urge to put a beat together.

The whole track came together really quickly and without too much thought. That’s the best kind of production, I think. I made a short loop and put it front and center, then just tried to support the natural magic that was baked in. A nice drum break and some fat bass was all it really needed. There's a little vinylizer on there to make the music sound more vintage. I pitched it down a few steps, which adds a slightly different character and some cool artifacts. The bridge is made from a different section played in reverse I pitched up and down. I kept it very simple. With such good source material I just had to let it shine.“—Luke Smith

Marlon Craft - Pace (ft. redveil)

"The intro is just the sample but it’s a lot lower in volume than when the beat drops. It’s the oldest trick in the book but it works."

—Arbus Beats

Swedish beatmaker Arbus Beats produced five tracks on Homecourt Advantage by New York emcee Marlon Craft. Soul samples throughout all of them, with the smoothest sound on the album’s main single, “Pace'', chopping a blissful piece of Philly soul.

“I was on the hunt for soulful samples at that time so I checked out Tracklib’s Soul section and heard Flashlight’s ‘Every Little Beat Of My Heart.’ The song instantly grabbed my ears. It just had that classic 70s soulful sound that we all love.

I started with just looping the intro, which later on became the breakdown before the hook. But that got too repetitive for me so I messed with the chops a little and came up with the main loop for the song. The intro is just the sample but it’s a lot lower in volume than when the beat drops. It’s the oldest trick in the book but it works. The bass is from the sample as well. I just isolated that and processed it. The rest is just variation to keep it interesting: I added some skips, noise sweeps, and additional chops.”—Arbus Beats

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