Calling all the veterans

[2GooD Productions]

This is an appeal to some of the veterans here to share one or two tips or techniques that you have learned over the years that some of the new guys can use to add to their arsenal.

Maybe we can get a little discussion going on, because there isn't much of that around here any more.

I would really love for everybody here to be the best beatmakers we can be, it makes for far more competitive battles, and helps build a little bit of community, create friendships and make us a force to be reckoned with.

So much of my style has come from observations of other beatmakers here over the 20 years I've been a member here. Let's keep that going.

 

[2GooD Productions]

My first tip is to study other people's music. Listen very closely to how your favourite producers put their beats together. From the types of sounds they use, the swing, the way they keep their tracks interesting, from subtle to more complex variations. Don't be afraid to copy little things they do, but don't become a copy of their whole style. As a means to learn yes, copy a style completely just for the learning experience, but please dont become a clone of another beatmaker, try to adapt things into your own style and become a unique beatmaker with your own style. If somebody wants a Dre beat or a Preemo beat or an Alchemist beat they will go to that producer. Make your own mark in the world, don't be afraid to experiment and make mistakes. Mistakes can be some of the biggest epiphanies in music making where great discoveries are made. I learned to play keys by making mistakes that sounded good.

 

[Iron Keys]

it makes for far more competitive battles, and helps build a little bit of community, create friendships and make us a force to be reckoned with.

Funny you say the above... today, or yesterday maybe, I don't fucking know... I was listening to the Warzone beats, also thinking about your reappearance, and thinking the levels are really raising.

That battles would almost become a complete wildcard because everything is so good.

Which led me to think... we could take it all 'out there', representing the ill, collectively, destroying battles/comps/whatever/etc.

ILL 2G, ILL IK, ILL Armani, ILL TWU, ILL DELTA etc

The ILL ARMY gunning down the rest of the competition out there.

Or something similar. Out there repping individually and collectively. Eachother's success would raise the other's, and the ILL's.

Maybe im just ultra nerding or having video game withdrawals. Was a spur of the moment hit of inspiration

lol

 

[2GooD Productions]

@Iron Keys There are ways each of us can all step up our games, the pursuit of making the perfect beat is never ending. The learning never stops, the more you learn the more you find there is to learn, I've been doing this for 3 decades and I'm still learning, still getting into ruts and doubting myself.
Other times I'm on a roll and I can't put a foot wrong, then I make a load of music that I feel just doesn't cut the mustard.

Being a creative is a funny old game.
We are always improving but why get stuck in the same way of doing things forever, gets boring in my personal experience, which is why I attempt other genres to keep it interesting for myself.

I just want us ALL to be the best we can be, to be consistent. I also want to get back to the discussions we used to have here, to get the community to be a community. I fear that is dying in the age of social media and the age of self.

I have noticed interactions have died only to be replaced by an emoji response.

Many posts have very little interaction and the showcase is almost dead. I think we all could do a little to help illmuzik out, just by taking part a little more. Just my 2 cents.
I think we could all benefit from it.
There is a wealth of talent here that isn't being utilised to it's full potential, only we can make that happen together.

 

[Iron Keys]

For sure,

That's why I've been dropping things like the "IRON TIP" threads, or the mix thread I did.

My personal growth has been pretty massive over the past year in regards to mixing. So when key concepts set in for me, I'm keen to share them to elevate everyone.

And still feel excited that there's an immense amount of further growth ahead I can see.



I agree with the "dying off" thing... I think it's, as you say, a social media thing, or more maybe of how people consume content now;

It's one liners (or a paragraph) in comments here or there, instant messaging in discords etc, or just watching the next "content creator" clone with their inauthentic personalitiss and ramblings and soulless promos, if they're not busy trying to be that next youtuber themselves.

Forums/message boards are like, old-old Internet. Now you got maybe reddit, but this one-society means you got one massive group all trying to plainly copy a trend, as opposed to separate societies following their own trends or at least the same trends but differently.

 

[2GooD Productions]

Too many are chasing trends instead of setting them. Following paths already laid out instead of making new paths to be followed by the sheep.
Boom bap is having a little bit of a resurgence, an old path itself that I myself follow, but I do try to be unique within that path and do things my own way.
I'm not chasing money and fame and do this for fun and just the love of it, so for people that want the fame and fortune things might be a bit different, I would like to hear their perspectives too.

I think you really have to have a passion for the music to get the most out of it, even if you are dreaming of making a fortune from it, personally I think that ship sailed a long time ago, but there are people still making good careers in music, if they are lucky and have a good team around them.