Sampling beats from existing songs is nothing new in the music industry. While many artistes try their luck, turning a sampled beat into a successful hit isn’t always easy. However, some have managed ...

Sampling has been an integral part of hip-hop for decades. It's one of the genre's main foundations. When a producer uses a portion of an already existing song for a new record, the sample turns the ...

This article has been handpicked from the Okayplayer editorial archives and included in our Hip Hop 50 collection as a noteworthy inclusion to the genre's rich and diverse narrative. The article has ...

Nothing says hip-hop like Hall & Oates. That's right. Not even the filthy mouths of 2 Live Crew could resist their soft rock hooks, luxurious hair and awkward, ambiguous lyrics. (You can't go for what ...

It's safe to say that I love samples. From a very young age, I have always been fascinated with how such a small snippet can be chopped and developed into something completely new. Now, as an adult, ...

After Pop Smoke's tragic death in 2020, many wondered what would become of New York drill, and many naysayers claimed it died with him. Over the next year, several booming voices would knock at that ...

I’m sitting in the basement of a low-rise corner building in Bushwick with 23-year-old rapper/producer Cash Cobain, and it’s finally time to throw on the Spice Girls. The basement is a converted ...