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Hip Hop Ear.

Hotsauce84Hotsauce84 8,450 Posts
edited May 2010 in Strut Central
I know some of you will find this to be the corniest thread ever, but f it...I've come to realize that this is a serious problem I have. Some 10 years ago my best friend suggested I take occasional vacations from Hip Hop, a week or so here and there where you listen to everything and anything except Hip Hop music. I tried it then and to this day I just can't seem to do it. I hear it in everything! Folk song? I hear drums behind it. Jazz? I hear a loop that can be tweaked. Disco? I hear raps. Soul? I hear a loop, chop or a possible chorus. Mexican/Latin music? "Hmmm...those horns could be dope."And I'm a casual listener! I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like for a beatmaker/producer!I would love to appreciate music as is, but I'm afraid I'm forever tainted.

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  • bassiebassie 11,710 Posts


    I've come to realize that this is a serious problem I have. Some 10 years ago my best friend suggested I take occasional vacations from Hip Hop, a week or so here and there where you listen to everything and anything except Hip Hop music. I tried it then and to this day I just can't seem to do it. I hear it in everything! Folk song? I hear drums behind it. Jazz? I hear a loop that can be tweaked. Disco? I hear raps. Soul? I hear a loop, chop or a possible chorus. Mexican/Latin music? "Hmmm...those horns could be dope."


    I don't have this problem...but I can't really imagine a week without rap.

    This did resonate with me though:


    I'm a casual listener! I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like for a beatmaker/producer!

    There is something to be said for not knowing how a beat is made, how a guitar is tuned and how to write a piano melody that is the saddest sound in the world.
    I'd rather maintain the mystery of the how and retain the wonder of the what.

    Working in documentary film and TV ruined me. A good movie is a good movie, but knowing the mechanics of it took the pleasure right out. I wouldn't want the same for music.
  • Hotsauce84Hotsauce84 8,450 Posts
    Damn, Bassie! That was a perfect response and I wasn't even expecting a perfect response! I've been deconstructing original sample sources thinking "so THAT'S how he did that!" for so long that now I'm automatically deconstructing unused sample sources wondering "how would I do that?"

    A case of 'ignorance is bliss' I suppose.
  • Big_StacksBig_Stacks "I don't worry about hittin' power, cause I don't give 'em nuttin' to hit." 4,670 Posts
    I know some of you will find this to be the corniest thread ever, but f it...

    I've come to realize that this is a serious problem I have. Some 10 years ago my best friend suggested I take occasional vacations from Hip Hop, a week or so here and there where you listen to everything and anything except Hip Hop music. I tried it then and to this day I just can't seem to do it. I hear it in everything! Folk song? I hear drums behind it. Jazz? I hear a loop that can be tweaked. Disco? I hear raps. Soul? I hear a loop, chop or a possible chorus. Mexican/Latin music? "Hmmm...those horns could be dope."

    And I'm a casual listener! I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like for a beatmaker/producer!

    I would love to appreciate music as is, but I'm afraid I'm forever tainted.

    Hey Herm,

    I produce music, but I don't suffer from "hip-hop ear." I think it helps that I collected records, and therefore, appreciated music prior to ever making a beat. This harkens back to some of my old thread about buying music "for the music" as opposed to buying it as "a commodity" or just "for samples." Folks who collect music for the latter two reasons might be more prone to "hip-hop ear." Of course, I'm only speculating.

    Peace,

    Big Stacks from Kakalak
  • BreezBreez 1,706 Posts


    And I'm a casual listener! I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like for a beatmaker/producer!


    My wife always says that I make it hard for her to enjoy music because I'm always doing drum patterns to myself when we are listening to stuff and I'm always pointing out loops, drum breaks, etc. I haven't thoroughly enjoyed music in over 20 yrs. Dissecting it is just a way of life now.
  • staxwaxstaxwax 1,474 Posts
    This reminds of filmschool - there was a projectionist class which ruined watching movies for those who attended it - never being able to just sink in and watch the movie without thinking about reel changes etc... you notice those little blips at the end of each reel

    also an interview on an old police bootleg where andy summers said something to the effect of hating seeing lyric sheets and music sheets of their stuff because he felt it 'destroyed the magic in the music'

    I take breaks from listening to hip hop and binge on other stuff -
    if you like classical music that can be a great antidote to 'hip hop ear'
  • CinisterCeeCinisterCee 863 Posts
    This is more of a DJ ear.
  • Hotsauce84Hotsauce84 8,450 Posts
    This is more of a DJ ear.

    I think you're right.
  • willie_fugalwillie_fugal 1,862 Posts
    On a semi-related note, although I don't actively avoid it, I also don't really seek out translations of the lyrics, or even the song titles, of songs in foreign languages. One of the things I like about listening to songs not sung in English is that there's no linguistic communication to cloud my experience of the song purely as music--and I enjoy that a lot. the voice becomes purely another instrument, and the song takes on a greater sense of that "magic."


    not sure if that's just me though. anyone else feel the same way?
  • HarveyCanalHarveyCanal "a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
    On a semi-related note, although I don't actively avoid it, I also don't really seek out translations of the lyrics, or even the song titles, of songs in foreign languages. One of the things I like about listening to songs not song in English is that there's no linguistic communication to cloud my experience of the song purely as music--and I enjoy that a lot. the voice becomes purely another instrument, and the song takes on a greater sense of that "magic."


    not sure if that's just me though. anyone else feel the same way?

    Yep, same here.
  • Otis_FunkmeyerOtis_Funkmeyer 1,321 Posts
    On a semi-related note, although I don't actively avoid it, I also don't really seek out translations of the lyrics, or even the song titles, of songs in foreign languages. One of the things I like about listening to songs not song in English is that there's no linguistic communication to cloud my experience of the song purely as music--and I enjoy that a lot. the voice becomes purely another instrument, and the song takes on a greater sense of that "magic."


    not sure if that's just me though. anyone else feel the same way?

    Yep, same here.

    Agreed. Keeps it a completely aesthetic experience.
  • disco_chedisco_che 1,115 Posts
    On a semi-related note, although I don't actively avoid it, I also don't really seek out translations of the lyrics, or even the song titles, of songs in foreign languages. One of the things I like about listening to songs not sung in English is that there's no linguistic communication to cloud my experience of the song purely as music--and I enjoy that a lot. the voice becomes purely another instrument, and the song takes on a greater sense of that "magic."


    not sure if that's just me though. anyone else feel the same way?

    This is exactly the way I listen to rap music with english lyrics. It was trained in the years when I already listened to hip hop without understanding english properly. I can still enjoy the mere sound and rhythmic pattern of rapped speech without understanding anything. Then I can switch over to "lyrics comprehension mode" and understand almost everything. It's still a decision I can make and I see this as a blessing. Understanding what some of my favorite rappers from the past were actually talking about ruined a lot of songs for me.
  • pcmrpcmr 5,591 Posts
    this is true but with a track like this


    it's still all good
    i use to listen to brazilian music and feel the same way
    but when i learned portuguese it only made it more fun to figure out all the stuff i was humming or mispronouncing
    however i do focus too much on lyrics
    cannot study or work with non-instrumental music playing

    now my mind would be blown if i could understand all african music
  • selperfugeselperfuge 1,165 Posts
    i use to listen to brazilian music and feel the same way

    not knocking this because that's what i do. though it is odd that a us collector might hear a scorching track and react to it as man i need some sunshine and daiguris rather then notice the lyrics might be about political oppression.
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