The BeatTips Manual: Beatmaking, the Hip Hop/Rap Music Tradition, and the Common Composer
"Comprehensive, passionate and scholarly,The BeatTips Manualis much more than an instruction book for hip-hop producers...It is a thorough analysis of the hip-hop aesthetic itself. Highly recommended for anyone that takes hip-hop culture seriously." --Joe Schloss, Ph.D, author of 'Making Beats'; Professor, Baruch College Amir "Sa'id" Said'sThe BeatTips Manualis more than just another book on hip hop production. Simply put, the theories and protocols for hip hop music production illustrated withinThe BeatTips Manualmake it the best book ever written on the topic. Sa'id spans the gamut of hip hop culture with the ease of a seasoned journalist, and the reference point of a well read, passionate, eloquent, and humble b-boy participant in the weaving of the fabric that is the core of hip hop culture: Music, Dance, Graffiti and Emceeing. Sa'id takes on these historical tenets of hip hop inThe BeatTips Manual, using unique and well formatted explanations of little-known and universally applicable production tips, pointed historical references, and his own personal experience with music production gear. All factors that lend impressive and unprecedented depth. In my humble opinion, all of the above should bode well forThe BeatTips Manual'sfuture status as required reading in music production classes nationwide...if not worldwide.The BeatTips Manualis a very well designed playbook and priceless reference manual for both the aspiring production student and the seasoned studio veteran alike. Furthermore, Said's ability to speak to his audience from both a professorial and a craftsman's viewpoint raises the bar once again, as illustrated in his earlier volumes, earning a position as the required book for NYU's (Tisch School Of Music) first beatmaking/hip hop production course as well as other accolades too numerous to mention here. It's extremely difficult to document hip hop culture. Not very many have been successful without being either romantic about hip hop's former innocence, or being engulfed in it's current caricature stance and losing the plot somewhere along the way. Sa'id has once again straddled the fences that separate the studio from the records; mechanics and theory from lack thereof; and practice and fundamental from freestyle. There is a veritable PhD course on hip hop history and music production techniques to apply to one's own interests, expectations, and plans. For those interested in gaining a more well-rounded understanding of the beatmaking tradition of hip hop as well as the historical and academic context of it and the business associated with it,The BeatTips Manualwill undoubtedly help you turn the corner toward priceless cultural enlightenment and boundless creative fulfillment. You need to readThe BeatTips Manual. Trust me. --DJ Rich Medina"Detailed and thorough, I'd considerThe BeatTips Manualto be the go-to guide for beatamking. Highly recommended. --Ivan Rott, HipHopIsRead.com"This is by far the single best book focusing on Hip Hop production. It is an absolute must read and it's for anyone beginning or continuing their journey into production. It will prove highly valuable and pay countless dividends to anyone willing to invest the time to obtain the vast wealth of knowledge and wisdom contained in its pages. Also, with interviews from renowned producers such as DJ Premier...and others being worth the price of admission, the book acts as a triple bonus. --CrateKings.com --Joe Schloss; DJ Rich Medina; HipHopIsRead.com; CrateKings"This is not a 'skim the top' type of book..this is a great book, it s thorough, it s deep, it s very informative...if you make beats, or have any interest in making beats/producing, this book is a must have, no questions, period." --SoundsandGear.com"Finding this caliber of literature is not always easy...knowledge and passion for the culture is spilling from each page...I couldn't put the book down." --Phil Rose