The Complete MC Blog

Ice cream and rapping? Those don’t go together (unless, of course,
you’re Master P).

So many MC’s grab the mic like they’re trying to choke it.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what they’re doing: choking the sound.

When you hold a mic sideways with your hand around the head, it
drastically reduces clarity. You could be dropping seriously
tight rhymes and no one will hear it.

Here’s how you avoid this: think of the mic as an ice cream cone. After all, you don’t hold it by the ice cream, you hold it by the cone.

Keep the ice cream off your hands and sound like a pro.

Whoever says that battles are strictly freestyle is a liar. Even if
their rhymes aren’t written before the battle, you better believe
they are looking at you and working out ways to humiliate you
before you both get up on that stage.

Here is how you limit that possibility. Whenever I’m in a battle I
will wear a loud, obnoxious shirt that draws attention (my bright
red T with Bruce Lee on the front is a personal favorite). Other
MC’s who are sizing me up will be formulating punchlines around
that shirt. They can’t help but focus on it!

Here’s the kicker… When my name is called to go up on stage, I
quickly through a jacket over the shirt. This destroys any
punchline my opponent has about it. If they use the line anyways, I
look out to the crowd and act completely bewildered, as if to say
“Why is he referencing Bruce Lee when I’m wearing a brown jacket?”

The key is to dress loud before the battle, then cover up with
something plain during the battle. The same goes for hair: if you
sport a ponytail or cornrows, throw a cap on right before.

Make your opponent beat you in the moment, while you can use any
observation you have of them before the battle.

When you want to add emphasis to a certain line or phrase in your
song, consider doubling up. All this means is you re-record these
specific lines or words on a separate track, and combine them on
the master.

This gives your recording more depth. It also sounds like you have
backup vocals that are supporting you.

Consider using double-ups for the following:

At the end of a line.

At the end of a rhyme. This works especially well for complex rhyme
structures. It forces your listener to hear every word that rhymes
together.

The internal rhymes. For example, if your line is

We’re not ones to follow the idiot herds
We’re not ones to fall to the simpleton urge
We’re not ones to swallow what we’ve been served
Cuz me and my dawgs don’t choke on words

Try using double ups on “follow, fall, swallow and dogs”. All these
have the same stressed vowels. Don’t you want your listener to hear
something you worked so hard to create?

Chorus. The same for any part of a song that gets repeated. For
example, if every verse ends with the same punchline, try adding a
double up to it. Again, this lets your listeners know this is
important to the song structure.

Any other spots I missed? Drop me a comment…

Ever heard of Ras Kass? He is arguably one of the greatest lyricists ever.

Seriously.

Ras Kass could kick a freestyle in Los Angeles with some other guys, and within a week people in New York were quoting him. Now, you gotta remember, this is the mid nineties, so there was no You Tube, no MySpace… in fact, the Internet barely existed. His lyrics were so frickin incredible that they traveled cross country by word of mouth.

He was that good.

So you gotta ask: If he was that good, why isn’t Ras Kass a household name?

In his own words, Ras Kass “doesn’t give a f*ck about a beat.” This is his downfall, plain and simple…

The Best MC With The Worst Beat Is Still A Crappy Song

I love lyrics. I love them to the point that I will listen to guys like Ras Kass, even though the beats are awful. This guy could’ve had anyone, anyone, produce his work, but he was so wrapped up in his lyrics that he didn’t focus on the music at all.

Nas is tight… and so are his beats.

Tupac was tight…and so were his beats.

Jay-Z is tight…and so were his beats.

Kanye West…well, his beats are tight.

So many wack rappers get props because they found themselves backed by a dope producer. I seriously believe Pharell could produce a hit with over 90% of rappers out there.

Remember, people listen to the beat BEFORE they ever hear your vocals, so make sure your beats are on point.

Here’s a brief list of where you can get quality beats for cheap:

Beats365.com has got some really good beats, though you may have to search around to find one you really like. I really like having access to the additional special sound effects, which come in handy…

Beats2Rap2 has a better variety, though that may be my personal taste. Clean production and royalty free beats.

Craigslist can be place to advertise for beats, though this route tends to be more expensive, as they generally charge by the beat.

RapBeatTips is a great resource if you want to learn to do it yourself; a great read!

Shameless plug: People who purchase my how to rap course receive over 22 free beats as a special bonus offer, which is nice…

Remember, the key thing to remember is: if your beats don’t grab peoples attention, your vocals may never get a chance to.

Where do you get your beats from?

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