This is an unusual topic to discuss on this blog but, as a music lover, musician and a writing assistant to a Hip Hop Scholar, I am surrounded by music and think it's a great thing to talk about. I love sampling in music because I feel it's a way of keeping older songs alive while creating more timely versions of the music. Plus, it's always cool to see the spin that an artist puts on a song. So, let's get into some of these samples.
Jay-Z's American Gangster (2007) - This whole album is fire. There are so many songs on here that use samples, and songs that have been sampled. For example, The Dream sampled Jay-Z's "No Hook" (2007) in his song "Shawty is a 10" (2007). On the song "No Hook," Jay Z samples Barry White's "Love Serenade" (1975) and "Somebody or Nobody" from American Gangster (2007) as far as dialogue goes.
Ariana Grande's Only 1 (2014) - I love Ari. She has so many good songs. Only 1 is a total vibe. She sampled Biz Markie's Make the Music With Your Mouth, Biz - feat.T.J. Swan (1986). She samples the lyrics "I want you, I want you" or maybe it's "ah one, two, ah one, two". I hear what I want to hear in music sometimes. This song is such a vibe and I feel like the sample certainly works in her song.
Kent Jones' Don't Mind (2015) - Jones takes lyrics from one of my fave songs, the late Barry White's "Practice What You Preach" (1994) when he says, "telling me this, and telling me that". Apparently, Barry White is popular when it comes to song sampling. He also samples Juvenile's "Rodeo" (2006) in the beat. His song is more upbeat and faster, but the influence is there. I love this song and was really hype to hear him sampling Barry White because I love that song and have listened to it all my life.
So, I won't go too into depth on song sampling because I could speak about it all day, as there are many songs that sample. However, I encourage you to listen to your songs and pay attention to and notice any potential samples. You'd be surprised. Feel free to comment some of your favorite songs that sample! Happy listening.
Sources:
Whosampled.com
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