[Column] Free sample culture and the democratization of contemporary music production
Column en EDM Hip Hop Vaporwave![[Column] Free sample culture and the democratization of contemporary music production](/../assets/images/column-free-sample-music.webp)
Introduction
| Text: mmr | Theme: Music production, which once required expensive equipment and specialized knowledge, has transformed into a creation that anyone can participate in thanks to free sample culture. Tracing the history of that revolution |
Music production has long been an “equipment industry.”
I needed money to rent a studio. I needed a recorder. I needed a mixer. I needed a synthesizer.
The act of making records in the 1970s and 1980s was a much more closed world than it is today.
However, the situation has changed significantly since the beginning of the 21st century.
One laptop. Free DAW. Sample taken from the internet. Tutorial I saw on YouTube.
The time has come when you can send music all over the world with just this.
At the center of this was the ““free sample culture.’’
Kick. Snare. 808. Lo-fi Vinyl Noise. Ambient Texture. Jungle Break. Anime Voice. Field recording.
“Sound materials” that originally required paid studios and expensive equipment began to be shared on the Internet, suddenly opening up the possibility of music production.
As a result, many modern music genres such as Hip Hop, EDM, Bedroom Pop, Lo-fi Hip Hop, Hyperpop, Vaporwave, etc. expanded rapidly.
More importantly, free sample culture did not end with simply “sharing materials.”
It changed the way music was made.
It changed the definition of a musician.
And he rewrote the very concept of ““who can make music.’’
The free sample culture was not just a matter of sharing materials, but a revolution that opened up the “entrance to music production itself.”
Origin of sampling culture
“Sound reuse” started with tape editing
The origins of sampling culture date back to before Hip Hop.
In the 1940s and 1950s, electronic and musique concrète composers cut and pasted tape to reconstruct sounds.
At this point, the idea of treating recorded sounds as ““performance materials’’ already existed.
environmental sounds. train sounds. city noise. radio. conversation.
These became not just records, but ““components of music.’’
Eventually, in the 1960s and 1970s, a tape editing culture developed in dub and experimental music fields.
Jamaican Dub, in particular, had a huge influence on modern sampling culture.
Decompose existing songs, Add echo, Extract the rhythm, Rebuild.
This was also the prototype of the later Remix culture.
Hip Hop popularized sampling
Hip Hop was the biggest force in pushing sampling into mainstream culture.
The DJs use two funk and soul records and start looping the breaks.
This was the birth of breakbeat culture.
Particularly famous is “Amen Break.”
The drum performance, which was cut out for just a few seconds from the 1969 song, influenced subsequent Hip Hop, Jungle, Drum & Bass, Breakcore, and even game music.
In other words, drums lasting just a few seconds continued to be reused all over the world.
In the late 1980s, samplers such as the Akai MPC and E-mu SP-1200 appeared, and sampling culture expanded explosively.
However, the equipment at that time was expensive.
In other words, although the sampling culture of this era was the ““gateway to democratization,’’ it had not yet been fully opened.
Sampling changed from a ““technique to reuse sound” to a ““new creative method.”
The arrival of the DAW era
Your computer becomes a studio
From the late 1990s to the 2000s, the structure of music production changed dramatically.
The reason was the spread of DAWs.
Cubase. FL Studio. Logic. Pro Tools. Ableton Live.
Work that previously required huge equipment can now be completed within a PC.
recording. edit. mix. Mastering. sampling.
Everything was becoming software.
FL Studio was especially big.
Cheap. lightweight. Intuitive.
Furthermore, it has spread widely among young people.
Many of the Hip Hop beatmakers and SoundCloud generation got their start with FL Studio.
VST culture accelerated music production
VST culture expanded at the same time as DAWs became popular.
VST is a system that allows you to add software sound sources and effects.
This allows you to add an unlimited number of instruments inside your PC.
Moreover, a large amount of free distribution will begin.
Free synth. free drum. Free reverb. Free compressor.
Sound that once cost hundreds of thousands of yen is now available for free.
What is important here is that “free = low quality” no longer exists.
Especially since the 2010s, professional quality free VSTs have rapidly increased.
As a result, the gap in equipment between beginners and professionals is rapidly shrinking.
The spread of DAW and VST has suddenly collapsed the ““price difference in music production environments’’.
Explosion of free sample culture
The Internet has liberated sound materials
Since the late 2000s, the music production community has rapidly moved online.
YouTube. Reddit. SoundCloud. Discord. forum culture.
A large number of samples began to be shared there.
808 Pack. Lo-fi Drum Kit. Vinyl Texture. Foley Pack. Nature Sound. Trap Hi-hat Collection.
Sample sharing has become commonplace, especially in the Hip Hop and EDM communities.
“You can use this drum.” “Please listen to this pad sound.” “I will distribute this 808”
This type of culture was difficult to imagine in the traditional music industry.
This is because in the past, “sound” itself was a product.
But the Internet generation is different.
Sharing will increase your popularity. The community expands. A collaboration is born.
In other words, ““distribution’’ has become a new value.
Cloud-based production after Splice
Sample sharing will become even bigger in the late 2010s.
This is the emergence of a cloud-based sample service.
Search for the sound you want, Download it now and Insert into DAW.
This trend dramatically changed the speed of production.
Even environmental sounds that once required recording techniques can now be used immediately.
What is even more important is that we have entered an era in which the world can share the same materials.
As a result, genre boundaries rapidly become blurred.
Brazilian funk rhythm. UK Garage drums. K-Pop synth. Jersey Club kick.
Nowadays, these are mixed by one Bedroom Producer.
Free sample culture was also a device for rapidly mixing musical elements from around the world.
Era of Bedroom Producer
From your room to the world
The biggest change in free sample culture was the proliferation of “Bedroom Producers.”
Made in my own room. Headphone production. Notebook PC production.
These are no longer special.
YouTube and SoundCloud were particularly important.
In the traditional music industry,
Label contract. Studio recording. Distribution company. CD production.
This process was necessary.
However, in the internet era,
make. Up. It will be spread.
Only these 3 steps will do it.
At the center of its production was a culture of free samples.
Lo-fi Hip Hop Expansion
Lo-fi Hip Hop was extremely compatible with free sample culture.
noise. record crackle. old drum. jazz sample.
For these, the ““atmosphere’’ was more important than advanced recording equipment.
Moreover, Lo-fi has turned “imperfection” into charm.
There is noise. It’s distorted. The pitch is off.
It still holds true.
Rather, it becomes a taste.
This shift in values was huge.
This was because the idea that ““the more expensive the equipment, the better the sound’’ began to waver.
Bedroom Producer culture has increasingly prioritized ““individuality” over ““professional quality.”
YouTube and tutorial revolution
YouTube taught before school
In the past, music production required vocational school and experience in the field.
However, since the 2010s, many young people have started learning about production on YouTube.
“How to make a trap” “How to mix vocals” “Lo-fi tutorial” “Hyperpop beat tutorial”
If you search, you’ll find endless results.
And it’s free.
The changes that have taken place here are significant.
Production techniques are no longer “secret”.
Video has democratized knowledge that was previously known only to engineers and producers.
Template sharing culture
Even more important was template sharing.
Ableton Template. FLP File. Project File.
In other words, even the structure of the songs themselves began to be shared.
Beginners can learn by looking at the finished product.
This was extremely educational.
In traditional music education,
Learn theory. practice an instrument. Learn to record.
That was the order.
However, the internet generation was the opposite.
Make it first. imitate. Disassemble. Understand from there.
This ““practical-first’’ type of learning led to an explosive increase in the number of people producing music.
Music education in the YouTube era has changed from “learning and then creating” to “learning while creating.”
SoundCloud era and genre collapse
DIY music explosion
SoundCloud wasn’t just a posting site.
It was a genre testing ground.
wrap. noise. EDM. Emo. Ambient. Anime sample.
Everything starts to mix together.
A large amount of ““unfinished experiments’’ that were difficult to occur in the traditional label-driven format were released.
This was extremely important.
This is because much of contemporary music is born out of this “experimental space.”
Hyperpop and sample feeling
Hyperpop represented a post-sample culture sensibility.
Fast editing. Extreme pitch changes. Fragmentary composition. Internet meme sensation.
This is completely different from traditional band culture.
From “Recorded Complete Performance” This is because “reconstruction through editing” is the main focus.
In other words, the sense of sampling permeated the entire genre.
The SoundCloud generation naturally practiced ““mixing genres” rather than ““maintaining genres.”
Copyright issues and sample culture
Sampling was always gray
The expansion of sample culture has also led to an expansion of copyright issues.
Particularly in the history of Hip Hop, there have been many lawsuits over unauthorized sampling.
Since the 1990s, major labels have tightened sample clearance.
As a result,
Sampling famous songs = more expensive
This situation arises.
This was a big barrier for indie creators.
Free samples were also “legal materials”
That’s why royalty-free materials have become so important.
In other words, free sample culture is
cheap convenience For beginners
Not just that.
It played a major role in making it ““legal and easy to use.’’
This has made it possible for even small-scale creators to publish their works with peace of mind.
However, the problem has not completely disappeared.
Redistribution of sample packs. AI generated sound source. Copyright boundaries.
The debate continues even today.
While free sample culture has expanded creative freedom, it has also created new copyright issues.
Music production in the SNS era
Music structure after TikTok
In the TikTok era, the structure of music production will change further.
Short length. Immediate effect. Impressive intro.
These structures will become more important.
As a result, sample culture accelerates further.
To make a strong impression in a short time, This is because sounds that instantly evoke existing sensations are effective.
for example,
2000’s style synth. Y2K drum. game sound. Anime voice.
These materials tend to be associated with internet memes.
Music as a meme
In modern times, songs are not only ““songs,” but also ““sharable fragments.”
8 seconds. 15 seconds. 30 seconds.
The fragments will be spread.
In other words, sample culture was extremely compatible with SNS culture.
Music is not just “long pieces”; This brings us closer to ““editable materials.’’
In the age of social media, music is increasingly consumed as ““fragments that can be spread easily” rather than ““finished works.”
The future of the AI era and sample culture
Introducing AI-generated sound sources
Currently, sample culture is beginning to advance to a new stage.
It is an AI-generated sound source.
drum. Synth. vocal. environmental sounds.
AI is now able to generate these.
In other words, it’s not just about “using pre-recorded material.” The era of ““generating the necessary materials’’ has begun.
The next stage of democratization
The democratization of music production is likely to progress further in the future.
But at the same time, there are problems.
Anyone can make it. Can be made in large quantities. AI can also be created.
Then, this time,
“What should I make?” “Why make it?”
is becoming increasingly important.
This is an interesting change.
As a result of the disappearance of technological barriers, This is because “individuality” and “ideology” become more important.
In an era where the production environment is completely open, questions have begun to be asked not only about ““what to play,” but also ““why to play.”
Chronology
| Years | Events |
|---|---|
| 1940s | Tape editing experiments begin |
| 1950s | Development of musique concrète |
| 1970s | Dub culture expands |
| 1980s | Popularization of Hip Hop sampling |
| 1988 | Akai MPC60 introduced |
| 1990s | DAW spread begins |
| 2000s | YouTube and SoundCloud expansion |
| 2010s | Free sample culture explosion |
| 2020s | AI-generated sound sources begin to spread |
At the end
Free sample culture is not simply a story of ““making sound free.’’
it is, Expanding the entrance to music production, change education, Change the distribution, change the genre, And he changed the very definition of a musician.
Music production used to be the domain of only those with the equipment and capital.
But now, students from local cities, Creator at home, An anonymous internet user It is not uncommon for them to create worldwide hits.
And in the background, shared culture, DIY spirit, internet community, And there was a free sample culture.
Contemporary music has entered an era in which we don’t know who will make it.
That”s why it”s interesting.
What is the democratization of music production? It’s not just that they can be made cheaply.
This means that the protagonists of creation have been dispersed all over the world.
Free sample culture has changed music production from a ““world of special talent” to ““a creative space where anyone can participate.”
