Playlist: The Origins of Classic Hip-Hop Samples

Executive Creative Director Connor Moore showcases samples used in popular modern music and where they came from.

October 2022



What is Sample-Based Music?

Sample-based music has its origins in early hip-hop, in which the (new at the time) technology of digital samplers were used to record, or sample, short snippets of music from existing songs, and combined to create the various components of a new song. These musical samples can range from an entire section of a song, a rhythmic drum pattern, a trumpet melody, or down to tiny discrete elements like a kick drum hit or vocal shout.

A Brief History of Sampled Songs

Music is a constantly changing form that can be rethought through genre, production techniques and new technologies. In the 1940’s, Music Concrete sparked a new technique and style of creating experimental music out of recorded materials found in the real world. Fast-forward 30 years and sampling became the driving force in Hip Hop that has become a mainstay and helped to shape modern music across genre.

Popular Sampled Songs

Digging a layer deeper to find the original tracks that have been sampled over the years has always piqued the interest of our ECD, Connor Moore. Take a listen to our new playlist that shows the original tracks that have been sampled by artists like Danger Mouse, Jamie XX and Pete Rock.

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