Using DJ Sound Effect to Make Beats

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If you stand out from the busy crowd of DJ's, hip-hop artists & other would-be artists, you have to create good tunes. These require a set structure. The most successful beats and tracks are the ones that occupy the subconscious of your listeners and stay there all day. To achieve this, you need to make tracks that are different. Including abstract sounds, or a catchy beat that no one else has. If you just make beats that sound like everyone else's, what makes you think people are going to listen to yours over the other 1000's of the same thing!?

Using DJ Sound Effect to Make Beats

We all know Timbaland makes dope beats. The reason everyone likes them is because they catch our attention. They are different and often include a lot of unique sounds. Other producers, including the Neptunes, Dre and Scott Storch also make beats and tracks that stick in our subconscious after we hear it on the radio, or at our favourite club. If you want to make it in the music industry, as an artist, producer or DJ, you have to create tracks that are fresh.

You can now download a huge range of new DJ Sound Effects from the net. Whether you choose to pay for these, or grab the free ones is your choice. Just remember that in the music game, you usually get what you pay for in regard to quality and audio standard. Once download, or purchased, these new sound effects can be imported into your current software. Me personally, I use FL Studio. But ProTools is also very good. I then assign them to some kind of sampler, therefore I can trigger various effects that I have chosen from my library using a keyboard or other hardware. I spend a while looking through newly downloaded files, finding audio elements that I like, are unique and that I think will sound good together. I then play around with my keyboard, trying them out with various tempos and rhythms.

I would choose to use a drum loop or sample depending on your level, whether you are a beginner or experienced music producer. Sometimes it is easier to just use a preset drum loop, alter the tempo and add some abstract sound effects over the top. But if you really want to create a 100% unique beat or track. Grab some drum samples and start from scratch. This way you can split the bars up exactly how you want, inserting audio elements whenever you wish.

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How to Successfully Produce Your Own Hot Rap Beats

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You want to produce your own hot rap beats, but you are a little concerned because, let's face it, no one knows who you are. Well, you have to ask yourself, did anyone know who Timbaland or Kanye West were when they first started out? Nope.

How to Successfully Produce Your Own Hot Rap Beats

At one point these performers were in the same place you are now and yet they have rap beats for sale and are making a serious name for themselves. How can you accomplish the same thing as them? Listen up and you'll learn how.

The first thing you need in order to make your own hot rap beats is your own style. Copying those who came before you is good so that you can develop your talent, but taking it to the next level and developing your own style is even better. Your own unique style will set you apart from everyone else and that will help you get noticed.

The next thing you need is some good music maker software. Try out the demos of a few different programs available before deciding which one you want to purchase because you will want to be sure that you don't waste your money. As with everything else, not all software is created equal. Read the reviews and see what others have to say.

You have to be sure the software will suit your style and once you decide on one you will need to spend some time familiarizing yourself with it and with music theory and how music in your genre is structured. All of these things will help you produce hot rap beats people will love.

The best thing is that the internet has opened this field up to anyone who wants to do it. The internet helps in two ways. First, you can easily find rap beats for sale and tutorials on various sites that will help you learn the basics of making rap beats. Then, once you are making music, the internet is a fantastic way to get yourself out there and begin building a reputation and getting noticed.

So that's it in a nutshell, the "how" of getting started, but the most important thing to remember when it comes to creating your own hot rap beats is to have fun. After all, why else are you doing it if not because you enjoy it? When you are having fun it will show in what you create and that will make people love it and you even more.

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Stuff You'll Get With Music Producer Pro

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Compose and record hundreds of songs you want from your memory! Any song you wish to record this programs tutorials will prepare you for! It will train you to be a hit song writer, hip hop beat producer extraordinaire,....This program covers Live instruments, which are imperative with Rock and Jazz, It teaches you midi editing, for classical composition and scoring. It will also teach you how to build up your chops, and show you how to program your sequencer and effects so that you are recording ready.

Stuff You'll Get With Music Producer Pro

You will learn how to produce with the expertise of The Neptunes, Dr Dre, Quincy Jones, Bob Rock and More! With this program's 21st century approach, you will have your artists and A&R's amazed! Learn the top techniques used by the greats!

Learn to compose in every style on earth including: Hip hop, Rock, techno, Fusion, Country, Jazz, Urban, Metal, Electronic, Power rock, Future, Classical and more!

Every rhythm pattern is in easy to understand vocabulary: This program will teach you how to read music to an advanced stage, but it also wants you to enjoy its tasty fills, patterns and grooves right away, so it has also published an easy to read "Tablature-based" directory of resources, so you can get start jamming with impressive chops immediately!

Over 100,000 scales, licks and patterns. This program's intensive library includes thousands of resources available to members. It offers 24-7 access to the most cutting-edged, beautiful fills and rolls, patterns and grooves! Written in Music, Recorded in Video, Audio and for those who do not read music, easy tablature-based literature!

Learn easy ways to tackle the fastest and hardest licks, patterns and combos and do this anytime anywhere in whatever groove you are! Put your mood to your music your music to your mood!

Where and how to buy quality recording equipment and instruments for less! This program also shows you where to get the best equipment and instruments for dirt cheap, maybe even free!

How to become a rhythm expert, and play with incredible speed and accuracy: Tackle every time signature known to man! Learn cross rhythms and patterns, even learn how to play in one time signature for one measure, and another time signature with the next.

Learn how to read music and tablature: you will learn how to read music, notes and scores, as well as our shock-tested tablature, for those who want to get started right away! You can compare the two, and this arrangement works out great for learning how to read! Increase your brain stamina by 40 percent in one month. This program helps you learn how to play from hundred percent reflex. instead of WASTING all your energy when you record! The one thing you have to get down if you are going to be a musician: Most teachers will not tell you this, cause they want you to have a reason to come back! If they taught you this, you would end up teaching them!

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Presenting: Toronto's WinterCity Festival - Culinary Treats, Arts and Entertainment

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There is no doubt that Canada is a northern country and that our winters here in Toronto can sometimes be a little harsh. But that's no reason to hold anyone back from getting out there and enjoying the city to the fullest.

Presenting: Toronto's WinterCity Festival - Culinary Treats, Arts and Entertainment

To ease the winter blues, the City of Toronto has developed a series of special events dedicated to bringing the city to life in the middle of winter. The WinterCity Festival is a city-wide celebration of Toronto's culinary offerings (the popular Winterlicious restaurant promotion), a wide variety of free entertainment events and a showcase of Toronto's vibrant arts scene, featuring live music, dance, theatre, spectacle shows, rink-side concerts and even aerial acrobatic performances. Throw in a number of child-friendly events, and WinterCity has something for everyone in the family.

I had a chance to talk to Grant Ramsey from the City of Toronto who is one of the key people behind WinterCity and he is providing a much more detailed overview of all the special events, artistic and culinary treats on offer.

1. Please give us an overview of Toronto's WinterCity Festival. When did it come into being? When and where is it held?

This year will be the fourth WinterCity held. Prior to the name change, it was called WinterFest, which took place on one weekend. Since expanding the festival, it now runs for two-weeks and is held primarily at Nathan Phillips Square from, Jan. 27 to Feb. 9

2. Please tell us more about the "Wild on Winter Series".

The Wild on Winter Series (WOW!) combines some of the best performances in Toronto. Two large outdoor spectacle shows, "Walk the Plank" and "Il Corso", which take place on Saturday and Sundays of both weekends, feature some of the best pyrotechnic, special effects and sound displays in North America. Other WOW! Series performers include, stellar Canadian talent presenting the best in dance and live music all at Nathan Phillips Square.

3. Please tell us more about the "Warm-up Series"? Where does it take place, what events does it include?

The Warm up series offers great discounted events at some of Toronto's hottest destinations. For those who just can't brave the cold, The Warm Up Series offer excellent interactive entertainment at The Toronto Eaton Centre and other venues around the city.

Toronto Eaton Centre Schedule:
- Spin Cycle
Monday, January 30: 12:30 & 5:30 pm
The international vaudevillian duo of Greg Tarlin and Kristi Heath combine their talents as award-winning circus performers, Second City comedy veterans and skilled writers to engage, amaze and entertain with skills that include juggling, unicycling, stilt dancing and more.

- The Silk Road Acrobats
Three Man Acrobats & Hula Hoop Act
Tuesday, January 31: 12:30 & 5:30 pm
This performance combines the grace, delicacy and poise of the Chinese acrobatic tradition with the power and athleticism of Russian acrobatics. Three professional acrobats perform multiple towers, falls and strength poses along with an up-beat performance using a multiple hoop apparatus.

- The Silk Road Acrobats
Seven Man Acrobats & The Female Contortion Duo
Wednesday, February 1: 12:30 & 5:30 pm
Professional acrobats perform an amazing group demonstration of strength, coordination, group dynamic and impeccable timing. While balancing delicate vases on their hands and feet, the acrobatic female duo perform graceful contortions and remarkable poses, creating an effect that is truly enchanting.

- High Strung Aerial Acrobats "Dy-no-mite"
Thursday, February 2 & Saturday, February 4, 12:30 & 5:30 pm
A two-woman high energy aerial show with a sassy disco flair. Performed to hits from the 70s, like Disco Inferno, Ring My Bell and Macho Man, the show features aerial straps, a swinging ladder and trapeze. Throw in some audience participation, acrobatics and a kick-ball change or two, and you have a spectacle like no other.

- High Strung Aerial Acrobats "Impressed"
Friday, February 3 & Sunday, February 5:
12:30 & 5:30 pm
Witness aerial dance artistry, superior and surprising manipulations, and skills that seem to defy gravity. Wonder and marvel as these two breathtaking airborne lovelies perform startling acrobatic feats.
Events & Shows hosted by some of Toronto's top attractions

Don't miss this series of special WinterCity events at Toronto's top urban destinations. For more details, contact each attraction directly.

4. Please tell us about the WinterCity Weekend SeeSaw at the Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People.

WinterCity Weekend SeeSaw at Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People
Meet four ordinary kids coping with the ups and downs of their lives. Paige, the popular yet insecure girl. Adam the tough bully who is also a budding artist, shy Josh who learns magic tricks in order to become invisible and Charla the new girl who wants to be everybody's friend. (recommended for ages 9-12)

Saturday, January 28 & Sunday, January 29, 2 pm
Kids and adults WinterCity price just each.
Regular price -20 each
165 Front Street East
416-862-2222
http://www.lktyp.ca

6. You also have an event planned that involves "Franklin the Turtle", "Elliot Moose" and the CN Tower. Please tell us more about that.

Franklin the Turtle, Elliot Moose & friends visit the CN Tower
Join Franklin the Turtle, Elliot Moose and their author friends, Elizabeth MacLeod, Irene Luxbacher and Aubrey Davis, at the CN Tower. Enjoy winter crafts, no-bake chocolate recipes, storytelling and more.

This fun filled event is included with your special CN Tower coupon admission of 3 people for

Saturday, January 28 & Sunday, January 29
11 am - 4 pm
3 people for
301 Front Street West
416-868-6937
For full details on this event please visit, http://www.cntower.ca

6. You also offer special free skating events, beer tastings, a big band event, discounted opera events and theatre performances, please provide an overview of those.

DJ Skating Night @ Harbourfront
Slide down to Harbourfront's beautiful rink and skate to music including house, progressive and breaks with DJs Phantasm, Simon Jain and Tommy Gunners!

Free hot chocolate! Skate rentals, sharpening, lockers, snacks and drinks all available.

Friday, February 3, 2006
8-11 pm
FREE
235 Queens Quay West, South of York Quay Centre
416-973-4000
http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com

A Bite before Twilight
Under 30? Join the Canadian Opera Company for a feast of traditional Bavarian fare at the exciting Bier Markt Esplanade and a quick update of "the story so far" before gorging on the dramatic final installment of Wagner's epic Ring Cycle - The Twilight of the Gods (Götterdämmerung). Meet other young opera lovers and fortify yourselves with beer and worst, fine food and good cheer in preparation for the experience of a lifetime.

Saturday, February 4, 2006
for opera ticket and meal (includes taxes and gratuity)
4 pm dinner
Bier Markt
58 The Esplanade
http://www.thebiermarkt.com

6 pm performance of Götterdämmerung
Hummingbird Centre for the Performing Arts
1 Front St. E.
http://www.coc.ca
To order tickets, call: Ticketmaster at 416-872-2262

A Return to the Golden Era of Swing at Casa Loma
Dance the night away in one of Toronto's most beautiful rooms with the Toronto All-Star Big Band. Resembling a Mediterranean Courtyard, Casa Loma's The Conservatory is a spectacular setting with its gleaming brass doors, opulent marble and 30-foot stained glass dome. One of the most exciting bands around, the 17-piece Toronto All-Star Big Band, "cooks" with its powerful tributes to the heady hits of the 1930s and 40s. It's like watching Goodman, Dorsey, and Miller live.

Saturday, February 4, 2006
8:00 pm
.00 per person (includes G.S.T. and finger foods)
Tickets available on-line at http://www.casaloma.org
One Austin Terrace
416-923-1171
http://www.casaloma.org

Letters from Lehrer
CanStage offers a 20% discount to the February 9th performance of Letters from Lehrer - written and performed by Richard Greenblatt featuring the words and music of Tom Lehrer.

There will be a Satirical Lyric Writing workshop for the closet songwriter. This pre-show workshop will run from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm, followed by the performance at 8 pm.

Thursday, February 9, 2006
6:30 pm to 7:30 pm (workshop)
8 pm (performance)
20% discount on regular priced tickets
Regular price range: to
Berkeley Theatre
26 Berkeley Street
Box Office: 416-368-3110
http://www.canstage.com

Coupons for discounted rates are available by visiting: http://wx.toronto.ca/inter/se/coupons.nsf/coupons?openform where they can be printed.

7. Please tell us about "Winterlicious", Toronto's winter restaurant promotion.

The phenomenally successful restaurant promotion Winterlicious, presented by American Express, returns to Toronto January 27 - February 9, 2006. The fourth annual Winterlicious is part of the WinterCity Festival, an award-winning 14 day city-wide celebration of Toronto's culture, creativity and cuisine.

More than 120 participating restaurants will offer a special three-course prix fixe menu where patrons can sample the establishment's tasty fare at fantastic price points. Prix fixe menu price categories are or for Lunch and or for Dinner. Prices are per person, plus taxes and gratuity. Beverages are additional.
In addition to the hugely popular prix fixe menus, 10 establishments will be offering unusual food-related events. These culinary experiences allow guests to savour delectable meals followed by dancing, unique tours and other rare experiences. To obtain details on the Winterlicious Culinary Experiences, the public can visit http://www.toronto.ca.

In past years Torontonians and tourists alike have enthusiastically celebrated Toronto's diverse and innovative cuisine with delicious menus available at restaurants city-wide. Winterlicious 2005 sold more that 183,000 meals over the 14 days - an increase of 67% from the previous year and resulting in an estimated .4 million in economic activity.

8. Please tell us about the family entertainment offered in the American Express Cool Ice Lounge, including ice sculptures, carving demonstrations and live entertainment.

The third annual WinterCity Festival, the City of Toronto's city-wide celebration of the world's coolest winter city, presents the most fun one family can have with 200,000 pounds of ice at temperatures below -5 C -- the American Express Cool Ice Lounge.

Created by Custom Ice Art and managed by the Liberty Entertainment Group, The American Express Cool Ice Lounge is Toronto's first ice lounge ideal for the whole family.

During the day, stroll through the Ice Lounge enjoying contemporary ice sculptures, carving demonstrations and live entertainment. Stop for a beverage and snack at the ice bar and relax on the frosty furniture. Catch ice carving demonstrations twice a day at 2 & 5 pm on January 28 & 29 and February 4 & 5, 2006.

By night, this venue is transformed into a frozen night club venue complete with icy seating, an ice bar, and Toronto DJ's spinning the latest tunes.

During the day, the American Express Cool Ice Lounge will include live family entertainment, including:

The Magical Comedy of Stephen Elvay
Sunday, January 29 & Saturday, February 4 at 12 noon & 6 p.m.
Witty, engaging and supremely entertaining, Elvay is one of Canada's funniest and most popular entertainers. His fast paced and visual extravaganza of comedy and magic is expertly interlaced to provoke mystery and laughter.

Flying Debris Show
Saturday, January 28 & Sunday, January 29 at 1:30 p.m. & 4:30 p.m.
Kansas, USA native Richard Holmgren brings his hilarious comedy, amazing magic and unmatched juggling skills to the WinterCity festival. You'll be amazed by the wide variety of objects flying through the air during his show.

Flyin' Bob
Saturday, February 4 & Sunday, February 5 at 1:30 p.m. & 4:30 p.m.
This one man three ring circus from Red Deer, Alberta has been entertaining audiences across Canada and around the world for the last seventeen years. Flyin' Bob's action packed show showcases his own brand of physical and verbal comedy, energetic juggling, spectacular balancing, and audience participation.

Scot Free Daredevil Stunt Show
Saturday, January 28 & Sunday, February 5 at 12 noon & 6 p.m.
One of Toronto's favourite performers! Check out this skillful mix of character comedy, exciting daredevil stunts, sharp improvised wit and audience interaction. Fun for all ages, come see if this daredevil gets off ... Scot Free!!

9. Please tell us about "Soup's On!" - a special event offering cooking demonstrations and soup tastings.

"Soup's On!," presented by Liberty Tax Services, offers cooking demonstrations and soup tastings from Toronto's top chefs matched with live performances from some of Toronto's most diverse bands.

The world of soup is vast and sophisticated. There are thick soups such as bouillabaisse that nearly cross the line from soup to stew, thin clear consommés, and everything in-between. Nearly all cultures have their own soup specialties: hearty Russian borscht, garlicky Spanish gazpacho, and Pot-au-Feu, a French clear soup made from boiled beef and vegetables.

Featuring soups from Spain to China and Jamaica to Greece, the "Soup's On" pavilion will have something for everyone. Hosted by food enthusiast Marty Galin, chefs from Toronto-area restaurants will provide live cooking demonstrations in a heated pavilion on Nathan Phillips Square with the public able to taste-test the results while listening to music from the themed country.

10. Please tell us about the "Tower of Light" performance.

Toronto's 14 day city-wide celebration, the WinterCity Festival, presented by the American Express Philanthropic Program, presents the North American premiere of The Tower of Light, a large-scale outdoor production blending fireworks and fire sculptures, music, lighting, special effects and spectacular visual images. The production is performed January 27, 28 and 29 at
7 p.m. outdoors at Nathan Phillips Square.

Framed by the silhouette of Toronto's City Hall, this 30-minute production features a 15m tower of light and a carefully orchestrated outdoor performance of vibrant special effects and atmospheric music. Buckets of fire rise up into the sky as the lighthouse pulses with flares. Fireworks erupt from every level as the performers dance beneath the silver rain. The show comes to a dramatic close with a spectacular fireworks finale.

Walk the Plank is widely recognized as one of the UK's leading producers of innovative shows and magical spectacles. The company was established by John Wassell and Liz Pugh, its current management team, in 1991. Site-specific shows and fireworks have been a feature of the company's work since the beginning, but this area of work has expanded and developed over recent years. In 2001 Walk the Plank undertook its first international work with shows in Singapore and Portugal.
The Tower of Light has been performed at the Singapore Arts Festival, Greenwich and Docklands International Festival and Stockton International Riverside Festival.
10. Please tell us about "Il Corso", a 60-minute open-air theatre spectacle.

11. Please tell us about "Il Corso" performance, based on a book by Pablo Neruda.

WinterCity presents the North American premiere of Il Corso, a 60-minute open air theatre spectacle featuring actors, acrobats and musicians from Germany's Theatre Pan-Optikum. The production is performed February 3 and 4 at 7 p.m. outdoors at Nathan Phillips Square.

Il Corso will take place all over Nathan Phillips Square as the venue is transformed into a stage. Individual spectators will continually change their positions as they are caught up in the movement and, ultimately, even become part of the performance. Featuring a wall of fire, dancers on 10 ft. sway poles and huge metal structures including a human propeller, the production combines dramatic movement, installations, music, text, huge expressive images and pyrotechnics.

Il Corso tells the story of a human being in search of fulfillment and happiness and is based on "The Book of Questions" by Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda. The 74 short poems contained in the book are structured as two-line verses raising 316 puzzling questions. Many of Neruda's questions are ones children sometimes pose such as "Where do shadows disappear to?" and "Why are leaves green?" These questions often expose the fact that adults cannot explain everything they claim to know. As Neruda says, "What we know is so small and what we assume so great."

In 2001, the "Kunstfest Weimar" art festival opened with Il Corso. In 2002, Il Corso was chosen from 80 invited open air productions and awarded 1st prize at the street theatre festival in Holzminden, after which Il Corso played 27 times in Germany and the Netherlands. Il Corso is currently the most played open air production in Europe.

10. What about the "Winter Moves" dance performances?

As part of the WOW! (Wild on Winter) Series, The WinterCity Festival presents Winter Moves - dance performances from four of Canada's top contemporary dance companies. Performances take place outside at Nathan Phillips Square on Festival weekends. Participating companies include:

o Company Blonde - Company Blonde has a unique and vital presence in the independent dance scene in Canada. Since it's inception in 1999, Company Blonde has been dedicated to creating dance works that are accessible to a vast audience of all ages blending comedy and theatre with classical modern dance. Company Blonde will perform:

o Awright, Awright, Awright! -- Clad in bright 70's style one-piece snowsuits this highly energetic piece was designed for the outdoors but has found its way onto many small stages. The dancers (Monica Dottor, Michelle Debrouwer, Jennifer Helland, Sunny Horvath and Nicole Rush) arrive in a car, music blaring, put out a few plastic palm trees and dance with all their heart to the pop music of Outkast. It is nearly impossible to resist shakin' it along side them. Awright, Awright, Awright! premiered at the Guelph Contemporary Dance Festival in March 2004 and has been performed many times since, at schools, on stages indoor and out and always in snowsuits.

o Binder Twine -- This hilarious Wild West piece features outlaws, saloon girls, line dancers, tumble weed and baked beans! Featuring dancers Monica Dottor, Michelle Debrouwer, Jennifer Helland, Sunny Horvath and Nicole Rush Binder Twine premiered at the Guelph Contemporary Dance Festival in April 2005 and was performed at the T.O Twang Festival at Harbourfront in August 2005.

o CORPUS -- Founded in 1997, CORPUS is devoted to creating original work for broad audiences including children. Led by Sylvie Bouchard and David Danzon, CORPUS is known for its precise and surrealist humour, the company combines contemporary dance and physical theatre. CORPUS will perform:

o Les moutons (The Sheep) -- Les moutons is a humorous "live installation" where reality meets fantasy. Meet Julie, Marie-Louise, Bernadette and Cesar, three healthy young sheep and an old ram. The Shepherd is here too, talking you through a carefully studied overview of sheep behavior.

o Tina Fushell / Choreographer / Dancer -- Born and raised in St. John's, Nfld., Tina Fushell studied at the Quinte Ballet School and the School of Toronto Dance Theatre. In 2002 Tina co-founded Ambitious Enterprises (AE) with Kate Franklin and Samm Higgison, producing the "At the Wrecking Ball" series, a now yearly event which has garnered much praise for the young company and ushered in a new generation of choreographers and collaborators from various disciplines. Tina Fushell will present:

o sTOries -- sTOries is performed to live jazz music. This contemporary dance piece is inspired by Torontonians stories about Winter. The highly physical sTOries features a trio of dancers (Tina Fushell, Anisa Tejpar and Kate Franklin) dressed for Winter in full wool skirts, blazers and boots.

o Larchaud Dance Project is known for their strength-testing choreography and gravity defying movement and are certain to captivate, provoke, and entertain all audiences. Larchaud Dance Project's upcoming June 2006 production is based on the world and culture of videogames. Each piece in the show is based on a world/level of the game, albeit a jungle, a labyrinth, underwater, etc. At the WinterCity Festival, Larchaud Dance Projects will present:

o Ice World -- Of all the levels of a videogame the ice world proves to be the greatest challenge. Not only must the players overcome the treacherous conditions of their environment, but they must conquer the evil Queen and her Henchman. It is she who controls this world, and in her defeat, they may progress onto the next level.

11. Toronto's WinterCity Festival will also feature a number of live music performances. Please tell us about those.

The WinterCity Festival, presented by the American Express Philanthropic Program, the award-winning 14 day city-wide celebration of Toronto's culture, creativity and cuisine, will feature two weekends of FREE live music and DJ's on an outdoor stage at Nathan Phillips Square as part of the WOW! (Wild On Winter) series. The WinterCity Festival takes place January 27 - February 9, 2006.

Friday Jan. 27

Opening Concert

Les Batinses, 7:30 p.m.

This young sextet plays world music with a Québécois slant. They embrace music from anywhere and everywhere to marry old-style folk and roots ballads with funk-driven acoustics.

Saturday Jan. 28

Sizzling Hot! Latin Dance Music

DJ Billy Bryans, 12 noon

Get on the ice and move! DJ Billy Bryans drops the latest in Latin music, reggaeton, salsa and the hottest timba cuts directly from Havana.

Chiva featuring Brownman, 12:30 p.m.

Toronto's Chiva fuses seductive Colombian rhythms with funk grooves and urban hip-hop beats against a Latin-jazz backdrop.

Latin Roots Orchestra, 2 p.m.

With a nod to the golden age of Latin music, this Toronto group blends the hottest sounds of classic salsa with the latest hip-shaking Latin grooves guaranteed to burn up the dance floor.

Tumbao Inc., 3:30 p.m.

One of Toronto's newest Latin orchestras, Tumbao Inc. offers catchy lyrics and memorable melodies combined with powerful percussive beats in merengue music and electronica.

Brownman & CRUZAO featuring Fito Blanko, 5 p.m.

Led by multi-award-winning trumpeter Brownman, CRUZAO mixes authentic Latin rhythms, jazz harmonies and modern urban grooves. CRUZAO is joined by special guest Fito Blanko, Toronto's rising star of reggaeton.

Ricky Franco, 6:30 p.m.

Talented singer/songwriter/composer, Ricky Franco delivers slick vocals layered over powerful Salsa Descargas with a soulful edge and the popular dance rhythms of Bachata.

Between sets, DJ's will spin. Following the final band, DJ's will spin club music outside until 11 p.m.

Sunday Jan. 29

Cool Blues

Ndidi Onukwulu, 12:30 p.m.

A new voice in Toronto's blues community, singer/songwriter Ndidi Onukwulu was born in BC and grew up listening to a variety of music including Nigerian juju. Set for release early in 2006, her eclectic debut album defies labels.

Tyler Yarema, 2 p.m.

Originally from Thunder Bay, Toronto pianist-vocalist Tyler Yarema dishes up high-energy boogie-woogie complemented by a smooth, fiery vocal delivery.

Do You Ever Wish YOU Had The Ability To Make REAL Hit Music Like That?

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The Best Rap Beats Could Be Yours!

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The best rap beats are often made by people who are not really prominent in the music industry! But most of us don't know about their existence because they sell the rights to their beats to top musicians for a lump sum. So how exactly do they manage to do it? Of course the answer is simple - they are simply talented! But even the most talented people do need some guiding and help at times!

The Best Rap Beats Could Be Yours!

So before you could actually decide on buying software that you would need for that soon-to-be hobby of yours, make sure you have earned the right skills for it. But basically this kind of artistry requires more than skills. All the popular hip-hop artists know what it takes to earn a name in this field. Usually, it takes passion and love for your craft. This is not something that you do because you like it at a time-and may find it boring at other times.

Note that the software is going to make your craft so much easier for you, most especially if you want to do things other than arranging beats that would appeal much to the listeners. Most artists of this field do more than making the beats. They also craft mixes and remixes for disco pubs or even concerts. You can do these things too.

Software

That's where beat making software comes in! I'm talking of course, about people who don't have an ever increasing bank balance which allows them to purchase expensive equipment (which, many a time, they don't get around to using!). With a beat making soft ware, you can get access to all the sounds which are produced by top grade instruments, but without purchasing a single one of them!

It's like a dream come true for aspiring musicians who want to try their hand at beat making! Of course, you can also develop beats for your own songs as well. Many veterans of the industry also take help from beat making software from time to time and they're not ashamed to admit it. The simple fact is, if science and technology are going to make things easy (and less expensive) for you, then why go hard on yourself?

Examples

Software such as the SonicProducer allows you to make authentic beats and also comes with an in built, extensive library which has a variety of rap beats instrumentals you can fiddle with. Moreover, at , it's not even hard on your pocket.

There is a lot of other software out their which is similar in nature to the SonicProducer, The Fruity Loops is another example of such a software. These user-friendly programs are easy to master and allow you to concentrate all your energy on the process of making music!

What is more, you can make the best rap beats which sound like they're made by a professional without a multi-track recorder, condenser microphone, Digital Audio workstations or even synthesizers, all on your own! So what are you waiting for? Start making the best rap beats you are capable of today!

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Giving Away Free Beats to Promote Your Site

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So you have a beat-selling website that gets around 100 people visiting it per day. That's 100 potential customers. But are they returning visitors and previous customers or just casual passers by? Statistically it has been shown that buyers in the beat market do not purchase a beat the first time on a site. More frequently they buy on the 3rd, 4th or 5th time. So how do you keep them coming back?

Giving Away Free Beats to Promote Your Site

One of the most important things that I learned about having a beat-selling site is the value of building your email list. Once you have an email list, you can send out emails to all of your subscribers whenever you have a new beat, which greatly increases your chance of a sale.

So in this example, say out of those 100 visitors, you're able to capture 20 emails per day. This would mean that in a year's time, you would have a list of over 6000 potential customers that could potentially want one of your beats. So when you send out an email to those 6000 people, say 1% actually buy a beat when you send out an email. That's 60 people buying a beat every time that you make a new beat. If you're selling your beats for , you just made 00-just by sending an email!

But how do you build your list? Well if you have a Soundclick page, they enable all premium customers to build an email list for no additional cost. This is one of the greatest things about Soundclick. There are producers on Soundclick that are getting 1000s of visitors a day, collecting hundreds of email addresses. You better believe when they release a new track, they make a good amount of money.

However if you have built your own website, there is a different solution available to you. AWeber is an email marketing company that allows you to automatically build and maintain your email list. The monthly cost is for lists under 500 and then goes up from there. But like I've shown, the service will pay for itself many times over and is well worth the investment if you're getting any amount of traffic to your site.

In order to entice people to actually sign up or opt in to your email list, you have to give them something. Some producers simply say that they'll keep them updated and send out emails every time that they post a new beat. If your beats are incredible, this may be enough. However, I've found that you can greatly increase your opt-in rate if you give away free beats to your subscribers. So as soon as they subscribe to your email list, you give them a few free beats.

Even though giving away these free beats means that they may not purchase a beat the first time that they are on your site, you now have their email address forever and a week later or a month later, it is likely that they will come back and purchase.

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Music Creator Software Vs Recording Equipment - So What's Best?

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Why make mistakes? You can easily avoid time being wasted to due trial and error by copying what I did. If there is one thing I do know that's making some hot beats. I've been using this cool music creator software to make some insane beats and I only spent bucks for the software.

Music Creator Software Vs Recording Equipment - So What's Best?

Honestly, it really is hard in the early stages, trust me I know. You don't want to waste any money on something that has no quality, nor should you try a free beat making program. My advice is leave the free programs alone, they're a waste of time and most if not all of them have very low quality.

Like I said it can be a bit irritating. Let me tell you about this program I found and the features any newbie should have to get put on a fast track to making the first beat.

One night I decided what I wanted to do and what I wanted to be and that was be a hip hop producer making money doing what I love. So I decided to do a little researching on the internet to see what I can find. I didn't have too much money so I really couldn't afford the equipment.

So during my quest to find a good program I decided to go cheap and try free beat maker software. Honestly I tried several free software and none of them helped me, in fact it kind of confused me. Well months after searching and searching I finally found a good program.

The internet is a great way to find the best music creator software on the market. What's so great about music creator program is that you can make beats anywhere, anytime, anyplace. As long as you are near a computer you can make beats.

A good software should come with customer support to help answer any questions you may have. It also comes with a set of tutorials that show you step by step how to make beats. How cool is that? It's like having somebody over your shoulder helping you every bit of the way.

Before you decide to get any music creator software, just make sure it is user friendly, this is even truer for newbie's. Understand that you're a beginner and getting program that is hard to operate will only discourage you from following your dream.

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Hip Hop Graffiti Art

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In this article, we'll take graffiti art to mean wall art drawn with spray cans in public places. This is necessary to avoid confusion, for graffiti art can also be taken to mean an act of vandalism in a very general sense.

Hip Hop Graffiti Art

But when I was taking a closer look at the origins of graffiti art, it appears that this art form didn't appear out of nowhere. In fact, it has risen out of a need for expression from people who didn't have the money and the means to participate actively in both the art and the music scenes.

This urge or need to express became so strong that these people started creating their own art and music using what was available to them. And not much was available to them. So they turned to using their mouths (beat-boxing), scratching on tables (to simulate the scratching of records) and invented rap. Hip hop evolved out of rap music.

But the names and labels isn't all that important. What's more important is to understand the intent behind these art forms. What caused these people to invent hip hop music and graffiti art?

At the root of it is rebellion. There's something that these artists are unhappy about, and they're letting the world know about it. For instance, if you're a fan of rap music, you'll often hear some angry lyrics. It's not within the scope of this article to discuss the source of anger. For now, it's good enough to understand that rap and hip hop music stems usually stems from anger.

Similarly, for graffiti art, rebellion is made known by creating wall murals in public places. Doing this is illegal but yet, many have done this and it does appear that graffiti art is now out of control.

Artists worldwide have chosen this particular outlet to express themselves, to make sure that they're heard. Graffiti art has been known to be a tool to get attention.

But what has this strong urge to grab attention (so much so that artists have to risk their neck by spraying on walls illegally) got to do with hip hop music?

Well, understanding the culture where hip hop music and graffiti music come from (and they come from the same source), one would guess that graffiti art could be the cheapest form of advertising (in fact, it's free!). It's the ultimate word-of-mouth marketing for the hip hop artists. And in essence, since both art forms represent the same dissent voices of the people of that culture, who's to say or judge it's wrong to create graffiti art?

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Mobb Deep Mixtapes And How They Affected Their Rise To Stardom

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Mobb Deep is a hip hop duo hailing from Queens, New York, that is made up of Prodigy and Havoc. One of the most critically acclaimed and well-known hip hop groups from the East Coast, they are best known for their hardcore and dark delivery. Like most young up-and-coming artists, Mobb Deep mixtapes helped to pave their way to fame and fortune.

Mobb Deep Mixtapes And How They Affected Their Rise To Stardom

Prodigy and Havoc started rhyming together while both attended the Art and Design High School of New York City. Though originally calling themselves the Poetical Prophets, their name later changed to Mobb Deep so that they could reflect their street reputation. Though their first record was a disappointment, it did gain some recognition for the hip hop songs titled "Hit It From the Back" and "Me and My Crew."

Credited for the resurgence of East Coast rap in the early 1990's, they are one of the most successful duos in rap history, having sold over 4 million records. Though most of their albums are critically acclaimed, their album titled The Infamous, is considered a classic. Though in their early years, they relied heavily on releasing new and fresh Mobb Deep mixtapes to spread their name and hip hop beats.

Some of the titles include, Queensbridge Meets, Unreleased Tape, Infamous Mobb, Mobb Misses 4, and Something Like a Horror Flick. As with most artists struggling to make it in the business, all of the Mobb Deep mixtapes were available for free at many of the rap shows around New York City. All of their music went back to portraying the struggles of living in public housing in New York City, which is really all they knew at the time.

Today, they have released 8 studio albums, and hundreds of different Mobb Deep mixtapes, which help to keep them fresh in the minds of their fans. Their new mixtapes are often highly anticipated,as their unique blend of hip hop beats never gets old. Only time will tell how they will be remembered among the great hip hop artists of all time.

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The Hardcore of Bass Guitar Basics

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The very first bass guitar was created by the famous guitar manufacturer, Leo Fender, who added frets to it that made it much easier to be played. The bass did have a much larger body than the electric guitar, as well as a longer neck and a longer scale length. The strings on the bass are tuned to the exact pitches as the strings that are found on the double bass.

The Hardcore of Bass Guitar Basics

Many view the bass guitar as a transposing instrument since during live stage performances an electric bass can be plugged into a speaker and amplifier just as an electric guitar is done. After 1950 the electric bass had totally replaced the bass guitar all together. It is no secret that the different types of bass lines that are performed will vary depending on the type of music that is being played.

The bass player has the same role not matter what type of music that they are playing. They must grab hold of the harmonics of the song so the other band members will have something to keep them in sync. They keep the beat and rhythm flowing. This includes rock, heavy metal, country, blues, jazz, and hip-hop. However, oftentimes, you will find that in funk, jazz, and fusion the bass player is a solo act.

Some of the best bass guitar players in the world are George Harrison and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers. It does not matter if you sit or stand while playing the bass, but what does matter is that you continue to keep your back straight as possible. Always remember to make sure that your strings are in proper working order and free from debris.

When a bass is create the best woods are used such as Alder and Ash for the body, but for the neck Rosewood and Maple are oftentimes used. When selecting your bass be sure to take a long look at the wood prior to purchasing it. Be sure that the neck is properly bolted to the body and that it is not loose and that the fingerboard has been properly glued onto the neck.

These are a few things you must look at prior to purchasing your new bass guitar. Another thing that you may want to inspect prior to purchasing your new bass is to make sure the tiny metal strips that are located on the fingerboard, which are called frets, are not loose and have been glued into place correctly. If the frets get removed, then this will change the sound of the bass. Just be sure your new bass guitar is every thing you want and more.

This is a very small part of bass guitar basics, there is a lot more to learn, but we don't have a lot of space over here to put it all out on paper. There will be few more articles about that subject.

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Modern Jazz and its Restless Identity

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It is an illusion brought about by the record store racks that discrete stylistic barriers separate the music we love into camps of genre. Every music is a bastard at heart. While the contemporary apparatus for the consumption of music reinforces the notion of genre (notable exception: the internet), with Top 40 radio stations, hip-hop magazines, and the segmented organization of the Grammys, listeners realize deep down that all this division is a lot of baloney. Music is music.

Modern Jazz and its Restless Identity

Yet, despite the intuitive understanding that the theory of genre doesn't stand up under scrutiny, it remains a powerful principle in our culture (or more accurately, our culture industry). Not only do genres define the radio station to which you tune in and instruct you what clubs to avoid on a Friday night, genre is deeply interwoven with people's identities. High schools are the perfect laboratory for music-based social identity. The goths all seance together to the accompaniment of Manson and Ministry; Preppy kids rock the Dave Matthews while driving around in their parents' Hummers; skaters thrash to punk rock; and the weirdos gather around old jazz records, analyzing the theoretical arcana of the style and deciphering the liner notes as if they are gnomic texts. In short, the idea of genre, as much as we like to hate it, is a potent social and musical force in our culture.

But just as every individual understands that genre is a fluid concept, musicians are even more acutely aware of this fact. With very few exceptions globally, there isn't a music out there that hasn't stolen ideas from other musical cultures around it. Purity simply doesn't exist, since every style is the result of a long and often contentious dialog between people, places, times, and cultures. Every genre, therefore, is the document of some deep dialectic process that continues to morph even as you look at it; every music is a Proteus of possibilities.

This is all a long-winded way of winding up to the topic at hand, the state of modern jazz. Like everything else, jazz came about through a very American sort of mixture: Delta blues met with Sousa marching bands; Debussy encountered Negro spirituals; hymn tunes and Creole culture collided. Perhaps it is no surprise then that a slew of modern jazz musicians are turning to another genre, rock, to find inspiration. Jazz, since its humble inception and by its very nature, borrows.

This is not the first time jazz has succumbed to the Siren's lure of electric guitar feedback and throbbing back-beats. Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Joe Zawinul and a huge cast of early 1970s musicians incorporated these new sounds into their music, and the purists, predictably enough, wailed that "jazz is dead." Those guys were grabbing new sounds that they heard around them in an attempt to inject a little body and soul into a music that had gone a bit limp creatively at the time. The rock music entering jazz today, though, is of a different origin. To young jazzers today, distorted guitar is not a fresh new sound at all - it is the sound they grew up listening to. I don't know a soul who spent their formative years of 13 to 18 listening to Miles and Shorter to the exclusion of Mudhoney and Soundgarden. To young Americans, rock (and hip-hop) is in our blood, and jazz is a transfusion we got later in life.

Another point to mention: just as the erudite narrator in Kazantzakis's masterpiece envies Zorba's earthy, intuitive ways, so do the scholarly pursuits look upon the non-scholarly as a sort of pre-lapsarian Utopia of unmediated reality. The narrator questions his library of books just as a jazzer questions his arsenal of dense music theory. What is it about the intellectual character that looks longingly at the illiterate? I have a hunch that the ideal notion of purity has something to do with it, but more on this idea in another post perhaps; for now, let's return to the topic.

The generational shift and its mark on jazz aesthetics is becoming plain as day. Three recent records exemplify this shifting, more rocking self-identification. I don't want to labor them too extensively, so here's a brief description of a few rocking jazz picks from the last couple years:

The Bad Plus, Prog (2006)

This is piano trio music that strives for the sound of a power trio. I admit that I was a little skeptical when I heard that a "jazz" group covered "Smells Like Teen Spirit," but the Bad Plus's approach to hallowed standards of the rock world, from Queen to Black Sabbath to Bjork, is incredibly fresh. The pianist Ethan Iverson is classically trained and didn't start playing jazz until comparatively recently, and it shows (for the better): rather than playing all the standard jazz piano vocabulary, Iverson takes a neotonal, melodic approach to improvisation. It's as if Rachmaninoff sat down down with a rhythm section. Stand-out songs on this most-recent collection include a crashing take on Rush's anthemic "Tom Sawyer," complete with Neil Peart's machine gun drum solo replicated in perfect detail. The original tune "Physical Cities" features a two minute long stop-and-go rhythmic interlude with completely irregular hits. It is probably the most baroque, complex passage I've heard on a jazz record in years.

Brad Mehldau Trio, Day is Done (2005)

Another piano trio album by the indefatigable Brad Mehldau, Day is Done is much more of a traditional jazz album than Prog; heads lead to solos and all the formal architecture of the style is there. However, the material is all over the map, from the Beatles to Nick Drake and Radiohead. The opening cut says it all: with a rattling menace in the drums and thick, gloopy double-stops on the bass, Radiohead's "Knives Out" signifies from the get-go that this isn't cocktail jazz. Mehldau has cultivated a uniquely idiosyncratic voice on the piano and has mastered the technique of playing counterpoint to himself. On Day is Done, one hand is playing jazz while the other is pounding power chords and flipping off the establishment. It's a tour de force of the nascent jazz aesthetic, at once fiercely urgent and sublimely graceful.

Ben Allison, Little Things Run the World (2008)

One of the young leaders of the downtown NY scene, bassist and composer Ben Allison has never been a slave to genre. His previous albums blend psychedelia, avant-garde, and even Malian griot to create a totally idiosyncratic sound. On his most recent record from two weeks ago (with the band "Man Sized Safe," named after Dick Cheney's sinister office safe that can fit a man in it), Allison dives into more rocking territory with a 4-piece ensemble complete with overdriven electric guitar. The grooves are austere and stripped to the bare essentials of pulse, and the melodies are broach and spacious. It's a beautiful record, complete with Allison's signature avant-jazz weirdness but toned down and kept simple.

These are just a few records that spring to mind that define this newly developing identity of jazz (and of jazz musicians). The Ben Darwish Trio similarly occupies the space between rock and jazz, free-style improv and tight song forms, hip-hop groove and esoteric textures. From the perspective of a musician who has been playing and listening to the new jazz for years now, therefore, I can say that this sort of thing comes much more naturally than "Autumn Leaves" and "Solar." Rock is what young Americans grew up listening to, and the fact that jazz has been borrowing from it so heavily lately is a testament to the resilience and relevance of the style in 2008. For a great counter-example, see Sascha Frere-Jones's recent piece in the New Yorker, "A Paler Shade of White." Frere-Jones contends that contemporary indie rock ignores what earlier rock valued so much: musical miscegenation. Not borrowing from black music has created a sterile, rhythmically bland, "white" genre that appeals to - surprise! - white youth. It's a fascinating warning of what can become of music if it gets too pure. Of course, great jazz artists have always known this.

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How To Make Beats for Free

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Do you have the talent to create beautiful music beats but don't have the resources to start big? Worry no more. Your problems are solved. Where there is a will, there is a way. Today, there are ways to make beats for free. There is nothing better than a free source and commodity. It saves you a lot of money and it's accessible to almost everyone. Yes, you can create something for nothing!

How To Make Beats for Free

Music is a combination of sound waves which normally have whole number ratios between the frequencies associated with their notes. With this in mind, a modified way of combining two or more sound waves has popular use/application in the music industry, creating what are call beats. Musical beats make use of the interference of sound waves of two different frequencies. With the intention of creating a resultant new sound wave that is in a periodic and repeating pattern. The result is music.

Online or offline, there are many ways and places where you can surrender to your music, your muse and your lyrics. This is not an instant process. It takes time to get your hands on this stuff and go through the basics until you can make it on your own. You can take Free E-courses for starters. It's not a bad idea to enroll and learn as much as you can. The experience will enhance your skills and the musical direction you want to delve into. E-courses can last from a few days to weeks.

Another idea is a Rap Beats Manual, which is a blueprint for making Hip Hop beats or similar sources and can usually be found in your local library. It's another good way to learn about beats and how to make them that won't cost you a penny.

If you really want to make things easy, try a search engine. There are ample music websites that allow viewers and visitors to make beats for free. You can peruse online video samples and articles that relate to making beats for free.

Yet another option is to attend a free hip hop or beat seminar or class that is located nearby. Having experts to ask questions of can be a very fast way to learn. Lastly, you can also research the fundamentals of making beats yourself and once you have the knowledge you can take it from there.
You can make beats for free if you have the will and the patience to find the right sources.

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The Industry For Hip Hop Artists Who Buy Rap Beats

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Today's music industry is dramatically different than it used to be, with the digital revolution making it easier to buy rap beats, distribute music and promote artists. The internet has opened up so many doorways for musicians that it's astounding and quite honestly it's hard to wrap your head around. The industry seems to be working in favor of the independent movement and not so much in favor of the majors.

The Industry For Hip Hop Artists Who Buy Rap Beats

Many people are under the false impression that the internet has actually ruined music in a way. There are countless amount of artists in the major industry that are trying their hardest to make sure that things like cyber pirating are stopped by any means. This is because artists tend to believe that the declining record sales for major labels is due to the fact that communication has become so easy and fast with the online community. Songs are being spread virally by fans through email attachments and file transfers, so there's an illusion created.

If you'd like to read the truth, here it is... Even with cyber pirating hitting the market as hard as it has, most music experts agree that only about 20% of sales are lost due to pirating or illegal downloading. That means that a huge 80% of music lovers are still buying music as they come across artists they like.

It's my personal belief that records will always sell, for all of eternity, for as long as there are fans to buy the music. Why? Well I say this because those who buy music don't buy it just because they want to listen to it... In fact, in today's industry it's much more likely that they have access to those same songs for free... The reason they buy is because they want to support the artists which they look up to so much.

Today's industry is literally at the best point it's ever been, for independents anyway. Yes, the major labels are seeing less sales and they're not acquainting themselves to the new digital era very well... But independents are doing great! Majors are simply using the same old business plan and it's starting to become quickly obsolete. They put huge amounts of money into each artist they promote and most of the time they don't even come out with a profit. The major's business model is basically to promote everybody with the same amount of mega dollars spent and drop the artists from the label who don't do as well. But 9/10 artists on a major label won't make anything for the company! That's because of those stupidly spent dollars, which don't turn profit easily. The few mega famous artists who the companies represent bring in enough success for the majors to continue on.

Independents run on a completely different business model. It cannot be assumed that all of the music industry is doing badly when that simply isn't the case. Last year, in 2009, Billboard magazine predicted that 50% of all album and single sales were made by independents... That's some serious selling power! It's because websites such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have made it possible to promote on a wide scale without the need for a big budget.

On top of free promotion, distribution has also (finally) become affordable. Tunecore, an online company, allows artists to get distributed on all the major mp3 retailers such as iTunes and Rhapsody for an extremely affordable rate. Anybody can afford their rate, it's the kind of thing you can pay for with a 9-5 job and the risk is so low it's ridiculous. The first thing you have to do, though, before you can start promoting yourself and making money from your music, is to buy beats so you have the right to sell your songs. You need a proper license to your music if you expect to come up. Again, the internet has helped in this respect. A company called Beats4Legends provides instrumentals to independents who are working on a small budget. Click the links in the paragraph below to visit Beats4Legends today and purchase instrumentals online easily.

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Make Your Own Free Beats Instrumentals

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It's possible to make your own free beats instrumentals using new production software. You can not only make free beats, but you can turn out 'quality' beats like the pros do - really!

Make Your Own Free Beats Instrumentals

Making your own free beats has taken the net by storm. Networking for amateur beat makers is turning out some great talent that may never have been heard otherwise.

Before laying down your own beats, it's a good idea to listen to some professional beats. This will give you some insight for putting together the beats that are in your head and translating them better when laying your own tracks.

Some people buy beats online, then take parts of those beats and use them in their beat instrumentals. A caution - be sure to get 'royalty free' beats if you don't want to pay out any cash, otherwise you will be trying to use a copyrighted work which is illegal-so don't do it!

Music producing is fun, and can also be lucrative. Choosing software correctly for making your beats is serious. There are plenty out there, both expensive and inexpensive that you can take advantage of. Be sure you match your style of music with the software that it calls for.

Use samples. Then add, twist, and create it into what you want it to be. Some good sample CDs can be had at 'Loopmasters', 'Sample Magic', and 'Modern Beats'. Plenty exist, but these are good. These tips will kick off your knowledge of how to make your own free beats instrumentals.

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Music History - Hip Hop, Rap, R&B

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In the early 1970s, the cultural movement of hip hop music was born. Hip hop's fast paced music style is made of two parts; the rhythmic delivery of rap and the use ofinstrumentation by a DJ. Hip hop music also brought with it a fashion of its own, the fashion helped to represent this newly created music.

Music History - Hip Hop, Rap, R&B

Hip hop music has its roots from West African music and African-American music. The first rap song to be put onto a vinyl record was, "Rapper's Delight", a song by the Sugarhill Gang back in the 1970s. This is when block parties started becoming the norm in New York City, which gave hip hop and rap the chance to explode in popularity. Hip hop's instrumentation came from funk, R&B, and disco, when combined together make this dynamic type of music. When the DJs at these block parties learned what the people liked, they began mixing these vinyl records and created music that played continuously with amazing transitions between
songs. Hip hop was actually created by a DJ named Kool Herc, a Jamaican that had moved to the United States with a style that consisted of mixing music by using two copies of the same record. Many of the poor Jamaican's in the town could not afford vinyl records, so huge stereo systems were set up so that many could here the rhythmic beats. These stereo systems were the kick-off for the beginning of the
evolution of block parties. So with the musical talent of these amazing DJs, with the use of vinyl record mixing, the culture of hip hop and rap music was born.

History of R & B

R&B, which stands for Rhythm and Blues, was the greatest influence on music around the world for most of the 20th century's second-half. Rhythm and Blues is a term with a broad sense, but typically recognizing black-pop music. This type of music was introduced to the world by artists' combining the music styles of jazz and blues. R&B is actually what was later developed into what we know as rock and roll. In the 1970s, the term R&B was being used to describe soul and funk music styles, which today we know it describes Rhythm and Blues. Along with being influenced by jazz and blues, R&B also had influences from gospel and disco music. Disco's downturn in the 1980s opened the door for R&B to truly take-off in popularity.

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The History of Rap and Hip Hop Music

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The origin of hip-hop can be traced back as far as the ancient tribes in Africa. Rap has been compared with the chants, drumbeats and foot-stomping African tribes performed before wars, the births of babies, and the deaths of kings and elders. Historians have reached further back than the accepted origins of hip-hop. It was born as we know it today in the Bronx, cradled and nurtured by the youth in the low-income areas of New York City.

The History of Rap and Hip Hop Music

Fast-forward from the tribes of Africa to the ghettos of Kingston, Jamaica in the late sixties. The impoverished of Kingston gathered together in groups to form DJ conglomerates. They spun roots and culture records and communicated with the audience over the music. At the time, the DJ's comments weren't as important as the quality of the sound system and its ability to get the crowd moving. Kool Herc grew up in this community before he moved to the Bronx.

During the late sixties, reggae wasn't popular with New Yorkers. As a DJ, Kool Herc spun rhythm and blues records to please his party crowd. But, he had to add his personal touch. During the breaks, Herc began to speak to his audience as he had learned to do in Jamaica. He called out, the audience responded, and then he pumped the volume back up on the record. This call and response technique was nothing new to this community who'd been reared in Baptist and Methodist churches where call and response was a technique used by the speakers to get the congregation involved. Historians compare it to the call and response performed by Jazz musicians and was very much a part of the culture of Jazz music during the renaissance in Harlem.

Herc's DJ style caught on. His party's grew in popularity. He began to buy multiple copies of the same albums. When he performed his duties as a DJ, he extended the breaks by using multiple copies of the same records. He chatted, as it is called in dance hall, with his audience for longer and longer periods.

Others copied Herc's style. Soon a friendly battle ensued between New York DJs. They all learned the technique of using break beats. Herc stepped up the game by giving shout-outs to people who were in attendance at the parties and coming up with his signature call and response. Other DJs responded by rhyming with their words when they spoke to the audience. More and more DJs used two and four line rhymes and anecdotes to get their audiences involved and hyped at these parties.

One day, Herc passed the microphone over to two of his friends. He took care of the turn table and allowed his buddies to keep the crowd hyped with chants, rhymes and anecdotes while he extended the breaks of different songs indefinitely. This was the birth of rap as we know it.

Hip-hop has evolved from the days of the basement showdowns to big business in the music industry. In the seventies and eighties, the pioneers and innovators of the rap record was the DJ. He was the guy who used his turntable to create fresh sounds with old records. Then, he became the guy who mixed these familiar breaks with synthesizers to produce completely new beats. Not much has changed in that aspect of hip-hop. The guy who creates the beat is still the heart of the track. Now, we call him the producer. Even though some DJs work as producers as well as DJs (quite a few start out as DJs before they become producers), today's title "DJ" doesn't carry the same connotative meaning it did in the eighties. Today's hip-hop producer performs the same tasks as the eighty's DJ.

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Hip-Hop - Violent and Degrading Lyrics

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Hip-Hop music includes violent and abusive lyrics that could possibly mirror other illegal activities used for sexual intent. The music identified as hip-hop verbally violates basic human rights, particularly the rights of women. Excessive and blatant sexual abuse connotations can be found in almost every musical score, as women are portrayed as whores and assets worth no more than existing for man's sexual pleasures. Much of the lyrics in rap songs are abusive and degrading to all women.

Hip-Hop - Violent and Degrading Lyrics

Hip-Hop is a manifestation and spin on exploitation of African-American and Latino-American youth, and is often considered to have sexism and misogyny attributes. New York City blacks and Latino youths originally started the hip-hop culture, with included rapping, deejaying, break-dancing and graffiti-writing. But, it has evolved into something much more than just local expressions.

Hip-Hop is a lifestyle for many people between the ages of 13 and 30. It involves music, videos, fashion, club-scenes, and the ways that young people interact with each other. The media has embraced and adopted the hip-hop culture, as well as big corporations, such as Coca-Cola and Burger King. Versions of hip-hop can be found in marketing media and corporate advertisements. The Brooklyn Museum of Art even has an exhibit dedicated to hip-hop culture.

The most influential part of hip-hop has become known as rap music. Rap music is a form of poetry, recited over musical instrumentation. Many consider rap music to be brutally honest, violent, and misogynistic. But to others, the violence to and hatred of women appears blatant and offensive.

Much of rap music portrays black women in negative images. The hip-hop culture views all women, but mostly black women, as sex objects. Most hip-hop videos show women dancing or displayed in explicit sexual poses, clothed in bikinis (or less), with the focus on their body parts. The images go hand in hand with the explicit language that suggest women are nothing more than sex objects or money-generating commodities. Many rappers describe themselves as 'pimps' and women as second-class and sexual commodities. Many rap songs, not only, glorify the pimp lifestyle, and refer to women in ways a pimp might describe their prostitutes, but the lyrics promote violence to women that "disobey."

Of course, not all rap music is misogynistic, and not all black men think of women in this light, but large percentages within the hip-hop culture do. The name calling in the rap music dishonors, disrespects, and dehumanizes women. When society accepts labeling women in this manner, will physical and psychological abuse become acceptable? Unfortunately, many black men battle racism or oppression within hip-hop culture, and have been conditioned to distrust intrusive feelings of trust and love.

Many women consent to these collaborations, and believe racism or subjugation are viable excuses or justification for the practice of degrading and exploitation of women. The numbers of women that show up for unpaid try-outs for video shoots indicate that significant amounts of hip-hop consumers are women. Groups of women can be seen loitering in concert backstage areas, expressing their willingness to perform sexually in return for money and jewelry, or perhaps realize a feeling of being wanted.

Black women have, historically, been used as sex instruments, and continue to fight for power and material wealth. When slavery was legal and rampant, black women were routinely sexually abused by any man that wanted her. They could be used for breeding purposes and create more slave trade for their owners. Black women, also, used sex in order to lower chances of cruel treatment by the slave masters. They were paying with their bodies to survive and achieve better treatment within the uncontrolled, abusive slave life.

Black women emerged out of slavery as oversexed and promiscuous. Some viewed themselves as society dictated, and believed they did not have control over their bodies. As they tried to fit into white societies, some black men wanted the women to be employed in subordinate roles in a white household; while some black women wanted the men to acquire jobs and be the sole provider. Hip-hop culture displays similar oppressive obsessions. Some black women prefer to use sexual powers to reap economical gain. And, many black men have learned how to manipulate women by using money. In order for many black women to get what they want, they accept mistreatment and allow themselves to be exploited through hip-hop images.

Sometimes black women are uneducated and have no job skills. Many believe their bodies are all they have to offer to gain status. Many dysfunctional relationships can be found within the hip-hop culture. Some women believe men are instruments of use to gain access to money; some men think women are only have value when it comes to sexual gratification.

Would censoring hip-hop music and lyrics be an answer? Perhaps, the solution would be to change the hip-hop society and ideology by discontinue negative and misogynistic lyric promotion. But, the first step to change gender relations within the hip-hop community is education. People need to be made aware of the negative and derogatory connotations that continue to violate women's rights, in sexist lyrics, physical interactions, and at hip-hop gatherings. But, of course, people need to be receptive to the devastating results that violating human rights cause, and be willing to change.

Are human flesh traders alive and well in the United States? Of course, we all know trafficking women is illegal, but considering the more than 45,000,000 dating websites on the Internet, is this a modern legal tool that continues the exploitation of women?

Speaking out against exploitation of women in hip-hop cultures, and for women everywhere, can help change ideologies. But, if women are not interested or willing to stop exploitation tactics, they will continue to be used and considered as just sexual instruments.

Although women have come very far, their work is not finished, and they have a long way to go before equality will be realized.

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New Ideas For Your MySpace Background Music

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If you update your MySpace profile page religiously, then you must have trouble getting fresh ideas. If you have been thinking about updating the background music, then check out some of the new ideas for your MySpace background music that you can use to further enthrall your profile viewers.

New Ideas For Your MySpace Background Music

There are millions of songs out there for you to choose from. Choosing a song is not tough, it is just that you will definitely want something that sounds fresh and new to everyone's ears. After all, there are probably thousands of other MySpace users out there who have the same background music as yours.

It is time to try something new. Background music does not necessarily have to be songs. They can be simple tunes or just rhythm and beats. If you are a percussion lover, then how about recording your own drum solo and upload it is you MySpace background music? If you think that you have an amazing voice, then let your singing voice be the background music. It is good to give your MySpace background music the personal touch.

Talking about rhythms and beats, you will have a hard time finding these kinds of songs if you only depend on the radio for help. These songs however can be easily found if you search for 'royalty free music' on Google.

But why bother purchasing royalty free music when you can simply use Bon Jovi's song? Well, you DO want to be different don't you? Simply purchase a royalty free music track that is available on the Net and upload it as your MySpace music background. When searching for a royalty free music, don't expect to see familiar track titles. Royalty free music are songs that you never heard of before. But the cool thing about it is that they sound as good as Bon Jovi's!

They are not entirely free, but they are definitely worth your money. Let's think about it. With the same price from iTunes store, you can get one-in-a-million-kind of track that is reusable and editable. As a royalty free music purchaser, you have the license to do anything to it. Hence, you won't need to worry about getting into trouble with the law as you are not illegally downloading songs and stealing them.

You can also choose to use sound effects, and loop them such that they continue playing without a break or pause. Popular sound effects are like the sound of the rain and thunder, and the swishing sounds of the beach waters. All you need is a sleek audio editing tool to edit the sound effects such that they loop these sound effects infinitely many times.

If you think that royalty free music comes in very limited variety, then you are wrong.
They have all sorts of genres, from hip-hop, to classical and even rock. All you need to do is to choose one that suits your MySpace profile theme best and you are good to go. It is time to amaze everyone with that new MySpace background music.

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How To Create Hip Hop Instrumentals With Beat Making Software

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Let's cut to the chase! You are reading this article because you are interested in how you can create a hip hop instrumental using beat maker software right? Before we get to the software portion of this let's discuss how you come up with the beat in the first place. You will find that there are two different ways to do this. The first is when you take a well known track and remove the vocals ending up with an instrumental. More then likely you will run into copyright issues doing this. The second way is when you create your own hip hop instrumental beats from scratch. This means no copyright issues and can be quite profitable if the beat turns out to be a catchy one. This is what the rest of this article will be about.

How To Create Hip Hop Instrumentals With Beat Making Software

Making Your Hip Hop Beats

Of course this whole process comes down to you having a way to create your hip hop instrumental in the first place. If you look at this traditionally it would cost you thousands of dollars to get studio time. You may look into using one of the free or low cost on-line beat maker applications that are offered but just understand that they are built for hobbyist. They will not create mp3 files not the studio quality 44,1 kHz.wav files studios are looking for. They also just create samples or loops not full 64 bar beat music. The best choice is to find a desktop beat making application that is feature rich, easy to use, creates sound effects and studio quality 64 bar beat music files. This leads to...

What To Look For

If you understand that using a desktop beat maker is a great choice then there are a number of key features to be on the lookout for:

1) Ease Of Use. The software should work for the beginner, intermediate and advanced user alike. Of course there will be a learning curve but it shouldn't be severe.

2) Sound Features. The software you choose should come complete with a number of useful samples, loops and presets. It should also be expandable to allow you to add on a different music genre or variety of presets later.

3) Studio Quality Files. The software should of course be able to produce 44,1 kHz.wav files.

4) Instructional. The software should come complete with video instructions and perhaps a forum where you can trade ideas and get advice from more experienced users of the software. This will save you a lot of time as you get started.

In this article we have looked at the reasons why you would want to use software to create a hip hop instrumental. We also looked at the features to look for in a desktop beat maker that included ease of use, variety of sound features, studio quality output and instructional in nature. There are other less important features you should be on the look out for but we feel if you use this list you will be able to make a better quality decision.

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Dancing and Playing - Fun Ways to Get Fit

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CARDIO TENNIS

Dancing and Playing - Fun Ways to Get Fit

Everybody is telling us to get fit, join a gym and you will feel much healthier. They are right and you will almost definitely will unless you over do things. If you are a regular gym user and enjoy your time there that's great. However I wanted to take a look at other ways to get some regular exercise and meet new people and enjoy yourself at the same time.

Most of us have limited time for ourselves so when we get a free evening or afternoon we want to make sure we make use of it. Unfortunately we can't go skiing every week or even every year if you live in the UK but there are some other pursuits that can participate in

Cardio Tennis is a new fitness fun group activity which will also improve your tennis! It includes a proper warm-up and cool down just like other group fitness classes with a coach to help you. It is a group activity and classes are popping up around the country

The Cardio Tennis warm-up includes dynamic movement, tossing and catching skills and light hitting. The cardio portion is about 30% drills (to get all the strokes grooved) and 70% games (may or may not keep score).

Every class finishes with a cool down bringing the heart rate down and flushing the system

Cardio Tennis is a new, fun, group activity, featuring drills to give players of all abilities an ultimate, high-energy workout. It is a great new way to get in shape and to burn calories.The major benefits are:

• Participants consistently elevate their heart rates into their aerobic training zone

• You can burn more calories than singles or doubles tennis.

• You get short cycles of high intensity workout and periods of rest, almost like interval training.

• While you are playing tennis, the focus is primarily on getting a great workout. of metabolic waste. The use of the heart rate monitor also makes it a safe workout.

If you like playing tennis or other racket sports and want to meet some new people find a class in your area.

ZUMBA - dance for fitness and enjoy the party whilst you burn away the calories

Dancing has become a fast growing leisure activity in the UK fuelled by TV programmes such as 'Strictly Come Dancing' and 'Britains got Talent'. More than 4.8 million people are dancing in the UK alone. More than 12 million people worldwide are now taking weekly Zumba classes in 110,000 locations across more than 125 countries. It has grown in popularity since 2001. Zumba is a Latin dance-inspired fitness programme created by choreographer Alberto 'Beto' Perez in Columbia during the 1990's.

Regular dancing is great for losing weight, maintaining strong bones, improving posture and muscle strength, increasing balance and co-ordination and beating stress.

One of the best things about dancing is that while you're having fun moving to music and meeting new people, you're getting all the health benefits of a good workout. A one hour Zumba workout can burn off between 500-800 calories so not bad for a fun evening out

It includes dance styles: cumbia, salsa, merengue, mambo, flamenco, chachacha, reggae, samba, belly dancing, bhangra, hip hop music, axé music and tango. There are seven different types of classes for different levels of age and exertion, including Aqua Zumba, which is based in the swimming pool. It is good for young and old alike and is a great way to exercise aerobically

Have a look out for Zumba classes in your area and have some fun getting fit.

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Best Beat Making Software - Choosing The Right One Can Get You Paid

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Did you know that by choosing the best beat making software you are giving yourself a higher chance of being successful? Look at it this way if you will. You can use the free or almost free on-line beat makers that are out there. But if you are serious about making it in this business you will quickly see that they don't produce real music (i.e. loops and samples) and studio quality output (i.e. a minimum of 44,1 kHz.wav file). This is the main reason that music making software has filled the void between professionals seeking expensive studio time and hobbyist looking to play with on-line beat makers. You will find that the desktop beat making software provides the vast majority of functionality that can be found in a studio for a fraction of the cost. Of course the software won't make you rich overnight by itself. You will need to put in the needed time to perfect your beat making skills. Having the right tools will assist you in that...

Best Beat Making Software - Choosing The Right One Can Get You Paid

Beat Making Software - Things To Look For
As we alluded to above when people start looking for hip hop beat making software they are usually initially doing it because of cost issues. The software costs less than the equivalent studio time will cost you. On the other hand you are also able to get a lot of the same features that you would get with the studio time. This is what makes this such a win-win. By having ready access to this type of software you can get going immediately instead of waiting to save up for studio time. Time is money too!

What we would look for at a minimum:

1) Useful For Various Experience Levels. The ideal situation is to make a choice of software that allows the beginner to be up and running in a short period of time and still be productive. Yet on the other hand it should be feature filled enough so that an advanced user can still use it without missing a beat. Keep in mind that the only reason for you using the software is to be able to effectively and efficiently take the ideas in your head and make them real.

2) Built-in Expandable Library. Your choice should come already equipped with a number of professionally mastered samples, loops and sequencers that can be used immediately. It should also allow you to add to these later on as you feel the need.

3) Easy To Pick Up. We it comes to something as hands-on as this you want instruction that is as close to being hands-on as well. This is why making sure your choice provides video instruction so that you can follow along with a seasoned user is invaluable. It will save you time and wasted effort.

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