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bass for hip hop

#3
i am a huge hip hop fan. however, ive never played in a hip hop band until recently. i currently play with chicagos own Shala Esquire formerly of Qualo. i found that i use settings on my boss me-50b i never thought i would use. i mean fuzz, distortion, wierd synth sounds, and even auto wah. i also hate the idea of playing with a pick but Shala kinda prefers it. the stuff i play is some of the simplest stuff ever but it works well and the crowds love it. also rappers need a steady consist beat to rap over. its very repetitious but alot of fun.

my advice is the simple lines are usually the best. i dont think i have ever played a chord. the drummer has to be hot. you really need to click with him.

the chronic is a great album. you might get inspiration from stuff like the roots, erykah badu, jill scott. these albums all feature live/real bass players but they are on more of a soul tip. i always loved outkast too.
 
#4
+1 on everything jmiller said. Alot of hip hop songs with "real" bass lines use 1-5-1's alot. As with all genre's, it helps to know the fretboard inside and out and get really comfortable with the circle of 5th's. As for runs and fun stuff, learn some tricks with minor scales.

And the #1 rule.....MAKE IT FUN AND JUST GROOVE!!! If the groove you're playing doesn't make you want to move with the beat then why would anyone else? :)


-J
 
#5
Definitely work out with what the above folks suggest.
I kind of have 2 hip hop bass "minds" when I'm playing/producing hip hop. Sometimes, it's straight-ahead bass, very often with a retro soul quality to it, in the tone and the parts. Guys I play with love to hear a classic P or jazz sound that evokes a classic vibe, even to the point of referencing famous bass lines from the 70's, etc.
Other times, if there's for example synth bass, or 808 kicks going on, etc., then go nuts with effects, or find cool little parts that might not necessarily be bass parts, like little guitar-y figures played up really high. You can also just simply not play sometimes---work the spaces as much as the notes (listen to Hub!)
 
#7
Record yourself grooving along to a beat - and don't worry about what you play...
Then - sample parts of what you played, anything that "happened" to sound decent; try the samples against different beats... you might find some gold there, as well as your own voice (or perhaps both at once!)
 
#8
i love a 4 string PJ bass for hip hop. can nail the old school thing and get hifi when necessary. listen to anything preston crump has played on, especially older outkast imo...killer hip hop player. hub from the roots is nasty as well.
 
#11
It seems like hip hop can use a wide variety of techniques such as slides, staccato, etc. Listen to a lot of old school funk such as James Brown, P-Funk, etc. Lots of hip hop basslines borrow very heavily from funk. Also, work the pentatonic scales like there's no tomorrow.

A big thing in my opinion is that hip hop basslines need to breathe. Keep the groove simple and allow plenty of room for the vocals and percussion. Don't over complicate a hip hop bassline.
 
#12
Ditto "Low End Theory." I know Lauryn Hill is kind of R&B/hip hop, but "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" has some killer bass playing if I remember correctly. I think one of the guys who played on it now plays with Taking Back Sunday or one of those emo rock bands now? maybe i just made that up...
 
#15
KuMBye YamALaWd said:
Record yourself grooving along to a beat - and don't worry about what you play...
Then - sample parts of what you played, anything that "happened" to sound decent; try the samples against different beats... you might find some gold there, as well as your own voice (or perhaps both at once!)
Click to expand...


+1!
Countless great hip hop parts (and not just bass) have been landed on that way. It really is done all the time in hip hop. Sometimes I just track all the way through, riffing and vibing on it, then start hacking away at it really haphazardly and scooting things around, even sometimes without locking to the grid. You'll get stuff this way you never woulda come up with by playing. Then leave as-is if it sounds cool chopped up, or learn your new part and re-play it. Fun.
 
#16


This is one of my favorite Hip Hop basslines. I don't know the origin of it, but it really makes that Tupac track for me. What really interests me about it is how it is quite melodic, yet it goes with the kick drum.
 
#17
If anyone wants to hear a great hip-hop bass line listen to Tupac - Only God Can Judge, possibly the greatest hiphop bassline alot of Tupac songs used live bass players especially at Death-Row they liked using live, not pre-programmed basslines...I agree.

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You see alot of programmed bass lines, simply sync up exactly with the melody or some of the orchestration (keys, strings or horns) and not that this is a bad thing but if you notice on 'only god..." the bass line is very unique to the rest of the instruments but it goes along with the song well and doesn't get in the way of the vocals at all...this is what all hip-hop bassists should strive for, don't just follow the melody but definitely keep it laid back...
 

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