Auto Tune: Popular Music's Ruin

I was in a car with my cousin in New Delhi, India last summer and some local radio station happened to be on. The Indian classical song that was playing made little sense to me (I must admit) but then I heard it. Auto tune. What?!! I couldn't believe it.

It's everywhere. With almost every pop song on the radio today using the effect, auto tune seems to have disgustingly become the new industry standard. It's a pretty amazing tool when you think about it. With a quick download of Antares' Auto Tune, anyone in the world with a computer and microphone can record themselves and literally drag their vocals up and down a pitch graph and have a 'perfect' vocal. Everyone knows T-Pain was the guy who really popularized the effect 5-6 years ago (he even came out with an iPhone app that lets you auto tune yourself on the spot), but its use over the past few years has gotten out of hand.

Antares Auto Tune

I understand that a lot of artists don't use it to necessarily be on pitch (mainly rappers). When Lil' Wayne removed auto tune on his 2009 No Ceilings mixtape, a lot of people (including me) said he should go back to using auto tune just because his voice sounded cooler with it. Kanye West pretty much dedicated almost a whole album (808's and Heartbreak) to the effect. I also don't think people listen to Ke$ha or Britney Spears for their singing ability...I think people realize what they're listening to and know Adele or someone like John Mayer is true vocal talent.

What's terrible though is when the effect is used to legitimately try to sing - including by Wayne and Kanye [enter endless videos of Kanye doing Love Lockdown live, and even Lil' Wayne's How to Love performance at the VMA's a couple nights ago]. Professional studio engineers who really know how to use the software well can do it without leaving much of a clue that it was ever used in the first place too.

Here is a list of artists that have been known to use auto tune. Some might surprise you.

When people like Usher who have a great voice start using auto tune (OMG), it's clear that auto tune has firmly rooted itself in our pop culture. It has subtly overshadowed our standards to a point that I doubt true singers will ever be given the spotlight they deserve. As hardware and programs for digital pitch correction evolve and become extremely simple and more natural sounding, future generations' appreciation for the art will inevitably diminish.

Stage Names: What's in a Name?

I’m sure that at some point you’ve had that ‘aha!’ moment when you learn the reason or story behind the stage name of some of your favorite artists. Sometimes the reason a name is adopted is sort of deep, and other times it’s pretty random. I’ve compiled the following list of today’s bigger hip-hop artists and how they arrived at their monikers. If you don’t see an artist that’s pretty popular on the following list, chances are their stage name was just some form of their actual name (including ones like Wale and Kid Cudi). They just sound different due to their ethnic background.

Eminem

Born Marshall Bruce Mathers III, Eminem started rapping at the age of 14 under the pseudonym M&M - a reference both to his initials and candy. This evolved into Eminem.

Ne-Yo

‘Ne-Yo’ was coined by a producer Ne-Yo once worked with, Big D Evans. Evans claimed that Ne-Yo sees music as Neo sees the Matrix. As a joke, Evans started calling him Ne-Yo until everybody was accustomed to it.

Jay-Z

Jay-Z grew up in the Marcy housing project in Brooklyn, and his home was located at the intersection of the J/Z subway lines. Influenced by east coast MC mentor Jaz-O and being given the childhood nickname of 'Jazzy', Jay-Z came to be.

T.I.

His original stage name, ‘T.I.P.’, stems from his childhood nickname ‘Tip’, which was given to him by his grandfather. Due to his southern drawl, fans mistook his name for ‘Chip’, so he began spelling it out ‘T.I.P’. He shortened his name to T.I. out of respect for label mate Q-Tip.

50 cent

The story behind this nickname is a mix of rumors and the reason 50 Cent himself provides. Apparently the name belonged to an actual street hustler notorious for his urge to steal everything as well as being trigger happy. A legend claims he actually held somebody up for fifty cents. 50 Cent says his nickname came from wanting to honor this hustler and as well as wanting to change after his time in prison.

Lil’ Wayne

In his interview with Katie Couric, Lil’ Wayne explained his stage name's relation to his actual name, Dwayne Carter Jr. "I dropped the D because I'm a junior and my father is living and he's not in my life and he's never been in my life. So I don't want to be Dwayne, I'd rather be Wayne."

Wiz Khalifa

“When I first started rapping my Uncle's name was 'Knowledge' and we were all in a group. I wanted to make a name that was sort of like his, so I chose Wisdom. My Uncle was Muslim so he gave me the ‘Khalifa’ which means ‘SUCCESSOR’. I was Wisdom Khalifa for a while when I was younger and then I turned about 15 and I dropped the ‘dom’ from Wisdom.”

Lupe Fiasco

“I got the name Lupe Fiasco in high school. I had a friend named Lupe. My name is Wasalu, so I was always rapping under Lu, cause when you shorten it, it would be Lu. People would call me Lu. So Lupe wasn't that much of a stretch. I just took his name cause we were kind of like good friends. Fiasco came from the Firm album. They had the song, "Firm Fiasco." I just liked the way it looked on paper. And so it's like, Lupe...Fiasco.”

Ludacris

"The nickname is something I made up," said Ludacris, aka Chris Bridges about his name. "I have kind of a spirit personality - part of me is calm cool and collected, while the other side is just beyond crazy. My lyrics are ludicrous, my live shows are ludicrous - ludicrous like off the chain crazy."

Dr. Dre

Dr. Dre started out as a club DJ, initially under the name ‘Dr. J’, based on the nickname of Julius Erving, his favorite basketball player. Soon afterwards he adopted the moniker Dr. Dre (given to him during his time with World Class Wreckin’ Cru), a mix of previous alias Dr. J and his first name, referring to himself as the "Master of Mixology". 

Trey Songz

When he was first recording his album, the producers labeled his demos and tapes ‘Trey's Songs.’ The name stuck ever since.

Busta Rhymes

His first name as a rapper was Chill-o-ski, but he thought it was a corny name, and Chuck D from Public Enemy gave him a new name, Busta Rhymes. He got the name from a football player from the eighties, George “Buster” Rhymes, and people always asked him to “Bust-a-rhyme,” so the choice was easy.

P. Diddy

He was apparently called ‘Puff’ to reflect his ‘huff and puff’ mood when he got upset. In 2001, after a weapons and bribery charge, he changed his name from ‘Puff Daddy’ to ‘P.Diddy’. In 2005, he changed it again from ‘P.Diddy’ to just ‘Diddy’. He also recently asked his fans to refer to him as Swag, but I think this was just a temporary thing (I hope).

Childish Gambino

Some of you might have heard of or seen links on your friend's walls of upcoming rapper Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino. At almost 28 years old, he's started gaining some following and has released 6 albums in the last three years alone. After listening to around ten of his songs (including the popular ones on YouTube), three things came to mind:

1. His voice is annoying. He acknowledges this himself as well (Untouchable - "Childish Gambino, yes my voice is annoying")
2. He is cocky. His apparently 'thanks himself' on his first album, Sick Boi. He also compares himself to bigger names like Jay-Z and Kanye.
3. His raps are almost ALWAYS are full of references to his genitals and/or the number of women he has been with. (i.e. Freaks and Geeks lyrics).

Nicki Minaj was able to get past having a unique voice, and a modest rapper is unheard of today. But these two qualities can be overshadowed when an artist puts out good material.

Childish Gambino's material is (imho) whack.

I will admit that he has a pretty nice flow and presents a pretty marketable image. He produces all of his music himself, and is also a DJ. But the lyrical content of his work is just too shallow. I agree there are a lot of songs that have worse lyrical content that become pretty popular, but those songs usually make up for their content with a hook or beat that stays with the audience.

His style also uses double entendres - especially in the way that's been mastered by the likes of Drake, but it's a style that has been worn out by others. If you aren't really good at it, you are wearing it out. Glover is wearing it out.

He holds a degree in Dramatic Writing from NYU though, so I'm sure he'll figure out what he needs to change as he stays at it. But for now, I'd pass on Childish Gambino.

Producer Signatures

Occasionally you might have noticed that several songs on your iPod start off with the same kind of shout or sound, and many times the songs sound sort of similar as well. Since producers often don't have a verse on all of their tracks they sell to artists, many of them leave some sort of signature sound on almost all of their beats - just to let everyone know whose work it is.

I think it's cool to be aware of these unique stamps. If you like a certain beat, you can research that producer and hear more of that kind of track. Many of them have their blogs or sites where they will gladly release a lot of what they create but doesn't make to the big name albums. If you are an aspiring producer, this allows you to be aware of what sounds you dig - and go find producer sound kits that are similar to your taste.

So here's a list of a few signature sounds by many big name producers that I've compiled. Each of them links to a song where you can hear the effect as well. Of course, there are a lot of producers who don't have one that aren't on this list.

Akon - Jail cell slamming shut Gwen Stefani - Sweet Escape (0:07)

Bangladesh - "Bangladesh" Lil' Wayne - A Milli (First 2 Seconds)

David Banner - "David David David Banner" Lil' Wayne - La La

DJ Khaled - "We The Best" or "DJ Khaled" Lots of Artists - All I Do Is Win (Start)

Don Cannon - "Cannon!" Lil' Wayne - Cannon (0:19)

Drumma Boy - "Listen to dis track, b****" Waka Flocka Flame ft. Roscoe Dash & Wale - No Hands (Start)

Jazze Pha - "Ladies and Gentlemen" Ciara ft. Missy Elliott - 1, 2, Step (0:06)

J.R. Rotem - "J.J.J.J.J.R!" or "J.R." Sean Kingston ft. Lil' Wayne - I'm at War (0:07)

Kane Beatz - "Kane is in the building" or short laugh Lupe Fiasco - The Show Goes On (0:12)

Lex Luger - Rising Synth Kanye West & Jay-Z - H.A.M. (0:11)

Maestro - Woman whispers "Maestro" Lil' Wayne - 3 Peat (0:17)

Nitti - "It's a Nitti Beat!" Young Joc - It's Goin' Down (Start)

Polow Da Don - "Wait a minute, Mutha*****" Rich Boy - Throw Some D's (2:28)

Tha Bizness - "Tha Bizness" Young Money - Every Girl (0:03)

Dr. Dre

Drake is always mentioning some guy named 40 in his songs - well that's his longtime friend and producer. Producers are also sometimes mentioned on the track by the recording artist if their signature sound isn't inserted.  Just Blaze works a lot with Jay-Z and almost always gets a shout out. Other big producers like Swizz Beatz and Timbaland often also do a verse or hook, and many producers also make an appearance in music videos as well.

Watch The Throne

First off, there seems to be some confusion regarding what Watch The Throne is. Watch The Throne is the new collaboration album released by Jay-Z and Kanye West. Their upcoming tour is named the same as well.

The album currently has a 5 star rating with over 11,000 reviews on the iTunes store. It broke iTune's 1st week digital release download record (previously held by Coldplay) with 290,000 album downloads. Kanye West's last album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was Time's Magazine's Album of the Year. 

Watch The Throne is better.

Jay-Z has said that "Kanye West is the most complete artist in the world today." What does that entail? Lyrics, beats, performances, image, hype, etc. are all covered grounds in everything Kanye does. I don't know ANY other hip-hop artist (or even pop artists for that matter) that releases albums including everything from beautifully written opera solos with supporting cellos, to the hard hitting bass that you'd ride to at 2 A.M. with the windows down and no one in the car saying a word.

From African sounding drum kits with a really wild sound (i.e. 808's and Heartbreak - Amazing), to baroque classically influenced music (i.e. MBDTF - All of the Lights Interlude), Kanye has been including elements of music from all over the world and from the past. Watch the Throne features all of this and more. The album sets the bar even higher for not only the hip-hop game, but for Kanye himself.

I know I'm not really mentioning Jay-Z in this review, but that's because this album was pretty much produced by Kanye (scroll down for producer list). Jay-Z takes care of his end on his verses.

If you are a fan of hip hop, this is an album that you don't want to just click through on your laptop. Give each track a chance (like we used to back in the day, hah).

After listening to the whole album twice, here are my favorite songs from the album in order:

1) Made in America

2) Illest Mother****** Alive

3) Why I Love You

4) Nigg*s in Paris

5) Gotta Have It

6) No Church In the Wild

7) H.A.M.

Lex Luger - Today's Hot Producer

H.A.M.
Hustle Hard
B.M.F.
Taylor Gang

Almost everyone who listens to hip-hop recognizes his signature rising synth at the end of each verse or hook. From Suffolk, VA - Lex Luger's sound has become really popular over what seems to be overnight...and everyone from Lil' Wayne to Snoop Dogg wants him to be a part of their work.

Lex's sound seems to have taken the hard hitting kick and repetitive hi-hat's that have been around in hip-hop (mainly southern) and pumped them full of steroids. His beats, in all essence of the word in a musical sense, go real hard.

If you were to listen to maybe 4 or 5 of his beats in a row though, I would agree with you if you said for the most part they sound similar at the core. For those of you who have listened to H.A.M. - I think the opera singer and classical touch near the end of the track was not Luger's work...I think Kanye West had more to do with that.

Lex if you happen to read this (I see you all laughing or going -_-), keep evolving man. Don't be a flash in the pan. Just a matter of time before other producers use your sound as inspiration. I was actually waiting for your synth signature effect when I was listening to Lil' Wayne and Rick Ross's John (produced by Polow Da Don) when I heard it first.

Characters, Characters, Characters.

Lil' Wayne = Ganja smoking gangster from New Orleans.

Eminem = White guy in a black man's world with a troubled youth...angry at the world and everyone in it (but he does seem to be turning a new leaf recently).

Jay-Z = Rags to riches story from 'one of our own' - a regular kid from Brooklyn with a passion.

Kanye = Chi-Town underdog.

Rick Ross = Drug dealing mobster from FL.

50 Cent = A ripped gang leader.

Lady Gaga = :/

These are just some of the images that come to my mind whenever I hear any of these artists. This is by no means accidental. I'm sure artists spend a large chunk of their efforts making sure everything they do centers around the character and persona they have presented to the world.

We all have had that moment at a party when a song you haven't heard comes on, but there's an artist like Lil' Wayne rapping on it - and we immediately approve. We might have no idea what the hell he's saying - or even go home and listen to the song again and realize what he was saying made absolutely no sense...but it's the image he has presented that keeps us at least listening over and over again (he made this clear on Ransom, where he goes through the whole alphabet).

Nicki Minaj has talked about her alter egos on several interviews. Here's one from Lopez Tonight (from 1:30). Even though it took us all a little brainwashing to get used to her voice and style, Nicki's characters and their stories are a large part of what makes her music marketable. This extends to all of our favorite artists and their characters we admire every time they put out a new CD or are featured on a track.

Yeah you might say that these artists and their images are the same person. When I see Cassidy on an underground rap DVD with people with guns all around him in what looks to be a neighborhood I wouldn't stop to get directions in, I do believe that some of these artists went through what they shared on their CD.

Maybe that's what makes them great? Or maybe you just have to be really good at painting a picture.