How To

[bmoney16]

I'm got questions concerning to making a song.When you buy a beat online or anywhere else, what else do you have to do. Do you just take a microphone and sing over it.And what if the beat is 5 minute and you only plan on make a 3:30 track.I have heard you you cubase but still want to no more to make a professional track.just in case you're wondering it's RnB.

[hummingbird]

Quote:I'm got questions concerning to making a song.When you buy a beat online or anywhere else, what else do you have to do. Do you just take a microphone and sing over it.And what if the beat is 5 minute and you only plan on make a 3:30 track.I have heard you you cubase but still want to no more to make a professional track.just in case you're wondering it's RnB.Hi. I'm not an expert in RnB but I do hear people talk about 'buying beats' and I always wonder about that. If you are looking to record a demo, then using tracks from other people is fine. If you plan to pitch for film & tv, then I think things get muddy. (If you define beats as "loops" I've found that using loops is not very acceptable, even in a demo.)How I make song is a) I write well-structured lyrics with contrasting sections, b) I write a melody & chord progression, c) I record a worktape by playing the song on my guitar & singing, d) I get feedback from people I trust, e) if the song is good enough, then I might spend money to make a better demo than I can make myself in order to pitch it effectivelyI also often use Band in a Box to set a song up so that it has form (for example, 2 bar intro, 8 bar verse, 12 bar chorus, etc). In the early days, when I had no other abilities, I'd play BiaB through my speakers while singing the words, and record my worktape.Hope that helps a little. Feel free to ask more questions,cheersHummin'birdPS - I highly recommend you read Jason Blume's "Six Steps to Songwriting Success", also John Braheny's "The Craft & the Business of Songwriting"

[ibanez468]

bmoney16,Ta' be honest with you, I don't think very many, if any, purchase beats. I think the majority of us here create our own beats, or use pre-existing samples in our setups or what have you. I would think that is what you would do. Get a mic and sing over the beat. Don't have enough description though on how you're generating the beat, and what your setup is. If you're playin' the beat through some type of software sequencer, you can always edit the beat down to the desired length of time that you want.Quote:I have heard you you cubase but still want to no more to make a professional track.Not quite sure what you're tryin' to say here, but to try and answer, you can go with just about any of the popular DAW's to get a professional sounding track. Cubase, ProTools, Logic, Sonar, etc... I guess it just depends on how well the engineer/producer/musician can utilize the DAW. Hope this answers your questions.ibanez468

[bmoney16]

Thanks Hummingbird, but the thing is, i don't know how to play any instruments. It would have helped if i knew how.And ibanez468 thanks for your help too.But see the thing is i write lyrics and record myself over a cheap microphone (still trying to get a job to buy a new one) and i just don't know how to put it all over a beat and post all over the internet.

[ajenkz]

The quality wont be great, but your going to have to get an adaptor to plug your mic into the soundcard on your computer, then use a program like Audacity (which is free) to record yourself and mix it with the beat.

[ibanez468]

bmoney16So what you're saying is you record yourself singing, with no music behind you? So, what exactly are you using to record yourself with? See, we're gonna need more information in order to give you a solution. What kind of mic are using? Are you using a cassette player to record yourself with or what? A computer? It's hard to give solutions without enough info. If you can answer all of these questions, it would help narrow down a solution for you. Or at least be able to advise you on what you can do. Hope this helps.ibanez468

[hummingbird]

Quote:Thanks Hummingbird, but the thing is, i don't know how to play any instruments. It would have helped if i knew how.And ibanez468 thanks for your help too.But see the thing is i write lyrics and record myself over a cheap microphone (still trying to get a job to buy a new one) and i just don't know how to put it all over a beat and post all over the internet.If you are writing lyrics and music, then what you need is a musician, like a guitarist, to create a chord progression for your song. That's not a co-write, it's a work-for-hire. You should find a local guitar player who knows something about the style/genre you are writing in, and get him/her to help you create a lead sheet (a lyric sheet with guitar chords) in the key you sing. 1) You could also ask them to play it for you while you sing & record the result. There's free recording software you can download from the internet (Kristal Audio Engine, for example) if you don't have one.2) You could purchase Band in a Box, and input the chord progression you got from the guitarist, choose a speed & style, and record vocals over the top. Please note, though, this would not be a demo that I would submit to anyone, it would just be an audio file of your song idea you could play/post for feedback & also register for copyright.hope that helpscheersVikkiPS - I started 5 years ago without the ability to play much of anything, without knowing anything about production. Or songwriting, for that matter (although I thought I did). IMHO your goal should be to learn what you need to learn to support your work -- so, take some guitar lessons, learn about chord progressions, so that you don't always have to pay someone to play your songs for you or help you create a lead sheet for your song. Wouldn't it be cool to go down to a coffee house on open mic night, sit down with a guitar in your lap, and sing something you wrote? If I can learn to do that, so can you!!

[bmoney16]

you know what, HUMMINGBIRD, you are an inspiration to me. I guess what i need to do is learn how to play a piano and buy a microphone from amazon. cause what i got now is one that camewith my compaq computer and it has real low quality and then i'll holla at ya.THANKS.......

[edteja]

Yeah man, save yourself a lot of frustration by working on getting a decent mic and learning some instrument. Look for musicians you can work with.And best of luck.

[ibanez468]

Uh, Traveling Ed, I could be wrong...but I don't think bmoney is a man.ibanez468