Conscious rap

History and character

Origins

Alternative hip hop is born in the late '80s on the East Coast with the Native Tongues collective: Jungle Brothers, De La Soul (“3 Feet High and Rising,” 1989, produced by Prince Paul, famous for its eclectic and playful sampling), A Tribe Called Quest, Queen Latifah, Black Sheep. They are the answer to gangsta clichés: positive, Afrocentric, ironic lyrics; samples from any genre (jazz, psychedelia, pop, comedy), a colorful aesthetic.

Conscious rap

Conscious rap has older roots: Gil Scott-Heron and The Last Poets, “The Message” (1982), KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions after “By All Means Necessary” (1988), Public Enemy. In the '90s and 2000s the term refers to the political and reflective strand: The Roots, Common, Mos Def and Talib Kweli (Black Star, 1998), Lauryn Hill, Dead Prez, Talib Kweli and Rawkus, the underground “backpack rap.”

Spread

The Pharcyde (“Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde,” 1992) on the West Coast, Arrested Development, and OutKast in the South (“Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” wins the Grammy for Album of the Year in 2004, the second hip hop album to do so). Kanye West (“The College Dropout,” 2004) makes non-gangsta rap a mass phenomenon; the 2007 sales “showdown” between “Graduation” and 50 Cent's “Curtis,” won by West, is considered a watershed.

Today

Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, Chance the Rapper, Tyler, the Creator and Odd Future, Childish Gambino, Brockhampton, Noname, Little Simz (UK), Run the Jewels, Danny Brown, Earl Sweatshirt, and the experimental strands (Death Grips, clipping., JPEGMafia). Alternative is more an attitude than a sound: it hybridizes jazz, neo soul, rock, electronic music, and gospel; introspective, social, or surreal lyrics; free forms.

Scales and keys

Dorian (jazz and soul)

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 (2-1-2-2-2-1-2).
• Example in G: G A Bb C D E F.
• Characteristic note: major 6 (E) → major IV (C7, C9).
• Use: the jazz loops of A Tribe Called Quest and The Roots, neo-soul rap (Common, Mos Def).

Major with extensions and gospel

• Formula: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. In Eb: Eb F G Ab Bb C D.
• Chords: Ebmaj9 – Fm9 – Gm7 – Abmaj9 – Bb13 – Cm9 – Dm7b5.
• Use: gospel rap (Chance the Rapper, Kanye West “Ultralight Beam”), sampled soul, sung hooks.
• Typical: the gospel IV–V–iii–vi, the borrowed minor iv, secondary dominants (C7 → Fm9).

Mixolydian and blues

• Mixolydian in C: C D E F G A Bb; blues in C: C Eb F Gb G Bb.
• Use: OutKast and the Atlanta scene (funk, rock, blues), Arrested Development.

Melodic minor, Lydian, and “color” modes

• Melodic minor in D: D E F G A B C#: mMaj7 chords, noir atmospheres (Kendrick on his jazz tracks).
• Lydian in F: F G A B C D E: the #4 for dreamy harmonies (Tyler, the Creator, Frank Ocean in collaborations).
• Tyler, the Creator often uses major seventh and ninth chords with slash chords (Fmaj7/G, Dbmaj9) that blur the key.

Aeolian and Phrygian (experimental strand)

• Aeolian in A: A B C D E F G; Phrygian in E: E F G A B C D.
• Use: Death Grips, clipping., Kendrick's darkest tracks (“DNA.” over a trap beat).

How to choose

Harmony

Harmonic freedom

Alternative breaks the rule of the 1–2 chord loop: complete soul and jazz progressions, key changes, bridges, instrumental sections, slash chords, and chromaticism.

Played instruments

Live bands (The Roots, the Soulquarians: Questlove, J Dilla, James Poyser, D'Angelo), jazz musicians (Robert Glasper, Terrace Martin, Kamasi Washington), gospel choirs. The harmonies are therefore denser (m11, 13, maj9#11, altered).

Eclectic sampling

De La Soul and Prince Paul sample Steely Dan, Hall & Oates, Johnny Cash, instructional records: the harmony can change in every section.

Typical techniques

• Modulation by a third or a half step between verse and chorus.
• Borrowed minor iv (Ebmaj7 → Abm6) for melancholy.
• Secondary dominants and tritone substitutions.
• Slash chords (Ab/Bb, F/G) for suspension.

Harmonic rhythm

From one chord every 2 bars (rap) to 2 chords per bar (soul choruses).

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

Feel

Highly variable: J Dilla-style swing (unquantized), boom bap, live groove with a drummer, half-time trap, irregular rhythms and tempo changes (beat switches, odd meters in the experimental strands).

Microtiming

The “Dilla feel” (kick early, snare late, irregular hats) is a signature of neo-soul rap and the Soulquarians.

Flow

Narrative, polyphonic (Kendrick changes voice and character), poetic; often with changes of speed and meter, internal rhymes, and spoken word.

Drums

Kick

From boom bap (steps 1, 8, 11) to freer live patterns; often a soft, played kick.

Snare / rim

On 2 and 4, sometimes a rim or a light snare; in gospel tracks, choral claps; in experimental ones, distorted snares.

Hi-hat and ride

Swung eighth notes, jazz ride, hats played with dynamics; in the “Dilla feel” hats and kick sit 10–30 ms off the grid.

Percussion

Congas, shaker, tambourine, gospel hand claps, African percussion (the Afrocentrism of the Native Tongues), samples of objects.

Interaction

Played drums and bass react to the vocal (dynamics, stops, accents); in sampled tracks the loop is constant.

Sections

Many variations: instrumental bridges, beat switches, jazz outros, gospel choirs that build.

Typical mistakes

Imitating the “Dilla feel” by shifting notes at random: the swing must be consistent (kick always a little ahead, snare always a little behind).

Bass

• Played electric bass and upright bass (The Roots, Thundercat), with fills and chromaticism.
• Soft synth bass (Moog) in neo-soul rap and in Tyler.
• 808 in contemporary tracks, more melodic than aggressive.
• Notes: full harmony (3rd, 7th, 9th), walking, chromatic approaches.
• Relationship with the kick: played groove, no pronounced sidechain.

Harmonic instruments

• Rhodes, piano, organ (gospel), Wurlitzer.
• Analog synths (pads, leads) in Tyler, Kanye, OutKast.
• Soul, funk, and rock guitars.
• Jazz horns, strings.
• Gospel choirs as a harmonic instrument.

Melody and vocals

• Rap: introspective, social, poetic, ironic; different registers and characters.
• Hooks: often sung (Lauryn Hill, Kanye with soul choirs, Tyler with pitched voices), gospel choirs, vocal samples.
• Backing vocals: real gospel choirs (Kanye, Chance), 3–4 voice harmonies, female soul voices.
• Effects: pitched voices (chipmunk), vocoder, expressive Auto-Tune (Kanye “808s & Heartbreak”), telephone filters.

Instruments

Live and programmed drums, samplers, electric bass, upright bass, Rhodes, piano, organ, analog synths, guitars, horns, strings, gospel choirs, rap and sung vocals.

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• Stage-73 V — Neo-soul Rhodes: Ninth and eleventh voicings with tremolo: the sound of the Soulquarians and jazzy rap.
• B-3 V — Gospel organ: Full drawbars and fast Leslie for gospel hooks (Kanye, Chance).
• Jun-6 V — Tyler-style pads and chords: Juno-60 with chorus for warm, slightly lo-fi major seventh chords.
• Prophet-5 V — Analog leads and pads: Soft leads and maj9 pads for the dreamier tracks.
• Mini V — Synth bass: Round Moog bass with glide for neo-soul and Tyler.
• Augmented Voices — Choirs: Choir pads to support the hooks when there's no real choir.

Song structure

The forms are free: suite-like tracks with multiple beats (Kendrick, Kanye), interludes, narrative skits. Length 3:00–7:00.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

Musical and dynamic: vocal in the center and intelligible, warm band or loops, room for dynamics. References: The Roots “Things Fall Apart” (1999), Kanye West “The College Dropout” (2004), Kendrick Lamar “To Pimp a Butterfly” (2015), Tyler, the Creator “Flower Boy” (2017). Balance: vocal 0, snare −4, kick −4, bass −5, keys −8, backing vocals −6.

Kick

HP 30 Hz; body 60–90 Hz; cut at 300–400 Hz; attack 3 kHz; 3:1 compression 2–4 dB; mono.

Snare

HP 100 Hz; body 200 Hz; presence 3–5 kHz; 3:1 compression 3 dB + light parallel; 1.2 s plate at −18 dB or natural room.

Hi-hat, ride, percussion

HP 300–400 Hz; ride ±30; percussion ±40–60; natural dynamics.

Bass

HP 35 Hz; body 80–120 Hz; definition 700 Hz–1 kHz; opto compression 3–4 dB; mono below 120 Hz.

Keys, guitars, horns

HP 100–200 Hz; dynamic EQ from the vocal at 2–4 kHz; plate/hall 1.5–2 s; wide stereo (Rhodes in stereo, guitars ±50, horns ±20).

Rap vocal

EQ: HP 80 Hz, −2 dB at 250 Hz, +2 dB at 3–4 kHz, air at 10 kHz; 1176 compression 4–6 dB + LA-2A 3 dB; de-esser; plate 1 s at −22 dB; automated 1/4 delay.

Gospel choirs and sung vocals

HP 120–150 Hz; 3:1 compression 3 dB; hall 2–2.5 s; stereo ±80; level automation on the builds.

Buses and groups

Drum bus with glue and tape; band bus 1 dB; vocal bus 1–2 dB; choir bus with a shared reverb.

Sidechain

Little: vocal → keys (dynamic EQ); kick → bass only if necessary.

Master

Target −10/−9 LUFS integrated (−11 even for tracks with band and choirs), true peak −1 dBTP, PLR 9–12 dB.

Common mistakes

Band too loud relative to the vocal (the lyrics are central); choirs that cover the rap; over-compression that kills the live dynamics.

Reference tracks for the mix

• De La Soul — Me Myself and I (1989)
• The Roots ft. Erykah Badu — You Got Me (1999)
• Kanye West — Jesus Walks (2004)
• Kendrick Lamar — Alright (2015)
• Tyler, the Creator — See You Again (2017)

Reference listening

• De La Soul — Me Myself and I (1989)
• A Tribe Called Quest — Scenario (1991)
• The Pharcyde — Passin' Me By (1992)
• Arrested Development — Tennessee (1992)
• Black Star — Definition (1998)
• OutKast — Hey Ya! (2003)
• Kanye West — Jesus Walks (2004)
• Kendrick Lamar — Alright (2015)
• Tyler, the Creator — EARFQUAKE (2019)