East Coast hip hop

History and character

Origins

Hip hop is born in New York: the early-'70s Bronx of DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash, and Afrika Bambaataa, with the spoken-word forerunners The Last Poets and Gil Scott-Heron. In the '80s Run-DMC (Hollis, Queens) brings rap into rock and the mainstream, and Def Jam (Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons) launches LL Cool J, the Beastie Boys, and Public Enemy.

Golden age (roughly 1986–1994)

Lyrical complexity becomes the central value: multisyllabic rhymes, metaphors, storytelling. Eric B. & Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Boogie Down Productions (KRS-One), Slick Rick, EPMD, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest; producers such as Marley Marl, the Bomb Squad (Public Enemy), and Prince Paul.

The '90s

New York defines boom bap: “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” (1993, RZA), Nas's “Illmatic” (1994, with DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Large Professor, Q-Tip), The Notorious B.I.G.'s “Ready to Die” (1994, Sean Combs's Bad Boy), Mobb Deep's “The Infamous” (1995), Jay-Z's “Reasonable Doubt” (1996). Mafioso rap is born (Kool G Rap; Raekwon's “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...,” 1995). The media rivalry of East vs. West culminates in the deaths of 2Pac (1996) and Biggie (1997).

After 2000

The sound opens up: Bad Boy and its “Hitmen,” Ruff Ryders with Swizz Beatz (DMX), Roc-A-Fella with Just Blaze and Kanye West, Timbaland and The Neptunes for the crossovers. Next come the blog era (late 2000s), A$AP Mob, Joey Bada$$ and the boom bap revival, the “neo-mafioso” of Buffalo's Griselda, and the drill of Brooklyn and the Bronx from 2019.

Aesthetics

Sampling, lyricism, close listening more than dancing, the city as a character (sirens, subway, cold), hard drums and dark loops.

Scales and keys

Natural minor (Aeolian)

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 (2-1-2-2-1-2-2).
• Example in E: E F# G A B C D.
• Chords: Em – F#dim – G – Am – Bm – C – D (i ii° III iv v VI VII).
• Use: the dark New York sound: minor pianos, tense strings, i–VI loops (Mobb Deep, RZA, Havoc).
• Mistakes: introducing major dominants that “brighten” a loop meant to be gloomy.

Dorian

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7. In C: C D Eb F G A Bb.
• Characteristic note: major 6 (A) → major IV (F7).
• Use: jazz and soul samples (Pete Rock, Q-Tip, Large Professor).

Phrygian and chromaticism

• Phrygian in D: D Eb F G A Bb C (1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7).
• Use: RZA's “off-key,” unsettling samples (detuned piano, kung-fu movie strings), pedals with the bII.

Major (sampled soul)

• Formula: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. In Ab: Ab Bb C Db Eb F G.
• Use: the “radio” sound of Bad Boy (major 1980s pop/R&B samples, “Juicy” on Mtume's “Juicy Fruit”) and the chipmunk soul of Roc-A-Fella (Kanye, Just Blaze), with IV–V–iii–vi progressions.

Harmonic minor

• In G: G A Bb C D Eb F#.
• Use: dramatic strings and choirs (Swizz Beatz, Just Blaze), drill.

How to choose

Harmony

Sampled loops

1–2 chord loops (boom bap) or 4-chord progressions taken from soul/R&B tracks (Bad Boy). No closing cadence; the change of mood comes with a second sample in the hook.

Dissonance as aesthetic

RZA and Havoc use layered samples with small pitch discrepancies and chromatic clusters: the urban tension comes from “wrong” harmony.

Chipmunk soul

Sped-up soul vocal samples (+3/+5 semitones) that carry melody and harmony together; bright major progressions with the minor vi (Kanye West, Just Blaze, early 2000s).

Harmonic rhythm

One chord per bar or per two bars; faster in R&B samples.

Voicings

Those of the record; if played, tight chords in the middle register, strings in triads, piano in octaves.

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

Feel

Swung boom bap (MPC 54–62%), heavy snare on 2 and 4, syncopated kick; a “head nod” groove at 85–95 BPM. The Bad Boy and Ruff Ryders sound is more quantized and straight, 95–105 BPM, with drier electronic drums.

Flow

Dense and technical, many syllables per bar (Big L, Rakim, Nas), internal rhymes, punchlines.

Drill

From 2019, half time at 140–145 with counter-snares (see NY Drill).

Drums

Kick

Boom bap: steps 1, 8, 11 (+ variations); big kick taken from breaks, body at 60–100 Hz. Bad Boy/Ruff Ryders: shorter, punchier electronic kick, straighter patterns (1, 3-and, 4).

Snare

On 2 and 4, heavy, often layered; ghost notes in boom bap; “metallic,” dry snares in Swizz Beatz beats.

Hi-hat

Swung eighth notes, hats from the break; in 2000s beats, straight eighth notes, sometimes sixteenth notes.

Percussion

Scratching, bells, city FX (sirens), string and horn stabs as a rhythmic element.

Interaction

Bass and kick locked together; the sample drops out to emphasize the punchlines.

Sections

Steady verse, hook with additions, stops on the punchlines; fills almost absent.

Typical mistakes

Drums that are too clean for boom bap; no swing; a kick with a modern sub.

Bass

• Boom bap: filtered sampled bass or a short 808-style sub on the root (DJ Premier).
• Bad Boy: bass from the R&B sample or a soft synth bass.
• Ruff Ryders: more aggressive synth bass and 808.
• Notes: root and fifth; they follow the kick.
• Range: 50–120 Hz, little extreme sub.

Harmonic instruments

• Piano, string, horn, Rhodes, vibraphone, and soul choir samples.
• Synths (synthetic strings and brass) in the Ruff Ryders and Roc-A-Fella era.
• Soul organ and guitars.
• Mid register, filtered and saturated.

Melody and vocals

• Rap: technical, lyrical, narrative; mid-low register; dense flow.
• Hooks: scratching (Premier), spoken choruses, or sung R&B choruses (Bad Boy: Mary J. Blige, Faith Evans) and soul samples.
• Backing vocals: gang vocals, hype man.
• Effects: dry, compressed vocal, little reverb.

Instruments

Samplers (SP-1200, MPC60/3000, S950, ASR-10), turntables, vinyl breaks, piano, strings, horns, Rhodes, synths (strings and brass), sampled bass, 808, rap vocal, R&B voices.

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• Piano V — Piano for dark loops: Upright piano slightly detuned (detune ±10–15 cents) and filtered: the 'unsettling' sound of RZA and Havoc.
• Stage-73 V — Jazz soul Rhodes: Filtered ninth chords for Pete Rock-style loops.
• Augmented Strings — Dramatic strings: Dark stabs and legatos for Swizz Beatz and Just Blaze beats.
• OP-Xa V — Synth brass: Synthetic brass stabs typical of late-'90s Ruff Ryders/Roc-A-Fella beats.
• Emulator II V — Sampler grit: Resample any sound with the dirt of the SP-1200/S950.
• Mellotron V — Sampled flutes and strings: Wow and flutter give loops the feel of a worn record.

Song structure

Three 16-bar verses in the classic era; in crossover tracks, 16-bar verse + 4-bar pre-chorus + 8-bar chorus. Length 3:30–4:30.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

Big, dusty drums, a dry vocal up front, the sample warm but “underneath.” The Bad Boy era is cleaner and brighter, designed for radio. References: “Illmatic,” “36 Chambers” (deliberately raw), “Ready to Die,” “The Blueprint” (Jay-Z, 2001). Balance: vocal 0, snare −3, kick −3/−4, bass −5, sample −9/−12.

Kick

HP 30 Hz; body 60–90 Hz (+2 dB); cut at 300–400 Hz; click 2–4 kHz; FET compression 4:1, 3–5 dB; tape saturation; mono.

Snare

HP 100 Hz; body 200 Hz; cut at 500 Hz; crack 3–5 kHz; 4:1 compression, 4–6 dB + parallel; short plate (0.8–1 s) at −20 dB or room.

Hi-hat

HP 400 Hz; LP 12–14 kHz; pan +15.

Bass

HP 35 Hz; fundamental 60–100 Hz; opto compression 3 dB; mono.

Sample

HP 120–200 Hz; LP 7–9 kHz; dynamic EQ 2–4 kHz from the vocal; tape saturation; narrow stereo (50–70%).

Vocal

EQ: HP 80 Hz, −3 dB at 250 Hz, +2/+3 dB at 3–4 kHz, +1.5 dB at 10 kHz; 1176 compression 4–6 dB + LA-2A 3 dB; de-esser 6 kHz; almost dry (slap 90 ms at −22 dB).

Scratching and hook

Scratching: HP 200 Hz, presence 2.5 kHz, 4:1 compression. R&B hook: wide female vocal with 1.5 s plate.

Buses and groups

SSL drum bus 4:1, 2–4 dB + tape; music bus with tape.

Sidechain

Kick → bass 1–3 dB; vocal → sample (dynamic EQ).

Master

Target −10/−8 LUFS integrated (actual '90s often −12/−10), true peak −1 dBTP; PLR 9–11 dB.

Common mistakes

Sample too loud; stereo too wide; digital highs; reverbed vocal.

Reference tracks for the mix

• Nas — N.Y. State of Mind (1994)
• The Notorious B.I.G. — Juicy (1994)
• Mobb Deep — Shook Ones, Pt. II (1995)
• Jay-Z — Izzo (H.O.V.A.) (2001)
• DMX — Ruff Ryders' Anthem (1998)

Reference listening

• Eric B. & Rakim — Paid in Full (1987)
• Public Enemy — Rebel Without a Pause (1987)
• Wu-Tang Clan — Protect Ya Neck (1993)
• Nas — N.Y. State of Mind (1994)
• The Notorious B.I.G. — Juicy (1994)
• Mobb Deep — Shook Ones, Pt. II (1995)
• Jay-Z — Dead Presidents II (1996)
• DMX — Ruff Ryders' Anthem (1998)