u/Loafenberg

Had this thing since launch , as a complete starter this thing beat my ass , but after alot of awfull beats i finally got something that sounds “okay” i guess…

Any tips?

Just wanted to drop a quick appreciation post for one of the most consistent and lethal duos in the underground game right now: Masta Ace and Marco Polo.

I was lucky enough to see them perform live last year, and man... let me tell you, they absolutely blew the roof off. On a purely technical level, Masta Ace is an absolute anomaly. The man’s breath control, cadence, and crowd control are sharper than dudes half his age. He didn't miss a single syllable. And Marco Polo behind the decks holding it down? The energy was unreal.

It got me diving deep back into A Breukelen Story and their newer stuff, and it really hit me how underrated they are as a combination.

If you are a fan of that dusty, hard-hitting New York boom-bap, Marco Polo is a literal wizard on the MPC. His drums knock so incredibly hard, and the way he chops soulful loops is the perfect canvas for Ace’s storytelling. It literally feels like the spiritual successor to Disposable Arts but with modernized, punchier production.

Tracks like “Breukelen "Brooklyn"” (with Smif-N-Wessun) or “Kings” are absolute masterclasses in hip-hop.

If you haven’t given A Breukelen Story a full front-to-back spin yet, stop sleeping and put it on right now. It is a mandatory listen for anyone who appreciates real production and top-tier lyricism.

Hey everyone,

I recently jumped into the world of sampling and beatmaking, and honestly, I am completely hooked. I just came back from a Kanye show and the hype is real—I want nothing more than to just lock myself in a room, chop up some dusty 70s soul records, and build those heavy 4-bar boom bap loops.

But man... the struggle is real. I have absolutely zero background in music production. Right now, I'm trying to loop a classic Syl Johnson sample and I’m having zero success getting it to sit right with the drums and the BPM. It feels like I'm fighting the machine instead of making music.

The ironic part? My day job is being a cameraman and a video editor. I understand pacing, rhythm, cuts, and timelines perfectly when it comes to video. But translating that knowledge over to the MPC pads and trying to find the exact "1" or matching a human drummer's tempo is kicking my ass.

Has anyone else transitioned from video/creative work into beatmaking with no musical background? How did you overcome that initial wall where nothing loops right?

Would love any tips, YouTube channels, or workflow mindsets that helped you get over the hump. Appreciate it!

An absolute underrated classic with amazing beats