How to Be An Executive Producer in Hip Hop

Producing a Hip Hop album in the sense of Executive Producing is different than musically producing an album. Instead of only being responsible for the instrumental and recording of the individual song, an Executive Producer is responsible for the overall quality of the entire album. This means that as an Executive Producer you would most likely oversee the entire project from the concept stage all the way to the mastering stage. The Executive Producer is putting their name on the album also, so in that respect, an Executive Producer takes the same professional risks as the artists involved in the record. Because of the Executive Producer’s level of involvement in the overall production and concept of the entire album, Executive Producer’s usually will receive fees and royalties similar or better than the artists involved in the record. On the independent level the Executive Producer also usually shares some kind of monetary risk along with the record company, so that increases the fee as well. Any serious recording artist will tell you that an Executive Producer is an essential component to creating a professional record, whether major label or independent. This article will give you a brief glimpse of what it means to be an Executive Producer for a Hip Hop album.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Interest in Hip Hop music

1. Find vocal talent. This would be someone with star like lyrical ability that can write rhymes and has a flow. They should have a good sense of rhythm as well, so that they compliment the Hip Hop beat perfectly. If you are lyrically inclined, you can be the rapper/singer/vocalist. A good place to start would be a website that caters to rap artists, such as Letsbeef.com.

2. Find some beats. You need to get a hold of the best instrumentals you can find/afford. If you do not have the budget and/or are musically inclined, you can be the music producer for the Hip Hop album. A good place to start would be a website that caters to producers, such as Rocbattle.com.

3. Produce the album. Get the album produced, from making sure the songs are recorded to making sure the end product is quality. Work with every stage of production to monitor the quality of the master recordings. Make sure the tracks are cohesive, and the artwork used for any promos fits the music.

4. Get a marketing campaign together. This can be any angle you are going to use to sell the final product. Not to be confused with a marketing gimmick, a marketing campaign would more develop the theme of the album.

5. Release the record. Independent producers usually form their own label or work with an independent label to release the record. A record label is important if you need someone to take charge of the promotion and invest in your record. A common tactic independent artists use is to bypass the record label structure altogether and independently promote the record.

6. Get a distributor. The advantages of working with a distributor are that they work hard to sell your record. They will invest time and money to make sure your record is a success. Although they do charge a publishing fee and usually some form of distribution fee, the fees are well justified by the amount of work they do and the future time & money they will save you when trying to make your brand new Hip Hop album a platinum success. Basically, the difference between working with a distributor or not is the difference between actually having shelf space in retail stores and a valid online presence or selling CD's out of your trunk. It is likely that without a distributor the only person that will hear your brand new sparkling platinum Hip Hop masterpiece will be friends and family. Otherwise, there would be an amount of work required which would make it virtually impossible to produce a quality record and sell it without an uncanny level of skill and persistence.

Tips & Warnings

• Stay true to the game and you may become the next music business powerhouse like Jay-Z or 50 Cent. All you gotta do is sign a vocal talent and get the record to sell like a Lil Wayne album!

Resources

• Hip Hop Beats
• How to Master Vocal Levels For Hip Hop Songs
• How to Produce Hip Hop Beats: West Coast Style
• How to Start a Hip Hop Record Label
• How to Produce Hip Hop Beats: Song Structure
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Mixing Drums
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Mixing Synths
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Mixing Samples
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Overall Mix
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Bass Drops
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Mastering Music
• How To Produce Hip Hop Music: Mixing Bass
• How to Understand Music Notes
• How to Use a USB MIDI Controller
• How to Market a Hip Hop Record