Wendel Patrick, professor of Hip Hop at Johns Hopkins University, Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland
The Rhythm of Hip Hop
Grades 9-12
Sampling is a key part of hip hop music. Sampling involves taking parts of old songs to create new beats and tracks. This technique lets DJs and producers mix different musical styles into new songs and helps hip hop artists tell compelling stories through their music. Sampling does more than just bring new sounds into music; it keeps old music styles alive for new listeners. By blending snippets of songs from the past, like a 1960s Motown record, with new beats and lyrics, sampling connects different generations of people through music.
Teacher's Guide and Related Standards
Students will be able to recognize the role of sampling in hip hop music, and learn how it combines elements from different musical genres and eras to create new, innovative sounds.
- In what ways does sampling contribute to the storytelling aspect of hip hop?
- How does sampling connect different musical styles and generations?
Artworks Clip
- Why is hip hop an amalgamation?
- What can we learn from Wendel Patrick’s approach to creating a soundscape for the Baltimore Museum of Art exhibition using sampling?
- In what ways does sampling contribute to the storytelling aspect of hip hop?
Vocabulary
Supplemental Enrichment Activities
Recreate Wendell Patrick’s process of using a popular sample (the original song) to create rhythms and/or a hook for a song. For example: The instructor would identify a hip hop song like Kanye West’s “Through the Wire” which samples Chaka Khan’s “Through the Fire” or West’s “Gold Digger” which samples Ray Charles’ “I’ve Got a Woman.” Using the original song as inspiration, students create their own beats or rhythmic sequences and/or hooks.
This exercise does not require students to write lyrics, but it is an option.
Compare and contrast the use of sampling in two hip hop tracks from different decades. (One resource is whosampled.com.) Discuss how the approach to sampling has changed over time and what this reflects about the genre's development and its interaction with cultural trends. This exercise could be completed in class, or as a take-home activity.
In Class Activity:
Lead the students in a musical analysis of a hip hop song, both musically and conceptually. Use the prompts to support student inquiry and discussion about the following:
- Why do you think the sample was chosen?
- How was the original sample manipulated musically?
- What was the artist intending to convey?
Take-home Activity:
Ask students to select a hip hop song, identify its sample(s), and analyze and conduct research on the song. You could also modify the assignment, and have students choose to focus on one producer or artist with a large body of work, like Missy Elliott or Timbaland.
Begin with a brief discussion about what it means for an art form to be included in museums and higher education institutions. Present Wendel Patrick's quote to the class.
“You know, people who are, perhaps not as familiar with the art form or maybe who have certain perception or have had a certain perception, they sort of tend to speak about hip hop entering these spaces or institutions as like it’s finally being respected or it’s finally getting the accolades or kudos that it deserves. I don’t see it that way at all. I don’t think hip hop actually needs to be in fine art museums, I don’t think it needs to be in higher institutions of learning but I think it can exist there. I think it should exist there. I think should and need are two very different things.”What did Patrick mean when he said hip hop “should” be in museums but it doesn’t necessarily “need” to be there?
Divide the class into small groups to discuss their interpretations of the quote. Encourage them to consider why someone might believe hip hop should be in museums and why it might not need to be.