17 Oct
2026
Every rap song starts with a foundation: the beat. Producers stack drums, bass, melodies and sounds until a track feels right to rap over. The tools have changed a lot since hip hop began, but the goal has stayed the same: make people move and give the artist room to speak.
Hip hop's first beats were not programmed at all. In the Bronx in the 1970s, DJs like DJ Kool Herc noticed that dancers went wild during the break, the short section of a funk or soul record where the vocals drop out and the drums take over. Using two copies of the same record on two turntables, a DJ could switch back and forth and stretch that break for as long as the crowd wanted.
That idea, finding the best part of a record and repeating it, became the heart of hip hop production. DJs such as Grandmaster Flash refined the turntable techniques that made it possible. Those looped breaks gave dancers room to show off their moves, and the MCs who rhymed over them became the stars of the next era.
In the early 1980s, drum machines gave producers a new way to build rhythms without a live drummer or a record. The most famous is the Roland TR-808. When it came out, many musicians thought its drums sounded artificial, but hip hop and dance producers loved it. Its deep, booming kick drum, snappy snare and crisp handclaps became part of the sound of rap, Miami bass and, later, trap music.
Producers learned to tune and stretch the 808 kick so it worked like a bass line. Today, people use "808" as a name for that kind of deep, rumbling bass, even when the sound comes from software.
Next came samplers, machines that could record a short piece of audio and play it back on command. Instruments like the E-mu SP-1200 and the Akai MPC let producers chop up drums, horns, piano and vocals from old records and rearrange them into something new. The MPC's pads made sampling feel like playing an instrument, and it became one of the most famous tools in hip hop.
Sampling also raised legal questions. Using part of someone else's recording usually requires permission from the owners of both the recording and the song itself. Professional producers either clear their samples, use licensed sample packs or replay the parts with their own musicians.
Most beats today are made on a computer with a digital audio workstation, or DAW. Programs such as FL Studio, Ableton Live, Logic Pro and Pro Tools let one person do what once required a room full of gear. A producer can program drums, play keyboard parts, load samples, record vocals and mix everything on a single screen.
This has opened the door for bedroom producers around the world. A young person with a laptop, headphones and patience can learn the same basic workflow professionals use. Many beginners start with free or low-cost software and a good pair of headphones before they ever buy a keyboard or studio speakers, and online tutorials make the learning curve easier than it has ever been.
Every producer works differently, but many beats are built in a similar order:
That last step matters more than beginners expect. A beat that is too busy can bury the message, and in hip hop the message is the point.
For an artist like Jonathan Anthony Burkett, the beat serves the message. He makes inspirational hip hop and soul, songs about change, perseverance and never giving up, released on his own label, Upstormed Records. His signature song, "One Life," recorded with reggae artist Ambelique, is a reminder that you only get one life, so make it count.
If you want to make beats, start with what you have and finish what you start. Your first ones may sound rough, and that is fine. Every producer you admire began as a beginner who kept going. Finish one beat a week and you will hear the difference in a few months.
Hear how beats and message come together on Jonathan's Music page, and read the stories behind the songs on the Upstormed Records blog.
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