Help Mixing RnB Music

Gerbud

Hi,

Could anyone help me with some tips for mixing RnB tracks. Where do I start & what is the best way to practice etc etc?

Thanks in advance.

jonny68

I think your on the wrong forum mate this is for dance music.;)

Gerbud

jonny68 wrote: »

I think your on the wrong forum mate this is for dance music.;)

Sh*t!

Sorry

djdeclan

jonny68 wrote: »

I think your on the wrong forum mate this is for dance music.;)

I think you should learn to read...
The forum is Dance & Electronic & DJing

Thus any questions relating to DJing should be posted here.

Mixing hip hop and RnB music requires a different skillset to mixing dance music, theres a lot more cutting, scratching etc involved as you dont have the same long intros to work with, beat matching isn't as important but you can still beat mix the tracks..
My advice is to pick tracks with strong basslines and keep practising, if you are using mp3s then get a program to tell you what the bpms are so you know what tracks are in the same range beat wise. And practise loads!!

jonny68

djdeclan wrote: »

I think you should learn to read...
The forum is Dance & Electronic & DJing

Thus any questions relating to DJing should be posted here.

Mixing hip hop and RnB music requires a different skillset to mixing dance music, theres a lot more cutting, scratching etc involved as you dont have the same long intros to work with, beat matching isn't as important but you can still beat mix the tracks..
My advice is to pick tracks with strong basslines and keep practising, if you are using mp3s then get a program to tell you what the bpms are so you know what tracks are in the same range beat wise. And practise loads!!

eh i think you'll find the vast majority on here have litle or no interest in music like R & B therefore i recommended this poster post his question elsewhere and they agreed with me

djdeclan

To be fair he didn't agree with you so much as apologise for having done something wrong (even though he wasn't wrong at all).
I think this forum needs to be a wee bit more open to other styles of music otherwise it should be split into a dance and electronic forum and a DJing forum.

sweetie

djdeclan wrote: »

To be fair he didn't agree with you so much as apologise for having done something wrong (even though he wasn't wrong at all).
I think this forum needs to be a wee bit more open to other styles of music otherwise it should be split into a dance and electronic forum and a DJing forum.

I agree with this. As a non-dance/mobile/wedding dj I use this forum to learn about new technology, other djs and developments and find it useful at times but there is a bias towards people who don't do the dance thing. Perhaps there should be a forum split like Declan has said.

jonny68

Leave that up to the administrators, personally i think it should just be about dance music and dj;ing/production techniques that are relevant to dance music, maybe create a sub forum for other styles?

KevIRL

Personally I dont think a sub forum is needed. This forum serves the Dance/Electronic AND DJing pretty well. We even get wedding DJ's asking questions from time to time.

I would recommend that if someone is asking for DJing/production tips for a genre of music that you dont like, then dont comment in the thread. Let someone who is into that reply. Then at least other users wont feel marginalised.

However if people do strongly feel a sub-forum is needed, the forums forum (for requesting new forums) is here

djdeclan

I'm with KevIRL on this, if you have a relevant comment then post, if you don't - don't!

With that in mind; what kind of gear are you using OP? you'll find it a lot easier if you are using (for example) a set of Pioneer CDJs rather than a 19" rack mounted system..

Gerbud

djdeclan wrote: »

I'm with KevIRL on this, if you have a relevant comment then post, if you don't - don't!

With that in mind; what kind of gear are you using OP? you'll find it a lot easier if you are using (for example) a set of Pioneer CDJs rather than a 19" rack mounted system..

Thanks for the feedback guys. My fist thoughts from looking at this thread was that I was posting correctly but with being a newbie & all you can never be too sure

I'm using Virtual DJ hooked into a 19" Numark CM200USB

djdeclan

what are you using to control the virtual DJ? If its just a keyboard/mouse then i'm predicting a lot of trouble!

electrofilth

jonny68 wrote: »

eh i think you'll find the vast majority on here have litle or no interest in music like R & B therefore i recommended this poster post his question elsewhere and they agreed with me

well i mix dubstep (and techno) and "the vast majority on here" have little or no interest in that, yet we still have common ground as djs. dubstep is mixed in a very different way from house, yet i still feel there are things all djs can comment on.

as was said above, i believe that if you dont like the style of music then leave it alone, whats the point of putting someone down?

no-one even gave gerbud the smallest tips on starting out djing, which apply to most styles of music.

heres one tip i wish i tried sooner when i started out.....

find out the bpm of all the tunes you mix,(get a free bpm counter, google them)
and then you will have more of an idea which tunes to combine....try to stick within 6% or so of a bmp change, some tunes when sped up or slowed down too much, they just dont sound so good,especially if the crowd knows them already....
finding out the bpm is time consuming but there are great rewards.you can group your tunes from slowest to fastest bpm and then get more of an idea how to build up a set tempo wise, or which tunes are more "lively" or which slower ones to play when the crowd needs a break. good luck !!

jonny68

electrofilth wrote: »

well i mix dubstep (and techno) and "the vast majority on here" have little or no interest in that, yet we still have common ground as djs. dubstep is mixed in a very different way from house, yet i still feel there are things all djs can comment on.

as was said above, i believe that if you dont like the style of music then leave it alone, whats the point of putting someone down?

no-one even gave gerbud the smallest tips on starting out djing, which apply to most styles of music.

heres one tip i wish i tried sooner when i started out.....

find out the bpm of all the tunes you mix,(get a free bpm counter, google them)
and then you will have more of an idea which tunes to combine....try to stick within 6% or so of a bmp change, some tunes when sped up or slowed down too much, they just dont sound so good,especially if the crowd knows them already....
finding out the bpm is time consuming but there are great rewards.you can group your tunes from slowest to fastest bpm and then get more of an idea how to build up a set tempo wise, or which tunes are more "lively" or which slower ones to play when the crowd needs a break. good luck !!

I like Techno especially European Techno, as for Dubstep, some of it is really good whereas some of it is downright awful, it's a genre of music that i cannot make my mind up over, the more recent stuff ive heard is awful but some i heard at Life Festival was really good,although im not going to pretend i know a great deal about that scene.

electrofilth

jonny68 wrote: »

I like Techno especially European Techno, as for Dubstep, some of it is really good whereas some of it is downright awful, it's a genre of music that i cannot make my mind up over, the more recent stuff ive heard is awful but some i heard at Life Festival was really good,although im not going to pretend i know a great deal about that scene.

whats european techno?

saw skream and mala on the sunday at life festival, i was on the tail end of three day bender, didnt stop dancing for the whole three (four?) hours, couldnt understand why more people were not freaking out, the tunes went through me. that kind of music makes me insane when I am on one

francois

KevIRL wrote: »

Personally I dont think a sub forum is needed. This forum serves the Dance/Electronic AND DJing pretty well. We even get wedding DJ's asking questions from time to time.

I would recommend that if someone is asking for DJing/production tips for a genre of music that you dont like, then dont comment in the thread. Let someone who is into that reply. Then at least other users wont feel marginalised.

However if people do strongly feel a sub-forum is needed, the forums forum (for requesting new forums) is here

Maybe a sub-forum for newbie DJ's could be handy, like how to use dex or traktor etc, as a few questions get repeated, such as "how to get a gig" and maybe someone can put up a FAQ

Scubadevils

Definitely no need to create sub-forums for other DJ music styles, DJing is DJing imo.

I like dubstep I must say... I have yet to hear it out but I really enjoy listening to it at home / in the car.

Agree with Francois that there should be something for newbie questions... maybe a sticky? They are certainly very frequent and it would be good to have one place where the questions are answered.

KevIRL

Felixdhc wrote: »

Definitely no need to create sub-forums for other DJ music styles, DJing is DJing imo.

I like dubstep I must say... I have yet to hear it out but I really enjoy listening to it at home / in the car.

Agree with Francois that there should be something for newbie questions... maybe a sticky? They are certainly very frequent and it would be good to have one place where the questions are answered.

Im with you on the subforums Felix.

Good call on the sticky though. Thats done

Scubadevils

KevIRL wrote: »

Im with you on the subforums Felix.

Good call on the sticky though. Thats done

Good stuff, will be a busy thread I reckon!

Gerbud

djdeclan wrote: »

what are you using to control the virtual DJ? If its just a keyboard/mouse then i'm predicting a lot of trouble!

I'm working directly from laptop but I'm adjusting volume, bass, treble etc with my Numark mixer. I use my laptop controls to adjust pitch & select song on VDJ.

I'm thinking of investing in a controller - good idea?

Thanks

penexpers

Gerbud wrote: »

I'm thinking of investing in a controller - good idea?

It's pretty essential, in my opinion.

senan s

electrofilth wrote: »

whats european techno?

saw skream and mala on the sunday at life festival, i was on the tail end of three day bender, didnt stop dancing for the whole three (four?) hours, couldnt understand why more people were not freaking out, the tunes went through me. that kind of music makes me insane when I am on one

i prefere english techno, as everything in the mainland is better:D