@leviathan any chance of closing this to not further the crap? lol
@leviathan any chance of closing this to not further the crap? lol
So here's the thing - no one has called you a racist. Racial bias and overt racism aren't 100% the same thing. It's a hard topic to grapple with and is still being studied and evaluated in dozens of academic institutions, but even though they have similarities, they're not 100% the same thing. More people show racial bias than are actually racist and that's what Max is calling out while also admitting he still struggles with implicit biases that he has. I can say the same for myself.
No one is saying you're racist because you dislike the song. They're pointing out the racism in your justification. I don't know if you purposely used a racial stereotype to justify why you don't like the song but your defensiveness isn't a good look. One way to deal with it is: "oh wow, you're right, I never thought of it that way." The other is to do what you're doing.
I'll leave this here: https://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/coon/
But how am I being racially biased by pointing out that he's a lazy artist? Because black people as a whole have been called "lazy" by ignorant shitheads? Do you think I wouldn't say that about a white artist? I absolutely would. Hell, I'm pretty sure I've done that on Ye Olde Board several times. See, you guys jumped to a conclusion without thinking it through. Again, he's the one that brought race into the mix by implying that not liking the sample work is somehow biased simply because we admire Trent, a white guy. I pointed out the differences between Trent's work and the work done on this track, and all I got in return was, essentially, "Nope, you feel that way because you like a white guy." I'm not going to have this turned around on me for pointing that out, and I'm not going to hold my tongue on pointing out shoddy work just because of someone's race or because of what people I do not associate with or identify as being a part of have done in the past. If you don't like my use of the word "lazy" to describe something, that's on you (the collective you). I've already explained that it has nothing to do with his race and everything to do with the work, and instead of focusing on THAT, everyone has dogpiled on one word and made assumptions based on nothing. Finally, Max's struggles are his struggles. That doesn't mean he has to project them onto me.
Anyway, you guys have already made up your minds about me, so fuck it. It doesn't matter what I say now. I'm done with this conversation.
Last edited by BRoswell; 04-12-2019 at 10:45 AM.
Yeah just close this thread. Censorship is the way to go.
Y'all can also just stop posting and stoking each other's fires. Sheesh.
I think it's amazing how all this came about. Dude buys a beat anonymously from another kid in the Netherlands, thinking it sounded country. Sings a goofy thing about horses and releases it on YouTube with Red Dead Redemption footage. TikTok blows it up too, and for all the bellyaching about who gets credit and who gets paid, Lil Nas X got signed by Columbia Records (who hooked him up with Billy Ray Cyrus - amazing) You may remember Columbia Records as the company that put out albums such as Hesitation Marks and Welcome Oblivion. If you're worried about credit or payment, I think you can rest easy tonight knowing that Trent & Atticus show up as writers on all the streaming services, and that they all share a business partner.
I for one hope that Trent and Atticus show up in the video as the backing band.
I'm sure 16-year-old me would die inside at the prospect of Trent Reznor being in a video with Billy Ray Cyrus for a rap song, but it's also not 1996 and I don't live in a tiny central Pennsylvania town. Old Town Road is absurd magic.
Funny how we're fighting over a NIN song being sampled in a song most of us wouldn't care exists if it weren't for the NIN sample. I don't think I've seen anyone bring up "Gunshots by Computer" to defend the idea of NIN songs being sampled in rap songs... though some may argue that it doesn't count because it's "officially" a NIN remix by a less mainstream rapper whose then-current album was produced by TR (not to mention it still being a better song by far even if it wasn't an "official" NIN remix).
The only reason why the song is a number 1 hit has literally nothing to do with NIN. Contemporary hip hop fans seem to disagree with Billboard's definition of country, even though the mainstream seems to have a broad definition of "rock" these days (then again: so did some academics in 2008/09 due to 34 being Grammy-nominated for best rock instrumental, though it lost to a Frank Zappa TRIBUTE recording by his son). We are a vocal minority, and I'm pretty sure most of us are vocal on these things mainly on this forum.
Also, let's not underestimate the power of a certain country singer whose daughter is the only reason why he isn't being dismissed as just a one-hit wonder. Though I would be very surprised if Lil Nas X turns out to NOT be a one-hit wonder within the next few years.
Aside from this particular song being worse than the worst Ariana song? At least she has a nice voice. Go ahead and judge me!
This is a great find. It just popped up on my kid's Spotify playlist, of all places.
2 thoughts:
If this is the first time Ghosts has been sampled, I'm surprised it took so long.
And, given the iterative nature of hip hop, I'd be equally surprised if it's not the first of many.
1 Ghosts I
Giallo by Shitao (2008)
12 Ghosts II
Mr. Nice Guy by Foxx Bodii (2016)
13 Ghosts II
Snow by XXXTENTACION feat. Killstation (2016)
Thirteen Ghosts by Zenji (2016)
15 Ghosts II
Bioshock Halloween by Chatwithaninja (2007) [2007?!]
30 Ghosts IV
Saddam Hussein Told to Stand from Saddam Hussein's Trial (2006) [no clue what this is]
34 Ghosts IV
Old Town Road by Lil Nas X (2018)
35 Ghosts IV
A Familiar Taste by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (2010)
This reminds me of the time chiptune enthusiasts and “video game culture” people got mad when Wiz Kalifa sampled Chrono Trigger...
"30 Ghosts IV" samples:
- Saddam Hussein's Trial Verdict, on Nov. 5, 2006
30 Ghosts IV
This piece begins with a beat in 7/4 time, modified from Saddam Hussein's trial verdict.
It’s basically the sound of Saddam hitting the table from his trial video, along with some background noise of people talking in the room. Really interesting sample.
The fuck's a trap beat anyways?
Aesop Rock and Die Antwoord is about all I listen to as far as rap goes these days.
Unless I want to kick it old school then I'll throw The Cronic on, STILL one of the best rap records of all time.
It's hard to tell that hip hop is getting better when rappers like 6ix9ine and Lil Pump are making KANYE appear as a poetic genius. I think the rap thread needs to be revived to make it easier to locate the better rappers of recent years.
That being said: As embarrassing as it is to drag NIN into this scene, I have to give Lil Nas X some props for not taking himself too seriously. He seems to be aware that OTR is just a stupid novelty song he did for the fun of it, and is simply making the most of his 15 minutes of fame. Only time will tell what becomes of the album he's working on.
The second half of Run the Jewels III is my go to. I am usually not into hip hop but it’s amazing.
Saul Williams is hard to classify, but he’s definitely tangential at least to the genre and he is a complete genius.
Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly is great and inspired Bowie’s Blackstar in part, which in turn inspired Bad Witch musically.
I think it’s the same as it’s always been. A lot of the most popular most mainstream stuff is it our thing, but it doesn’t mean there isn’t really great music being made. Just have to hear about it.
So I guess the real question is, who actually wrote the beat to the song? That's who should be getting credit for the sample. That individual is clearly a fan if they sampled something obscure from a "Ghosts" record lol.
Any idea who wrote the beat for this guy?
I saw news of this story break on YouTube last week, but I didn't give it the time of day until I saw a couple more stories today. Checked this out for the first time today. Defiantly not a fan of it myself, but I hope Trent at least gets the recognition he deserves for the sample.
All I can keep thinking about is how many planets had to align for this to become #1. I don't mean that in a bad way at all, but when you think about all the steps in the process and the medium of it's release, it was the perform storm so to speak. I'm happy for all parties involved as this is pretty neat to see happen without the backing of a major label.
He's a guy who was looking for interesting things to sample.
https://www.billboard.com/articles/c...view-lil-nas-x
How did the beat for "Old Town Road" come together?
I had just mastered my melody game and I was trying to get more into sampling. I knew how to sample, but I wanted some crazy challenges. So I would go on YouTube trying to find really weird stuff to sample. I was searching for Beethoven or the classical stuff from hundreds of years ago. Music you normally wouldn't sample.
I found this Nine Inch Nails song ["34 Ghosts IV"] and I thought, "Damn. This shit is crazy." [Laughs]. Normally, when I sample something I chop it, filter it -- I turn it into something different. But this sample, I thought if I chopped this and filtered it, it's going to ruin it. I tried to keep as much of the originality of the sample, but I also wanted to have the trap vibe, so I sped it up. I didn't really have any country thoughts about it. It was just me trying to find a challenge for myself and randomly stumbling on a sample like, "Damn. I have to do something with this." The beat is more than a year old.
Popping in to say this post is stupid as all fuck. Guess my homeboy's ex, my mom, and myself gotta throw away our NIN ticket stubs in merch now since we apparently don't rock with NIN that much according to you. Also, excellent job of outing yourself by going the "y'all see racism in everything and like it's so bad/everyone sucks" route my guy. Haven't heard that one before
Also popping in to say this post is mad dusty and shows exuberant laziness. If you can keep up with Trent over the years, you can keep up with rap/music in general. Too many new dope artists out there like Jpegmafia, J.I.D., Denzel Curry, Lizzo, Little Simz, Injury Reserve, Clipping, City Morgue, etc. to listen to instead of reminiscing and being stuck in the past on some "good 'ol days" curmudgeon shit
Last edited by Deadwing Watershed; 04-19-2019 at 01:07 PM.