Part 1 of 5 | Free for All Members I've been in the music business for over 25 years. During that time, my production partner and I have been fortunate enough to work with some incredible artists, including Big Pun, Nas, Raekwon, Prodigy of Mobb Deep, Jadakiss, Mýa, Max B, and many others. We've produced records that appeared on gold and platinum albums. We've worked with major labels, independent artists, and everyone in between. And like most producers who have been doing this for a while, we've accumulated a substantial music catalog. Today, we have more than 400 compositions registered with ASCAP. But recently, I started asking myself a question every producer with a catalog should be asking right now. Am I actually collecting all the royalties I'm entitled to? Not just the money showing up in my ASCAP statements. Not just the publishing royalties being deposited into my account. I'm talking about everything our music has generated over the past 25-plus years. And the more I started looking into it, the more I realized how much I needed to examine. ▶ HAVING YOUR MUSIC REGISTERED DOESN'T MEAN YOU'RE COLLECTING EVERYTHING For years, I operated under the assumption that having our compositions registered with ASCAP, working with a publishing administrator, and maintaining our catalog information meant we had the important pieces covered. And to be clear, we've collected royalties. Our music has generated publishing income for years. But collecting royalties and collecting everything you're entitled to are two very different things. A song can generate revenue through multiple channels, including public performance, mechanical reproductions, international usage, synchronization licensing, and certain uses of sound recordings. Those royalties don't necessarily flow through the same organizations. And depending on your agreements, ownership interests, and registrations, some revenue streams may require entirely separate collection arrangements. That's where things started getting interesting for me.

One thing that used to slow me down with sampling was getting from “I found a good sample” to actually having something I could play and build a beat around. So for the latest MPC Beginner Blueprint, I broke down the workflow I use from start to finish. I show how to take a sample, find its original BPM, use Warp so it stays locked to your project tempo, and then chop it two different ways: manually or using BPM-based chops. The BPM method is especially useful if you’re just getting into sampling. Once you understand the basic 1-2-3-4 count, the MPC can divide the sample rhythmically, which gives you a really easy starting point for creating new patterns. From there, I show how to convert the chops to pads, pitch or stretch them when needed, and actually play them into a new sequence. Then I throw some drums underneath it so you can hear how quickly a sample can turn into something completely different. The biggest thing I’ve learned is that sampling isn’t really about having some secret chopping technique. It’s about understanding timing, rhythm, and what parts of the original sample inspire you. If you’re learning the MPC and sampling has felt confusing, hopefully this helps take some of the mystery out of it. 🎥 MPC Beginner Blueprint Ep. 2 — How to Chop Samples on MPC 3 For the producers in here who sample: do you usually chop by ear, manually place your chops, or use BPM/region-style chopping first and adjust from there?

One of the easiest ways to become a better producer doesn’t require another plugin, piece of gear, or course. Learn how to listen differently. Pick a record you love and listen to it several times. But instead of listening to the whole song, focus on one thing at a time. 🥁 Listen #1 — Drums Where does the kick hit? What is the snare doing? When do the drums change or disappear? 🎸 Listen #2 — Bass Is it following the kick? Following the chords? How much space does it leave? 🎹 Listen #3 — Music What are the chords and melodies doing? How many musical elements are actually playing at once? 🎼 Listen #4 — Arrangement When do instruments enter and leave? How long are the sections? What changes when the hook comes in? 🎚️ Listen #5 — The Details Now listen for everything you normally don’t notice—drops, filters, panning, automation, transitions, ad-libs, reverb, little sounds tucked into the background. You’ll probably hear things on the fifth listen that you never noticed after hearing the record 100 times. That’s because there’s a difference between hearing music and studying music. Once you start listening for the decisions behind the record, your favorite songs become some of the best production lessons you can get. The records you already love can become your textbooks. Try it with one song this week. What record would you choose to dissect? 👇

One thing I’ve realized on this producer journey is that whenever I figure out a workflow or solve a problem that made my own process easier, there’s probably another producer out there trying to figure out the exact same thing. So instead of keeping it to myself, I’ve been trying to document more of what I learn and share it. This tutorial walks through how I turn a simple 4-bar loop into a full song on MPC 3 — building an 8-bar hook, creating different verse sections, adding an intro and outro, and then putting everything together in Song Mode. Hopefully it saves somebody else some of the trial and error I went through figuring it out. If you’re working with the MPC and you’ve been getting stuck making loops instead of full arrangements, check it out. And if you already have your own way of doing it, drop your method in the comments too. I’m always interested in seeing how other producers approach the same problem. https://youtu.be/W1jNSxHBFMo

Hi im Jerome, just getting back into music after many years in the wilderness....looking to meet friends and collaborate and have fun. Check me out on TikTok @rometraxx1.