If I can be real for a minute, I’ve never been a fan of rap. Don’t get me wrong, hip hop makes me vibrate and it’s a huge part of my life, but I’m not the guy that will dissect and interpret the meaning of Wu-Tang lyrics until the early morning. To me hip hop is all about production, and the vocals are only one part of the beat. That’s probably why I like instrumental hip hop so much. That’s also probably why I’ve taken to listening to type beat channels on YouTube. These beats that are meant to be bought by young rappers are actually a great source of uncomplicated instrumental music made by some brilliant - albeit often anonymous - creative minds. Here are a few producers I’ve been following recently.

1. Team Ross

Based in Montreal, the Canadian producer explores different genres of modern trap and hip hop. He recently released a lot of beats focused on sunny and melodic dancehall, afrobeat and amapiano vibes, with some chill R&B spliced up in there. Beats that artists like Omah Lay, Rema, CKay, and - of course - Drake wouldn’t sneeze at.

Check it out if you like your emotional beats to have that underlying party rhythm that makes them instant classic.

Check out Team Ross’ profile to learn more.

2. c m b

c m b caters to a different niche with his beats that often include live rock instrumentation. These are perfect for fans of R&B and bedroom pop, but you should also check them out if you’re a rapper, who knows, maybe you’ll come up with a new style?

3. klimonglue

This young Russian producer popped up in my YouTube recos a couple months ago. klimonglue’s hard trap beats have an effortlessness that is simply contagious. And that hard-hitting bounce, my god, that bounce.

4. kofi bæ

Vibey, retro, psychedelic… kofi bæ’s beat are deliciously old school. His pop and R&B influences throwback to the most chilled-out hits of the 80s. If you want to launch your career as a bedroom pop artist / industry plant, all you need is one of those beats, generic lyrics about polaroid pictures, and that microphone that comes attached to your iPhone earbuds.

And they said I was jaded. Please, don’t make me laugh! Ahhh… maybe they have a point.

Those beats are good, though!

5. Lethal Needle

Lethal Needle is inspired by hip hop from the turn of the millennia. He’s been on a MF DOOM kick lately, it’s worth a listen. I’d argue it’s time to bring those vibes back, you know. Let’s think outside the box for a minute, shall we? Kids these days, with their ratchety hi-hats and their 808 slides… Smdh is what I say.

All jokes aside, MF DOOM vibes could easily pass as Tyler, The Creator type stuff. Just sayin’. You didn’t hear it from me.

6. pilotkid

pilotkid cultivates an old school sound with a modern hip hop edge. It’s probably just a matter of time before he starts working with some of the hottest rappers out there. I love his groovy, boom-bapy type stuff. Get on it!

7. Oui lele

Hailing from Norway, Oui lele is fluent in many genres, from modern trap to left-field pop. This is just really good music, folks, I don’t know what else to say. Look, sometimes it’s hard to write about music, but it’s not hard to listen to it, so just listen to it already.

8. Stoic Beats

Stoic Beats thinks outside the box with beats inspired by artists ranging from James Blake to Sade. More often than not, I wish this guy would just release his music as is on Spotify already. Groundbreaking for sure.

9. PKBEATZ

Most PK BEATZ tracks could fit nicely on your “lo-fi beats to study to” playlists. If you want to get in your feels, this is your guy.

If you produce trap type beats and your looking for some fresh synths, check out my post about The Best VST Synths for Trap

Photo Credit : PreSonus Blog