I consider myself an old school, hip-hop guru.  I was born in the early 70’s and I was “open” when hip-hop came on the scene;  Grandmaster Flash and the Furious 5, Africa Bambata, KRS1, Big Daddy Kane, etc.  Truly I can go on and on.  I knew rap/hip-hop sampled music from the past. I did not know how much it was.

The past two weeks “got me to thinking.”  Were these hip-hop artists sampling, stealing and/or paying homage to the artists of the pasts?  Hip-hop artists have sampled from all genres: jazz, Motown, soul, r&b, funk, country and more.  Again the question arises.  Were these artists sampling or stealing?  I believe the answer could be “all of the above”.

Some artists sample.  They pay homage to past and sometimes present artists.  The artist’s music being sampled is referenced.  This is a form of homage, acknowledging the great efforts and genius of other artists’ talents.

Some artists do not make such references to sampled music.  This is obvious stealing.  Some hip-hop (and other) artists sometimes seem to “forget” where they borrowed their music from.  Music companies have had to hire professionals who were trained in and know a variety of music in order to lessen this robbery.  Homage is one thing, stealing is another.

-- David Severin