Album Filler: Yes or No?

[vitaminman]

Hey,

Our group is just about done with putting an album together, we have about 12 solid tracks ready to be mixed before laying them out and sending to the mastering house.

A question: we've noticed that all modern hip-hop albums have about 17 tracks: 12 or so are actual songs, the rest are filler/sketch/comedy things. For an album to have any credibility, should it have these sketches?



This would include:

The intro where the rapper threatens everyone, lists off all his friends and gang associates, tells the public where he's from, how hard it was growing up in jail, etc.

The phone sketch with the ho's.

Some social commentary on the state of violence and drugs in the hood, followed by another phone sketch where the rapper works out some drugs or arms deal with a mob boss.

A declaration of his love to his 8 children and current girlfriend...hopefully her husband doesn't find out!

The outro where he sends out more props to the producers and his crew, followed by advance warning of a new album in the works.



We would prefer to not throw in any of these things because, well, they're corny and we feel that they only highlight the lack of the label's creativity (EVERYBODY's doing them!).

As people who buy hip-hop albums, would you even consider buying an album with only 12 songs and no filler, or would you write it off as something poorly produced?

Thanks in advance,

Nick

 

[Guevara]

de la started this skit thing and today tis gettin outta hand, artist today are like, yeah we done wit the album we just gotta ad some skits....huh??? like their mandatory, i hate skits unless its some prodigy shit and he sits down and explains what the fuck he talkin bout, and i caount the fact that he actually said Na'mean 12 times in about 45 seconds....but no these skits aint necessary, look at the classic albums no skits (yeah some have had skits but they aint been OD) illmatic, or your whole album can be a skit, like sticky fingaz BLack Trash, which was a dope album but u gotta do it right...artist who can spit dont have to worry about skits

 

[Copenhagen]

There's no rule that you got to have skits. I think it depends on the songs...would it be good to have a skit between some of the songs...like a little break. Personally, I always think you got to have an intro...but otherwise...it's really a matter of choice.

 

[light]

I think if an album can sound complete without skits than all the better.

 

[changalang]

Originally posted by vitaminman



This would include:

The intro where the rapper threatens everyone, lists off all his friends and gang associates, tells the public where he's from, how hard it was growing up in jail, etc.

The phone sketch with the ho's.

Some social commentary on the state of violence and drugs in the hood, followed by another phone sketch where the rapper works out some drugs or arms deal with a mob boss.

A declaration of his love to his 8 children and current girlfriend...hopefully her husband doesn't find out!

hahahaha

 

[MadScientist]

Skits suck! There a waste of space on a CD... If your going to put time into a skit, put it into a song... The only way I see a need for a skit, is if it leads into a song and its like a intro...but if its there just to take up space...don't do it.

 

[bigdmakintrax]

Do not do a skit that is the dumbest thing.....I think the time has come and gone for skits........but do what you feel man....if you could think of a different way to do it....that would be hot....but the conventional way is played....put your songs down and show your work without the bullshit fillers.....

 

[MaximeRobin]

I'm surprised that nobady talk about instrumental skit, being that we all are producers here...

My take on this, an intro is needed but some some album are nice without one. Instrumental skits are nice but if needed (a break is needed between two songs or a change of pace is needed between two songs). Like madscientist said; [regular] skits suck. Even if it is funny or interesting the listener with definitly after some times. If there are not done right, they could prevent future listen of the whole album.

I would buy an album without skits, in fact I would probably prefer an album without skits (if it ain't a prince paul joint).

 

[MadScientist]

The only type of skit I would enjoy is not even a skit. It would be something like what DJ Quik does on all his albums....Quik's Groove...Instumental showing off your skills as a producer...just a nice beat to listen to...no vocals.....Keep it short thought don't give them too much...you want them to keep rewindin' that sh*t..

 

[vitaminman]

Hey,

I'm reading all the posts...please keep them coming.

Thanks

Nick

 

[Beatz 101]

i like skits..............sometimes

alotta skits nowadays i heard where wack and actually filler.

as long as they either funny or droppin knowledge, and it doesnt fuck with the flow of the album im all for it. I thinks skits give albums individuality sometimes.

the one thing i hate is when artist put skits before a song starts. So when u dont wanna listen to the skit you gotta fastforward n' shit. Thats one thing that pissed me off when Life After Death came out. I like the skits but they shoulda made them seperate tracks or put the skits after a song is finished.

to sum it up, i like good skits, especially if your album has a special concept. It makes an album seem like an event more than just a bunch of songs. Just dont over do it.

 

[K.C]

Redmans - Malpractice has some real funny skits, they were done well and fited into the album perfectly, it all on to the albums concept I reckon.

 

[old supreme]

skits ruin the replayability of an album. Def don't try to force extra tracks into the ablum if youhave 12 tight songs. If you need to throw in a few tracks to make the ablum flow better put in interlude type beats, 30 sec track showing off a DJs scratching, or maybe even a little rap acapella (that's a rerely done interesting idea).

when do you plan to release the album?

 

[highlite80]

skits are the reason i can't just let a cd play i have to keep hittin the forward button,i bought this ghetto ass album from some producer named LA wearing a shiney suit in the mall for 5 bucks i think the group was QVA it was like 11 tracks and i think 6 were skits.if you want a break in your album put your boy spittin accapella of freestylin go to an open mic contest and record your boys battlin but make sure they win

 

[otniel-one]

i have to agree with the majority on this one. skits are the tracks
that always get skipped no matter what. without those couple skits
hiney and the one where premo is b*tching about radio (plus nice girl..
which was a terrible beat imho) the new gang starr album would've been
better. but those instrumental skits like in pete rock's mecca and the
soul brother or gangstarr's hard to earn .. i love them.

oh and as far as tracks go,
illmatic has 11
enter the wu-tang has 12 or 13 (depending on the version)
nellyville has 19 tracks

actually, even though you can fit 80 minutes on a CD, most classic
albums are way shorter than that, not only because of the original
vinyl format, but because they have no filler material. and let's face
it, how many rappers can keep up the quality through almost one
and a half hours? the only long classic album i can name here is
pete rock & cl smooth - mecca and the soul brother. and that album
too would've been better off shorter .. not that i'm saying that any
of the tracks deserve to be left out but maybe put on a different album
and i'd listen through it as often as illmatic.

 

[inverse1]

^^word, sometimes a shorter album is better. especially if you took your best songs only for the album. any filler amterial and sktis you culd save for a "lost tapes" typea thing after you blow up

 

[vitaminman]

Hey,

I LIKE that idea!! Instead of screwing the public with one bad album, we could screw them with TWO...

Nick

 

[Freakwncy]

Listen to Freak.

To be honest w/ you... I and a lot of people, dont care...If it's your first LP or last LP.... If you're famous or unsigned... I dont care...the only thing i do listen to is the intro...and I think NaS always has the best...but again...even w/ the big dogs...5 mics/stars/whatever "classic" albums... I dont listen to the skits, especially after I've hear the album for the 10th time...and too. sometimes what you think is funny, other people will be like...huh....that's wack...plus I would preferr to hear 6-8 hot tracks from any artist... famous or unsigned....the 6-8 ok tracks and some ok skits and a weak intro....ie:"the ownerz"-GangStarr....the "hinee"skit just weaken the overall feel of the album...it's still a classic, but if they left it out, that would have been one less track for someone to say they really wasnt feelin it...

 

[God]

The reason many hip-hop albums have many tracks, and also more songs (some up to 20 songs on an album) are due to royalty rates.

Currently, in the United States, a recording company to whom which an artist is signed is entitled to only give the artist a royalty on 11 songs. If you look at many rock albums, they do follow this rule a lot.

However, in hip-hop, there are royalties to be paid out in sample royalties to third parties. Thus, the artist and management usually try to add more songs, so the artist gets a bigger royalty cut if there are more songs on the album, even though, the artist doesn't get as much money in publishing or writing royalty per song. If he does more songs (like 17), so he can bring in the same income that a rock band, who writes original unsampled songs, would in 11 songs. A special deal is usually struck with the label in these cases.

Skits usually are not given royalties, unless they fall somehow into the definition of "song," but that's pertinent to the individual contract.