When does it become copying?

[Fade]

We all get inspired by various music and styles, and it's great to use other people's music as inspiration for our own, but when does it become copying?

For example, a friend of mine back in the day was an MC but then he got all into DMX's style, which then slowly creeped its way into his style. He ended up having the same sort of flow as DMX.

When it comes to music production, do you listen to other peoples' beats to get inspired? And if so, does it influence your style? Or do you just use their music for ideas?

The reason why I'm asking is because if everyone just did their own style without copying, maybe the music today wouldn't suck so much, no?

 

[wrightboy]

i think that no one has their own style today, which is why it is the way it is. better yet, being creative isn't profitable. today's music is all about how much money you can make, instead of people doing it for the love. so if i see that mike will made it, made this much money, then i have no other choice but to make beats that sound like his.

 

[Fade]

That's a good point. It seems that people don't care about hard work and originality, it's just about money, period.

 

[pancakebunnny]

I aspire to emulate the divine source of inspiration of the artists I look up to, not emulate the artists themselves.

In other words, make romance to the muses, don't just rape it.

I kinda like how homie said it

"...In the circle of hands, A dagger that was sacred/
Placed into my hands over a virgin laying naked/
When we learn how to harvest what we need it we will take it/
Hip Hop should be on a table with a rape kit..."

 

[Johan Brodd]

Let's face it. We have 12 semitones per scale, and that system has been overused the last milenia or so, which means that pretty much all melodies has been used, reused, overused at least 10000 times. So pretty much everything is copying. FFS even hearing a tune could be classed as copying since you're listen to it on the radio, and you snap it up with your ears.