Making the most of what you have

Boom bap is a style of production that came to define an era of hip hop during the 1990s. The term "boom bap" is an onomatopoeia that represents the sounds used for the bass drum and snare drum, respectively.

In a Redbull Music Academy article, Bronx-born Diamond D describes it as “raw, gritty and unpolished hip hop that normally features a DJ scratching.” He adds that the SP-1200, MPC-60 and Akai-900 were the technological tools of choice that got him “that 16-bit boom bap sound.”

In the article, KRS-One defines the genre as “a style of music where the drums are highly emphasized, even exaggerated and distorted. However, this style of music isn’t just about distorted drums—there’s an aggressive marching, driving, dramatic rhythm to the production itself.” He adds that boom bap stays loyal to hip hop’s original make-up because it nods to the days when DJs and emcees had little in the way of recording equipment and were forced to make music from other artists’ sonic scraps. “The vibe of boom bap is to use the least amount of instruments to create the most amount of rhythmic sound,” he says.

Consider this pack an ode to the good old days of keeping it simple and making the most of what you have. We hope it inspires you to get creative.