The top five hip-hop instrumentals of the 2010s
The sound of hip-hop is an ever-changing organism that continues to evolve. From the 1980s until now, the sonics and aesthetics of rap music have changed dramatically. However, with each generation, a new producer sets a trend and steers the creative direction for hip-hop, and the 2010s was no different.
The decade saw some of the production styles of the 2000s carried forward while others were dropped. Although some of the most prominent beatmakers, such as Kanye West and Swizz Beatz, continued to adapt and push the envelope with their productions, other renowned musicians from the 2000s, such as Jazze Pha and Just Blaze, fell back.
Different producers began to rise in the 2010s at various times. With the rise of A$AP Mob, Harlem-based beatmaker Araab Muzik became far more visible than he had been during the 2000s. Furthermore, as Tyler, The Creator and Odd Future rose on the West Coast, Flying Lotus.
Other musicians who took hold of rap music during the 2010s include acclaimed hitmakers such as The Alchemist, Hit-Boy, Boi-1da, Tay Keith and 88-Keys. Still, some emerged more successful than others concerning number-ones and hits. In fact, in the late 2010s, J White Did It became an extremely popular choice for MCs wanting a number-one.
With his piano and bass formula, he successfully produced tracks such as Cardi B’s ‘Money’ and Iggy Azalea’s ‘Sally Walker’ with excellent results. In fact, other producers, such as Tay Keith, have gone quite far with this formula.
Other producers, such as Cardo, also saw a massive surge in popularity during the 2010s, and every individual brought their own flavour to the table. Still, some beatmakers made hits that will last well beyond the 2010s. As such, we have compiled a list of the top five hip-hop beats made in the 2010s.
The five best rap instrumentals of the 2010s:
5. Cardi B – ‘Bodak Yellow’, Invasion Of Privacy, (2018)
Cardi B’s debut single was a blow-away track. ‘Bodak Yellow’ was indeed a phenomenon and was the dream debut single for any artist. Not only did it top the Billboard Hot 100, but it paved the way for a Grammy-award-winning project, Invasion Of Privacy. Still, the beat of ‘Bodak Yellow’ is fantastic for two reasons.
The beat was fantastically arranged with subtle build-ups, drops, and spaces, and Evan LaRay masterfully mixed the track. When heard in clubs, unlike other trap songs, all the elements of ‘Bodak Yellow’ cut through amazingly. Something that only an audio engineer would be able to appreciate. The instrumental, on its own, is unbelievable and it’s only upon deeper inspection that one can hear the hidden complexity of its arrangement.
4. Kendrick Lamar – ‘Swimming Pools (Drank)’, Good Kid m.A.A.d City, (2012)
Kendrick Lamar has always had a great ear for beats, and he rarely fails when it comes to selecting instrumentals. However, he completely knocked it out of the park with ‘Swimming Pools (Drank)’. The song, which appeared on his 2012 project Good Kid m.A.A.d City, was made by Canadian record producer T-Minus and was so good it was nominated for ‘Best Rap Performance’ at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.
The song was created during T-Minus’ first studio session with Lamar. In an interview with DJ Booth magazine, he recalled, “I played him a couple of tracks. ‘Swimming Pools’ was one of them, and he took it. He went back, and he came up with everything, the whole ‘Po’ up, drank’—all those ideas. They just asked me to do a switch-up, so I thought it would be dope to take it in another direction. A lot of people hardly ever hear that version because the single version is usually the one that’s out.”
3. Drake – ‘Pound Cake’, Nothing Was The Same, (2013)
OVO’s in-house producer and superstar Boi-1da produced this iconic track, and its straightforward production and smooth chords made it stand out in a crowded hip-hop market. Released as the fourth single of Nothing Was The Same, which earned Drixzy an accolade at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards for ‘Best Rap Album.’ The beat was built with a series of samples, including, ‘Don’t Say A Word’ by Ellie Goulding, ‘Jimmy Smith Rap’ by Jimmy Smith, as well as the Wu-Tang Clan’s legendary single ‘C.R.E.A.M.’
Opening up about how he made several minor tweaks to all of the samples he was presented with, Boi-1da explained to Vice magazine, “I stripped it down to just the sample and added some new drum programming and got Matthew to play some new chords. I was trying to go against the grain and get my own kind of bounce. I was thinking of something very simplistic for Drake to get some bars off, and I thought that was very much fitting.”
2. Future – ‘Mask Off’, Future, (2017)
The beat of ‘Mask Off’ is iconic and played a massive part in its commercial success. In some circumstances, the backing track makes a song a hit, and that is arguably the case for this 2017 single from Future. Produced by the renowned St Louis beatmaker Metro Boomin, the single is known for its iconic flute melody and was a song that dominated the clubs.
Few know that it was built around a sample. In fact, Future even once admitted to Genius it was given to radio before it had clearance. The song became a diamond-certified single and was undoubtedly one of the most popular hip-hop songs released in the 2010s.
1. Kanye West – ‘All Of The Lights’, MBDTF, (2010)
‘All Of The Lights’ wasn’t just a song. It was a moment. The track’s production, done primarily by Kanye West with some help from instrumentalist Jeff Bhasker, was groundbreaking when it was released. It saw an amalgamation of sounds seamlessly brought together in a masterpiece. While speaking on Vlad TV, Bhasker, who was with West in Hawaii for the studio session, unveiled that the beat’s skeleton was assembled relatively quickly, stating, “We did that in five minutes and had the basic aspect of it created.”
He continued, Then after that, it took many, many months and many, many versions of the drums and what’s supposed to happen. We had all ‘All Of The Lights’, and we knew it was a big record, but it wasn’t quite making sense, and then finally The-Dream put the melody on there and turned it into a real thing!”
‘All Of The Lights’ had an all-star line-up featuring the likes of Rihanna, Elton John, John Legend, Kid Cudi, Fergie and many others. Unsurprisingly, the song earned West a Grammy Award for ‘Best Rap Song’ and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.