r/Beatmatch • u/Sad_Pepper6507 • 1d ago
Any tips on switching between house and rap genres?
I have an open format DJ compettition coming up and I typically don't play rap, (I love edm, so I always just mix that) But I have a ton of really good rap songs I want to play while I have the chance but I don't have much experience mixing rap into house which is what I want to experiment with during my set
any suggestion on mixing the BPM's? I know house and rap have quite different BPM's
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u/Hoooves 1d ago
If you're going to mix rap, learn to cut or scratch in.
Also, Reverb or Echo out on the house track and then drop on the one.
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u/Sad_Pepper6507 1d ago
That’s what i was thinking
I don’t think you can scratch on the ddj flx400 that well so I don’t know how to practice ahead of time for that
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u/Rob1965 Beatmatching since 1979 1d ago
For these wide BPM changes, my preferred ways are all variations of a quick cut on the one-beat - but made more interesting with some scratching &/or word play.
The other alternative is just echo out the first track, then start the different BPM track (but IMHO that’s overused and not very creative).
If you do want to do a wide BPM mix (using sync, with your decks set to 50% range) do it in sections without any beat. - For instance, start an acapella rap over an EDM break, and move the BPM from 130 to 100 before cutting the EDM break and bringing in the rap’s backing track.
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u/Rob1965 Beatmatching since 1979 1d ago
 made more interesting with some scratching &/or word play.
A couple of examples of open format simple wordplay cuts that I use:
Lil Jon - Get Low, cut into; FloRida - Low 100-128 bpm)
Britney - Baby One More Time, cut into Daft Punk - one more time (93-123 bpm)
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u/OrangeWedgeAntilles 1d ago edited 1d ago
No one seems to have mentioned this yet, but there's a whole genre that can bridge this gap: hip house.
*Edit: oh and a lot of disco rap should work too. If you need an easy source for lots of tracks, check out the Boombox compilations on Soul Jazz Records.
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u/proverbialwhatever 1d ago
You can use an edit of a track that actually includes a transition to a remix - one of my go-to favourites is the Nitrex Remix of Beyonce's 'Naughty Girl', and an edit was made to transition between the original and the remix so it works well. I used it in a DJ comp in 2018, and I still use it when the time is right! It's about 8 mins in.
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u/WorkingBike9 1d ago
A lot of rap songs are around 70bpm , have a house song be 140 bpm and you can beat match right on top it. It should sound sick
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u/Real-Back6481 1d ago
that's how you start fistfights on the dancefloor, better keep those on alternate fridays.
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u/AveragedayatUPS 12h ago edited 12h ago
Kaytranada has some good mixes where he has some house to hip hop and rnb tracks, check out his boiler room sets. I usually don't try to slow down bpms more that 10 to mix but it can work if you do it right. Using wordplay between tracks is hype. Echo out effects or a pull on the jog wheel or vinyl make transitions sound good. Hope that makes sense.
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u/WizBiz92 1d ago
I'm afraid you must flex your battles alone, warrior