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Big Pimpin Instrumental (How to make your own with Logic Pro)

Made with Logic Pro at 68 bpm Quick video on making a vocal-free instrumental from the original song. A little background: back when I was spinning vinyl (around 2002-2006), it was common to buy a single, and the single would come with an instrumental. Here's an example from my collection: Not as simple today, because those voice-free beats are hard (if not impossible) to find - as far as I know. Luckily, software like Logic Pro makes it easier to sift through a song, find the parts you like, then cut them out and loop them to make your own instrumental. In the case of Jay-Z's Big Pimpin, it's easy to just take the first few bars and call it a day. But for the purposes of a mix, remix or mashup, I wanted to find slightly quieter, flute-free bars that don't overwhelm the other tracks we're using. In this video, I found a couple pieces toward the tail end of the song and turned them into a 56 second mix with Day N Nite and What's Poppin.

dj mix/mashup: deuces in paris (Jay-Z, Kanye West, Chris Brown)

Made with Logic Pro at 70 bpm The process of putting this together was a good example of the old saying 'two's company, three's a crowd.' Tried to integrate a third song and it just wasn't working for me, so I spent more time cutting/reshuffling N****s in Paris. And in the process, I learned that Jay-Z is saying 'ball so hard muthaf****s wanna fine me,' not 'ball so hard muthaf****s wanna find me' like I always thought - not to mention my misinterpretation of the slowed-down version as 'this is how muthaf****s wanna find me.' Goes to show I'm a beat guy first, lyrics guy never. Here's the playlist we drew from

dj mix/mashup: STAY heartless (Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Rick Ross)

Made with Logic Pro at 85 bpm STAY - The Kid Laroi, Justin Bieber Guess Who's Back - Scarface, Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel Heartless - Kanye West Aston Martin Music - Rick Ross, Chrisette Michelle I Like Dat - T-Pain, Kehlani In terms of matching tones note-for-note with multiple songs, this is one of my better efforts. The drum-less intro to STAY is the constant, and we stacked / subtracted layers as we went along. The hardest part of making these mashups / mini-mixes is having a lot of ideas, trying them out in the software, and ultimately realizing the best thing to do is keep it simple. Maybe we can build this into something bigger in the future. Key- and bpm-compatible playlist: 85 to 90 bpm

DJ mix/mashup: Higher Down in the DM (Yo Gotti, Drake, Baauer & Just Blaze ft. Jay-Z, Jack Harlow)

Made with Logic Pro at 77 bpm As I start to do more of these, the more I understand the acronym that my third grade teacher used to say on a regular basis: K.I.S.S. Keep it simple, stupid. In this case, don't stack 4 or 5 different tracks on top of each other. These songs are individual creations, not components in whatever a dummy like me is trying to put together. Basslines can clash unintentionally, loud on top of loud can create distortion, etc. Takes some more thought than I expected. Different from mixes where you're holding a beatmatch for maybe 30 seconds at most during a transition from one song into the next. Anyway, this one came out alright once we simplified things. Second half is Baauer's Higher mixed with the drum-less intro to Drake's Headlines, then blended over the drum-less intro to Jack Harlow's Nail Tech, and finally we bring in the end of Nail Tech. Interesting note on the ending to Nail Tech - sounds a bit like Kanye's Flashing Ligh...

dj mix/mashup: novacane in the wild

I always wondered how Novacane and No Church in the Wild would sound together. Finally got around to trying, and this video is the result - simply stacked the two intros together and made a loop. Any Frank Ocean fans out there should dig in and flesh it out a bit. Excellent potential for a full-on mashup. Links: Made with Logic Pro at 93 bpm From from episode #73 of the sterling mercury show Follow the key- and bpm-compatible playlist on djcheatsheet.com

DJ Mix: #73 ft. Rihanna, Frank Ocean and Toni Braxton

Made with Logic Pro at 91 bpm 18:29 of r&b, pop and hiphop music Check out some more mixes here . Playlists used: 85 to 90 bpm , 90 to 95 bpm Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. So Sick - Ne-Yo 2. Long As I Live - Toni Braxton (1:43) 3. I'm So Paid - Akon ft. Lil Wayne and Young Jeezy (4:44) 4. Kiss It Better - Rihanna (6:41) 5. No Church in the Wild - Jay-Z & Kanye West ft. Frank Ocean & The-Dream (8:58) 6. Novacane - Frank Ocean (10:54) 7. Drive Slow - Kanye West ft. Paul Wall & GLC (12:36) 8. Anniversary - Tony! Toni! Toné! (16:10)

mix 66 (ft. Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow's INDUSTRY BABY)

Made with Logic Pro X at 74 bpm 22:14 of pop music, hiphop and r&b Check out some more mixes here . Playlist is here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. INDUSTRY BABY - Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow 2. Right Above It - Lil Wayne & Drake (3:21) 3. Ride - twenty one pilots (5:56) 4. I Knew You Were Trouble - Taylor Swift (7:50) 5. U Don't Know - Jay-Z (10:16) 6. Long Time - Ty Dolla $ign ft. Quavo (13:08) 7. Track 6 - Ty Dolla $ign ft. Kanye West, Anderson .Paak & Thundercat (15:55) 8. GO - The Kid LAROI & Juice WRLD (17:02) 9. Always Forever - Bryson Tiller (19:37)

DJ mix/mashup: Aston Martin Music x Guess Who's Back

Download links: Made with Logic Pro X at 87.5 bpm Aston Martin Music - Rick Ross ft. Drake, Chrisette Michele Guess Who's Back - Scarface ft. Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel Follow the playlist on djcheatsheet.com

dj mix: #65 ft. The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber's Stay (plus Yonaguni)

Made with Logic Pro X at 87.5 bpm 30:00 of pop and hiphop music Check out some more mixes here . Playlist is here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. Heartless - Kanye West 2. Chandelier - Sia (3:07) 3. Miss Independent - Ne-Yo (6:13) 4. Yonaguni - Bad Bunny (7:41) 5. Do Ya Thang - Rihanna (10:02) 6. Umbrella - Rihanna ft. Jay-Z (12:48) 7. Aston Martin Music - Rick Ross ft. Drake, Chrisette Michele (15:11) 8. Guess Who's Back - Scarface ft. Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel (19:01) 9. Stay - The Kid LAROI ft. Justin Bieber (22:29) 10. I Like Dat - T-Pain & Kehlani (24:30) 11. Paris Morton Music - Drake (25:47) 12. Hell of a Life - Kanye West (28:59)

The DJ Cheat Sheet #17: Peaches, As I Am, plus Jay-Z, The Weeknd & Calvin Harris

New additions to our key- & bpm-compatible playlists for the week of March 26, 2021 djcheatsheet.com twitter.com/djcheatsheet Song downloads (amazon links): Peaches - Justin Bieber As I Am - Justin Bieber, Khalid JETSKI - Internet Money, Lil Tecca, Lil Mosey I Know - Jay-Z Attention - The Weeknd By Your Side - Sade Hard To Love - Calvin Harris, Jessie Reyez theme music: mellow drama - sterling mercury

dj mix: #55 (ft. Jack Harlow, Kendrick Lamar & Drake)

Made with Logic Pro X at 71 bpm 30:33 of hiphop & pop Check out some more mixes here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. WHATS POPPIN - Jack Harlow 2. Money Trees - Kendrick Lamar ft. Jay Rock (1:55) 3. Day 'n' Nite - Kid Cudi (3:43) 4. Where Are Ü Now - Skrillex & Diplo ft. Justin Bieber (5:56) 5. The Show Goes On - Lupe Fiasco (6:24) 6. Spotlight - Marshmello & Lil Peep (10:08) 7. X - Chris Brown (12:17) 8. Black Beatles - Rae Sremmurd ft. Gucci Mane (14:05) 9. Can't Hold Us - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Ray Dalton (17:00) 10. Big Pimpin' - JAY-Z ft. UGK (18:48) 11. I'm Upset - Drake (22:38) 12. OTW - Khalid, 6LACK & Ty Dolla $ign (25:34) 13. Here and Now - Luther Vandross (29:31)

APESHIT - THE CARTERS

tempo: 80 bpm bpm range: 75 bpm  to  80 bpm ,  80 bpm  to  85 bpm the dj's take:  Song #4 in detour 44  (8:32): The beat sounds like Black Beatles on molly. A solid party track designed to make a crowd go apeshit. Do not blast this in the car though, unless you feel like getting a speeding ticket. Most importantly, easy to mix; nice minimal intro, and then gets right down to business. Slow down a couple bpm's and this could sound cool with I'm Upset - Drake . Some other key-compatible tracks from 80 to 85 bpm: Truth Hurts - Lizzo Nobody Speak - DJ Shadow ft. Run the Jewels Through the Wire - Kanye West I'm Upset - Drake Paranoid - Post Malone End Game - Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Future Get It Right - Diplo, MØ Dance (A$$) Remix - Big Sean ft. Nicki Minaj The Story of OJ - Jay-Z Thunder - Imagine Dragons Big Poppa - Notorious BIG Just A Friend - Biz Markie M.I.L.F. $ - Fergie Hold Up - Beyoncé Stressed Out - twenty ...

Ni**as in Paris - Jay- Z & Kanye West

tempo: 70 bpm bpm range: 65 bpm to 70 bpm , 70 bpm to 75 bpm The DJ's Take: Leadoff song in Episode 41 : Feel like I've heard this more than once in an NBA arena as a point guard sets up the offense in the half court. One of the great hiphop hype tracks in recent memory, and a good litmus test for a set. Because if your crowd can't get down to this, you maybe facing an uphill battle. Try mixing with: Deuces - Chris Brown Curve - Gucci Mane ft. The Weeknd Drunk In Love - Beyoncé Grammys - Drake, Future Watch Me (Whip / Nae Nae) - Silento iSay - Wiz Khalifa ft. Juicy J Light Years - Yellow Claw Malibu - Miley Cyrus Download or stream Ni**as in Paris: Spotify playlist iTunes Amazon

dj mix: Episode 41 (ft. Wiz Khalifa, Major Lazer & New Edition)

Made with Logic Pro X at 72 bpm 21.68333 minutes of EDM, pop & dance Check out some more mixes here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. Ni**as in Paris - JAY-Z & Kanye West 2. Drunk in Love - Beyoncé ft. Jay-Z (2:17) 3. Deuces - Chris Brown (2:58) 4. Watch Me (Whip / Nae Nae) - Silentó (4:45) 5. Let Me Live - Rudimental & Major Lazer (6:18) 6. Stars - Marshmello (8:32) 7. iSay - Wiz Khalifa ft. Juicy J (9:25) 8. Elevated - Wiz Khalifa (12:31) 9. Grammys - Drake ft. Future (15:25) 10. Can You Stand the Rain - New Edition (16:45)

dj mix: Volume 35: Back to School (ft. Kanye West, Beyoncé & Childish Gambino)

Made with Logic Pro X at 85 bpm 20.46667 minutes of rap, pop & r&b Check out some more mixes here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. School Spirit - Kanye West 2. Good Morning - Kanye West (2:09) 3. Clique - Kanye West, Jay-Z, Big Sean (4:58) 4. Freedom - Beyoncé ft. Kendrick Lamar (8:56) 5. Black and Yellow - Wiz Khalifa (11:39) 6. Feels Like Summer - Childish Gambino (14:18) 7. Dilemma - Nelly ft. Kelly Rowland (17:21)

dj mix: Triple X (ft. Drake, Kendrick Lamar & The Notorious B.I.G.)

Made with Logic Pro X at 98 bpm 39.18333 minutes of pop & rap Check out some more mixes here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. The London - Young Thug ft. J. Cole & Travis Scott 2. Feel No Ways - Drake (2:36) 3. Company - Justin Bieber (5:24) 4. Show Me - Kid Ink ft. Chris Brown (7:32) 5. Don't Wanna Know - Maroon 5 ft. Kendrick Lamar (9:59) 6. Hey Mama - Kanye West (13:22) 7. IDGAF - Dua Lipa (17:15) 8. You and Your Friends - Wiz Khalifa ft. Snoop Dogg & Ty Dolla $ign (19:47) 9. Regulate - Warren G ft. Nate Dogg (22:43) 10. Hypnotize - The Notorious B.I.G. (26:28) 11. I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me) - JAY-Z (29:20) 12. Grindin' - Clipse (32:53) 13. ELEMENT. - Kendrick Lamar (36:08)

Public Service Announcement - Jay-Z

tempo: 89 bpm bpm range: 85  to  90 bpm the dj's take: The leadoff song in our XXV mix: Sometimes you want to beatmatch for 20 seconds, and sometimes it's smoother to drop it on the one . The transition into Con Calma (start listening at around 2:25) is a good example of the latter. Definitely worth a spin as an underrated hype track on a hiphop night. Try mixing with: Try Me - The Weeknd Thrift Shop - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis River - Eminem, Ed Sheeran Bella y Sensual - Romeo Santos, Daddy Yankee, Nicky Jam In My Bed (So So Def Remix) - Dru Hill Gold Digger - Kanye West ft. Jamie Foxx Work - Rihanna ft. Drake No Scrubs - TLC Escápate Conmigo - Wisin ft. Ozuna Faith - George Michael Don't You Need Somebody - RedOne Lean Back - Terror Squad, Fat Joe & Remy Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home) [feat. Plies] - Usher Winner - Jamie Foxx Try Again - Aaliyah download or stream Public Service Announcement: amazon itunes

dj mix: XXV (ft. Daddy Yankee, Rihanna & TLC)

Made with Logic Pro X at 93 bpm 23.5 minutes of pop, hiphop & r&b Want to check out some more mixes? Click here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. Public Service Announcement - Jay-Z 2. Con Calma - Daddy Yankee & Snow (2:31) 3. Work - Rihanna ft. Drake (5:22) 4. No Scrubs - TLC (8:32) 5. Thrift Shop - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Wanz (10:05) 6. Outta Control (Remix) - 50 Cent ft. Mobb Deep (13:05) 7. Gold Digger - Kanye West ft. Jamie Foxx (16:35) 8. Nite and Day - Al B. Sure! (19:33)

dj mix: Entry 23 (ft. Travis Scott, Drake & Ariana Grande)

Made with Logic Pro X at 78 bpm 22.25 minutes of rap and pop Want to check out some more mixes? Click here . Tracklist (start times in parentheses): 1. SICKO MODE - Travis Scott ft. Drake 2. Headlines - Drake (2:32) 3. Collard Greens - SchoolBoy Q ft. Kendrick Lamar (4:46) 4. Higher - Just Blaze & Baauer ft. JAY Z (7:38) 5. Side To Side - Ariana Grande ft. Nicki Minaj (8:15) 6. Spaceships - AREA21 (10:18) 7. Nonstop - Drake (12:10) 8. Down in the DM - Yo Gotti (13:42) 9. Halo - Beyoncé (15:51) 10. No Sleep - Wiz Khalifa (19:07)

Diamonds from Sierra Leone (Remix) - Kanye West ft. Jay-Z

tempo: 97 bpm bpm range: 95 to 100 bpm the dj's take: Song #2 in our Exhibit 18 mix (2:42): Reading about conflict diamonds makes me wonder whether we give ourselves too much credit as a species. Especially considering our weakness for shiny objects . My solution - buy more cubic zirconia . As for the track, it's an underrated banger. Worth a spin on a throwback hiphop night. Some other key-compatible singles: Lemon - N.E.R.D & Rihanna Versace On The Floor - Bruno Mars vs David Guetta Same Old Love - Selena Gomez Nuthin' But A G Thang - Dr. Dre ft. Snoop Dogg Style - Taylor Swift LUV - Tory Lanez Hide Away - Daya 679 - Fetty Wap Check The Rhime - A Tribe Called Quest download or stream Diamonds from Sierra Leone: amazon spotify playlist