How the Despacito producers use online sample stores to create hits

In this episode of The Future of Music presented by Aloft Hotels, we visit the studio of top latin pop producers Mauricio Rengifo and Andrés Torres, most famous for their hit Despacito, to see how they make and use samples to create music. Sampling has influenced every genre of music from hip hop to dance, and it’s become a global industry where producers can buy and sell recorded sounds in online marketplaces to use in their work.
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[@TheVerge]

What services and tools do you use to create music?

[@YashKansalx]

The Verge something called a guitar

[@xorbodude]

Billie eilish uses a dentist drill

[@DaniDeahl]

Ableton, and have some fun hardware toys like a Moog Subharmonicon

[@laxmichaturvedi6106]

FL Studio on windows LMMS on Linux

[@TheElectroclassic]

My DAW (ableton, the one featured in this vid) and my plugins come from Splice. If I need a sample, I buy it from Splice, if I need a plugin, I look for it on Splice. But most importantly, if I want to collaborate, we meet up with Splice.

[@GarrettWease]

I greatly enjoyed this video, these producers were super humble and gracious with answers. I will say I did get a little depressed when the Splice CEO said “we’re at a point where software is the main instrument.”

[@SpeakChinglish]

Garrett Wease there are literally AI generating songs now, think it's time to just enjoy the music and worry less about how it came to be. If you want a human touch go listen a band live :)

[@dother4688]

The controller used in the beginning is the *M-Audio Axiom AIR Mini 32* for anyone interested ;)

[@ramsaidupati1781]

My eye was only on the GT MUSTANG right behind her 😁

[@DaniDeahl]

Ramsai Dupati haha why I wanted to shoot the intro there 🙃

[@abbasahmedlp]

The colour sucked tho

[@jacklam6140]

I love Tiffany Blue

[@avicohen2k]

The EDM haters will rage. For early adopters and tech belivers this was awesome. Its easy to sample music, but you still need to be creative and musically competent to do it right!

[@TheVerge]

So true! I think of masters of samples - everyone from The Avalanches to Jamie XX to AarabMuzik to Shawn Wasabi to everything else in between. There's SO many ways to be creative with samples! -Dani

[@aggoldstein]

No you do not need to be "musically" competent (i.e. can read, write and arrange music). Yes you must be creative.

[@MuhammadAbdullahLive]

The production quality is 🔥🔥🔥

[@AdamKuzniar]

oh you mean the production quality that doesn't clean their lens/sensors?

[@carlospovy9669]

Can we get these kind of videos but for 3D artist and CGI .

[@sddrx6000]

Yes please

[@annonymous1026]

No

[@carlospovy9669]

@@annonymous1026 why?

[@witness1013]

Stevie Knicks sampled the Police - Bring on the Night - for for Edge of 17

[@samade9]

@3:33 is there a smear on the camera on the top left above the mac

[@MuhammadAbdullahLive]

The B roll in The Verge's videos is wild. I want to do the same over on my channel.

[@lvseka]

This seems oddly lazy to me, but I see why it just works. Good stuff

[@JackieWelles]

Not necessarily.Sure at first it seems like eww they recycling music to make a new one. But actually that makes a lot of sense first of all samples are for starting basics when you writing a song, secondly creators get paid and its much better than stealing, thirdly some sounds take a lot of resources to create and might cost a lot if you don't have instruments so its very efficient time saving way to spend more on improving your song instead of working on one part of the sound.

[@lvseka]

@@JackieWelles Totally agree

[@N0N0111]

I want to know more about their mouse ball!

[@princymihawk]

Dope content

[@dropppitlikeitshott]

I like the interviewer :)

[@decdeclanlan]

Man, this series is really interesting!

[@TheVerge]

Thanks! -Dani

[@clariza.b]

Mauricio is El Dandee from Cali y El Dandee right? I love their songs.

[@hiddenkard3101]

Alot of big mainstream producers are mostly using samples, that they tweak and or cut. And it happens across many genres. They are working smarter not harder

[@Nerdhaunt]

Umm the two tone GMT Master 2

[@sudiptoghosh53]

Good they are admitting for real.....many people donot do that....

[@ivpt]

That Mustang is really nice.

[@BrunoZub]

DESPACITO 2 Confirmed

[@EricTorres713]

Splice is awesome 👌

[@CEKROM]

1:09 Oh a Rick & Morty fan =D

[@CrisaMV]

Juat heard a rock song while cleaning that sounded just like the chorus of Despacito. I didn't see the artist name and its not on the songs wiki or anywhere I'm checking.🤔 I'm so curious!

[@why_tho_]

Mauricio Rengifo and Andrés Torres: We make and use samples to create music. Kurt Hugo Schneider: *Hold my mic*

[@olanmdla8669]

Hold my shopping kart*

[@jamesatlas5204]

Anyone notice the Ford Mustang😍😂😂

[@frstwhsprs]

I did

[@zayo255]

Do someone know name of their studio or some contact like email,insta and so on?I would like much to work with them…Especially my reggaeton songs…

[@srinivasteja]

His T Lit af

[@zxtmasmith9883]

Rip session work :(

[@Misheeification]

"From hip hop to dance" that´s not a very large span is it now.

[@benja303]

From sandwiches to burgers lol

[@IvoPoblete]

1:00 One burnt light bulb.

[@2bored4life]

I hate the axiom air mini midi controller

[@tisentovedo]

Is this Genius? Nice video!

[@jamesatlas5204]

0:38 Ford Mustang💙💙

[@frstwhsprs]

ngl it's a nice blue

[@AnonymousMachine]

CTRL C + CTRL V

[@sanan33]

What about Indie?!

[@xorbodude]

Finneas o connor be like heck nah i got matches in a bathroom!

[@ART-wz8mp]

Haha! 😂

[@mxmus08]

How can I invest in splice. I need an IPO asap!

[@ballackuk13]

is he using iMac it's look different

[@tobi3419]

Nah - it’s the Apple Cinema Display...attached to a Mac (but not an iMac).

[@juiceplanet147]

Producer Marley Marl...is the godfather sampling. She could have dug a little deeper.

[@justk9775]

Lazy..this was like mentioning country music without mentioning white people. Fn...Vanilla Ice..😂😂😂

[@DaniDeahl]

This is an overview and the written feature goes deeper. When it comes to sampling there are so many who shaped its history and I'd go even further back and say maybe Steve Reich or Pierre Schaeffer.

[@linkinwayne]

Hey he's using a trackball. Nice

[@johndecelien]

Are you sure?

[@infirmux]

a pro that uses beats headphones as monitors? Really... or he is testing how majority of their trendy crowd will hear it ;)

[@raytsh]

Interesting video! Though, I still think that playing an instrument (or multiple) is a better way to approach making music. But, that's just, like, my opinion, man.

[@ajga5435]

They play and record instruments too

[@raytsh]

@@ajga5435 That is true! Though, I was more referring to people that are using the samples, not to the people making them. In the video the guys state that everybody can make music today using a computer and samples. I was referring to that.

[@nirakhtyagi]

hi

[@CurtisBooksMusic]

This method of production based composition is why (almost) all of our pop music is so bad. Plug a sample into the computer of a guitar strumming a chord and write a song around it. Much easier, and with a better result, to FREAKING STRUM THE GUITAR YOURSELF WHILE YOU WRITE THE SONG!

[@infirmux]

he maybe better not strum the guitar. It might be like Kanye trying to sing as Freddy... Rather, we need more Freddys than Kanyes or the Despacito guy. But there seems to be currently more money in ah-ok, cheap, produced music than true musical talents like Freddy Mercury.

[@conorfurlong]

But this isn’t new. Programs like Reason have been around for decades providing samples for musicians to use for free.

[@HappySlappii]

I like how music has turned from expression to nothing more than a cultural carrying device for the consumer to swallow.

[@dumpling6079]

r/lewronggeneration vibes. The music industry has always worked this way. If you'd try a little bit harder, you'd be able to find so many new and fresh artists who put so much passion and energy in their work.

[@HappySlappii]

@@dumpling6079 Those artists barely make enough to eat... Yes I do know..

[@dumpling6079]

@@HappySlappii That's untrue. But stay pressed, I guess?

[@aidilmubarock5394]

2nd comment

[@MilindPatel63]

The Future of Music with Dani Daniels. Hit Like if you read this.

[@hippie1685]

mediocrity at its finest

[@Haameme]

Real Rick fan wont use Beat by gey

[@haarisiqubal8394]

The fundamental definition of sampling is wrong please at least have some credibility information.

[@philipkolbo]

Schill

[@StefanoOlla]

And that's why everything sounds the same and nobody knows what's music anymore.

[@princymihawk]

Nobody except you, of course

[@StefanoOlla]

@@princymihawk I'm sorry. I understand I must have offended your sensibility with my comment. I do care you feel comfortable with your musical choices and I didn't realize you were spending your time reading other's comments on this video. I appreciate your effort, please apologize.

[@princymihawk]

@@StefanoOlla just stop

[@bhaveshtochabbra6853]

Musoc lost its soul in a new way

[@LyoshaZebra]

"When they get a computer they have the access to the same stuff that we have" says a guy with a set of outboard gear on a background worth 20k$ easily. Yeah, sure. Why don't you sell your gear then?

[@Jesusvanegas94]

You totally missed the point, he first talked about how in the past it was really expensive and difficult. And how now everyone can do it with a good computer and some samples if they have the creativity to do so. I easily understand this because is the same with video production, making movies was only a thing the rich could do back in the 80's. Now there's people doing short films, even theatrical released movies with just an smartphone. I have been making commercial work and my own short films with a $500 camera for 4 years now, really cheap compared to some years ago.

[@flexor212000]

So just use others music to make music. Sigh.

[@ajga5435]

Samples apply to singular drum sounds and instruments, a sample doesn't have to come from a pre-existing song. Sigh away

[@infirmux]

they also use notes that were used by thousands before them. How lazy!

[@kuplayfordvalls6781]

This is so sad... So unpersonal, generic and dead! Is like making a movie dumping a bunch of existing footage clips or creating a painting by sticking together a few different bits and peaces of older artwork.

[@gamesmaker1]

Why compose something original when you can just steal here and there for a quick buck

[@ajga5435]

We don't know pretty much anything about sampling, do we?

[@alecman95]

That was painful to watch. The reporter probably still has not the slightest idea of what a sample is. I don’t even get the point of the video.

[@TheVerge]

Hi! It's an introductory overview for people who don't know what sampling is, or how clearance/royalties work, or how sample stores have given so much opportunity to all producers. I remember when there were no stores and sample packs were expensive... and had to pull from existing tracks. I was one of the lucky ones - a bootleg I made from a sample got signed by the original artist as an official remix because they liked it so much! Now I still make music (with samples), enjoy introducing people into the world of music, and mentoring the next gen of producers as Vice President for the Chicago chapter of the Recording Academy. -Dani (the host)

[@JackieWelles]

i think you need to watch the video again and think because it explains pretty clearly the idea behind sampling and i understood it.

[@Gmakamian]

And this is what ruined music (my opinion).

[@ajinkyaghogare1723]

Not really there are plenty of people creating original stufff

[@Gmakamian]

@@ajinkyaghogare1723 of course there are. But music for masses has gone down through the decades. There are always going to be great artists. How much are they heard though through the increasing noise is the question.

[@ajinkyaghogare1723]

@@Gmakamian agreed

[@BriefNerdOriginal]

Awful

[@drongorius]

They are not musicians.

[@mcslender2965]

How so?

[@drongorius]

Well , i am not denying their skills , but if you call them musicians , you should call rappers , singers , while they are not . Musicians play instruments and composers come up with their own ideas and melodies, process that is very difficult and requires rear talent . You can not compare them . James Hetfield is musician and composer , song like “nothing else matter “ requires raw talent , while these guys just playing Tetris building blocks from samples and these samples were not even created by them . EDM is real thing though , because they come up with their own ideas . Melodic trance for example.

[@MonkeyFriday101]

Drongorius most the time a producer is also a musician. Not all of the time but I’d say the majority.

[@ajga5435]

@@drongorius They play drums, guitar, piano, sing, produce and compose. The samples they use and sell, they made them. Tell me more about your musical authority though

[@drongorius]

AJ GA no they are not .

[@ReubenCornell]

Awful