1. Make sure you have a good mic (Of course). If you start off with garbage, all you can make in the end is "polished garbage". An MXL 990 is a good mic to start with and it's very cheap (only $50). With the proper mix this thing can do magic, but in most cases, what you pay for is what you get.

2. Experiment on different mic positions while recording (close to you, far from you, etc..). Some people's voices call for different positions. Also, the desired effect can call for it as well, if you want to sound like you're in someones ear (Which isn't a bad thing) then you want it close. If you want to scream or something, back up!

3. Don't over edit your vocals. This is a huge problem that I see people do ALL the time. A lot of the time people even add a bunch of effects on the master track of their song making the WHOLE song reverbed or compressed. THIS IS A NO NO! Leave the master track alone unless you're adding a slight limiter to prevent clipping or something VERY minor. You don't want to over compress or over EQ ANYTHING ever. A lot of the time, all I need to do is cut out the bass, compress it, and add LITTLE touches of EQ boost/decrease. That's pretty much ALL I do.

4. As far as compression goes, I have no "magic setting" that I put my compressor on, and there shouldn't be any "magic setting" that you use. I like to be generous as far as how much I compress my vocals. I just think my voice sounds better with some good compression, so I may compress more than others sometimes. There's is no one setting that works for every song and every voice; it all calls for YOUR voice (or the artist's, if you're mixing), maybe you have a voice that needs it, maybe you don't, EXPERIMENT.

5. Recording multiple takes is IDEAL. You'll almost never get the job done with one take. Record multiple times just to be able to pick out from the best one. If you think your vocals need to be filled more, don't just add a chorus effect or something, record it again, over dub the takes and pan them out. You'll get the job done much easier and efficiently that way.

6. Adding reverb and delay is also called for in some songs, but don't overdo it! In general, you want reverb and delay on MOST of your songs, but you want it so low that unless there's a drop in the beat, or someone with very good ears is listening, you don't want listeners to know it's there. I'm sure now you're thinking (if they don't know it's there, why waste time putting it in!?!? :O). Well think about this, (This is mostly aimed at producers/engineers) but haven't you heard something in a song that you MOSTLY don't hear, but if it wasn't there, you'd feel like something is missing? That's what I'm talking about. So add some slight reverb and delay if you feel your vocals are missing a little presence.

7. MAKE SURE YOU'RE LOUD! You're NEVER gonna make a good recording if you're scared to sound like you have some confidence in yourself. You need to ATTACK the mic like you know what you're doing and you know you're gonna do it well. I cannot stress on this enough.

7 (cont). This can be the difference between a good song and a flop. I've had MANY people submit songs to me where they weren't putting enough feeling into it. The real bad part is, it can't be faked; I can tell you to put feeling into your recording all day, but if you are only "getting louder" you'll sound like a SCREAMING non-confident artist and that's not the desired effect either. Have some confidence; listeners will be able to tell.

8. Don't be shy!! I know some people are recording in their bedrooms (like me =O) and they have people outside of the door that can here them. A lot of people are shy and don't WANT people to hear them record. Here's a huge tip for those people; GET OVER IT. I know you feel stupid because you're just yelling rhymes into this metal object, but they're gonna hear you, and if you sound like you're scared for people to hear you record, listeners will notice. Again, HAVE CONFIDENCE.

9. Lastly, take a listen to some songs you've bought (Always buy you're music unless its being given by the artist for free!! You're in the music business, don't steal from it!!!!!!!!). Compare your mix to one that's been professionally mixed and don't be afraid to mimic it a bit. I know you're voice is different from theirs, but just try it out. I've done it PLENTY of times and my mixes come out pretty well. But it's all up to you.

How To Get Noticed & See Profit

In order for you to get noticed, you need to stand out from the crowd and be original. Amazingly this isn't realized by most rappers today. A&R's aren't interested in rappers that record on overused, industry tracks. They want the industry QUALITY, but NOT industry the track itself. The best way to get your name out there is to get something that makes them remember YOU specifically. You don't want to be "another guy that rapped on 'A Millie'". This site is where you need to be in order to be a RESPECTED artist in this industry. People will respect you if you make an investment, whether how small it is, as long as it is effective. You will only get high quality beats for a price, if a producer is giving free beats on a regular basis, they don't even have pride in theirself. If they don't, why should you? Make a small investment in a few beats, multiply that investment, and change it into profit. You would do this if you were ready to take a step up from being "some old rapper".

Think about this; How often do you get free beats? Always. Now how often are they hot enough to get you SIGNED by a label? Rarely to Never. A&R's will click away from your song within the first 10 seconds if they think it's wack, even when they haven't heard you say anything yet! It's unfair, we all know it, but that's how they roll. This may be because they thought the beat was wack. When that happens, the first thing they think is "If they rapped on THIS, they obviously don't know how to make good music." and there goes your possible contract and door to success.

Also be sure that the track you're trying to push is high quality and READY for the radio. If you aren't skilled with mixing, you can come to me and I can mix the track for you for just $50 (You can hear my mixing skills right here on my site). Another worthy investment if you're ready to take your possible CAREER to the next level. Contact me for more information and to get your beat mixed by me.

GET YOUR MONEY BACK!!!

I know how it is. No one want's to spend money without making it back. Ever. I'm encouraging you to GET YOUR MONEY BACK FROM BUYING MY BEATS! It's pretty simple!

SCENARIO:

• Lease a beat for $24.95
• Record a hot song to it
• Get a proper mix for the song
• Sell it for $.99 a copy
• Sell at least 25 copies

With all the people in this world with over 99 cents, you can easily sell enough copies of your single to get your investment back and make a nice, hefty profit.

You're able to sell up to 2,000 copies of ANY lease from me. You can get a lease for a price of $25. Do the math. THATS how easy it is to make your money back with my beats. You'd make serious bank even if you sold each single for $.50! This game is a really simple one to play if you just bring the right stuff to the table.