Ways to instantly produce better drops

So - you wanna make better drops without all the guess work?

I gotchu

1. Call and response

The first thing you can do is understand and learn call and response.

Just like how a conversation has an equal amount of talking between everyone, so too does as good drop.

Make sure your sounds fit together and almost “finish each others sentences” - they should have a chemistry.

You can do this by pairing long sustained sounds with short staccato ones, or using filters and automating them in interesting ways.

Sound design and selection is key here, again - you want to make sounds that compliment each other, like a conversation.

This doesn't have to be just in your drop - this applies to everything from one bar to the entire drop, the A part, the B part, the intro to the buildup.

And this can apply to your rhythym too, not just your sounds.

2. The bigger they are, the harder it drops

The better and bigger you make your buildup, to more tension and release your listener wants.

This makes your drop feel even more powerful and fresh in contrast to it.

In EDM, you want to use things that rise in pitch, increase in speed and stack layers around it.

Doing these helps create more tension - which is the exact goal of a buildup.

It's another form of call and response - or contrast - between two parts of a song.

My favourite producer that does this really well everytime is Space Laces - listen to this madness.

3. Fake outs

Sometimes pre-maturely ending a buildup or adding an extra bar to the drop before it fully hits can spice things up and surprise the listener.

Our brains are so good at recognizing patterns and organizing and creating structure.

This is especially so when listening to music/rhythm in general.

So when you do something unexpected and musically break that pattern, it really sticks out and forces listeners to pay attention.

Make sure your songs flow and rhythm don't get ruined as this trick can really make your song hard to dance to when transitioning from the build to drop if not done correctly.

4. Rhythm is key

As the name implies, dance music is about dancing first!

If you nail a good rhythm, it becomes 10x easier to make powerful catchy drops - especially when you pair that with good sound design!

Go back to the previous examples we showed earlier and pay attention to the rhythm of the songs and how even the rhythm alone is catchy.

This is key for a compelling song.

In general, different genres have different go-to vibes and rhythms - some more subtle than others.

For example, dubstep has a different rhythm than house and techno has a different rhythm than even house!

Pay attention to these and reverse engineer them into your songs for max groovy-ness.

5. Arrange in chunks

If you’re able to expand on your drops by adding a B part to it, say after 8 or 16 bars - you can massively boost the listeners enjoyment and dopamine of your song.

Dopamine is the feel good hormone our brains release when we do something pleasureable, like listening to good music.

Adding a second part to your drop and expanding on it with a new idea can make listeners release more dopamine and fall in love with your songs.

This is because your drop becomes way more exciting, fresh and less repetitive and stale.

Peace and hope this helps,

Vig

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