Now Play It
Now Play It — Akala
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Akala
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No. of tutorials: 4
Now Play It — Full
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- Artist:
- Akala
- Title:
- Bit By Bit
- Instrument:
- Vox
- Tutor:
- Akala
- Difficulty:
- 3/5
Title
Welcome to the first ever Now Play It rap tutorial, courtesy of one of the finest UK rappers and lyricists - Akala! Exuding passion for his music and vocal expertise, Akala is undoubtedly one of the most natural and professional tutors we've had on NPI.
In this tutorial, Akala deconstructs his lively track "Bit By Bit" and takes you through each section, shedding light on everything from correct breathing techniques to the importance of instrumental dynamics in the song. For the beginners out there, Akala demonstrate how lyrics can rhythmically follow any element of a song (Not just the conventional drum beats) to help create a more original delivery – In the case of Bit By Bit, it’s the synth line that provides the rhythmic counterpoint to the lyrical delivery.
In addition, he advises on how to keep lyrics in time and sync with a track and how to alter the speed of your rap without losing the timing. These aspects are essential for even the most experienced rappers to bear in mind.
For those interested in putting together their own tracks and lyrics, this tutorial is particularly useful as Akala focuses on ways of positioning the verse/chorus structures so that the lyric lines aren't crowded or overlapping and for the budding producers out there, he gives great insight into all the musical composition choices and motifs featured in this track.
Finally, See if you can match Akala's skills in the exclusive playthrough section at the end of the tutorial.
(TUTORIAL DURATION: 13.59 MINS)PREVIEW
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- Artist:
- Akala
- Title:
- Carried Away
- Instrument:
- Vox
- Tutor:
- Akala
- Difficulty:
- 2/5
Title
Another highly informative and inspirational rap tutorial from Akala! With every tutorial he filmed for NPI he put great thought into focusing on a different area of his art form and this one is no different as he focuses on explaining the creative side to writing your own lyrics. The track itself is based upon a soft sounding guitar riff in a minor key, therefore Akala explains how this led him to write lyrics reflecting this emotional mood. He gives great advice on how to slowly build your lyrics up line by line to eventually create a story and relevant subject matter to compliment the music. He also uses this song as an example of an unorthodox time signature for rapping (the song is in 3/4, a time signature thats very rarely used in popular music let alone rap), and explains how you can learn to adapt to vocal style to accommodate this.
(TUTORIAL DURATION: 12.18 MINSPREVIEW
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- Artist:
- Akala
- Title:
- Comedy Tragedy History
- Instrument:
- Vox
- Tutor:
- Akala
- Difficulty:
- 4/5
Title
Are you ready to test your MC skills - at 150 Beats Per Minute?! If so we invite you to venture into Akala's world of complex lyrical wordplay with this superb tutorial for Shakespearian themed single "Comedy Tragedy History". A main focus of this tutorial is how to deliver rap lyrics with a bit more thought and structure as well as covering aspects of vocal technique. For example, Akala demonstrates the importance of clear pronunciation and explains how within rap, it’s often the vowels that provide the melody whilst the consonants add the percussive feel to the lyrics. To illustrate this he slows down the tempo of every line in the song so that you can get a feel for the timing and rhythm, then he gradually encourages you to rap along with him at the full speed. Akala also gives great insight into how he creates his lyrics based on a single topic and then ties in elements of the music to enforce the theme. A master-class in MC’ing from one of the brightest stars of the UK rap scene.
(TUTORIAL DURATION: 19.32 MINS)PREVIEW
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- Artist:
- Akala
- Title:
- Electro Living
- Instrument:
- Vox
- Tutor:
- Akala
- Difficulty:
- 2/5
Title
If the commercial side of Hip Hop/Rap is not for you, why not turn to Akala for some home truths on the more thoughtful side of Hip Hop coming straight from the UK! With the Electro Living tutorial, Akala clarifies his mission as a rapper striving to create music which has ‘something to say that makes people think’, and doesn’t just consist of generic, ego-fueled songs about expensive cars, jewellery and lavish lifestyles. Akala explains some of the reasoning behind his socially conscious lyrics and the sentiments he portrays in Electro Living, while also suggesting the ways you can turn your own inspiration into lyrics. He also focuses on the technical side of rapping techniques to demonstrate the benefits of really projecting and pronouncing your vowels to achieve stronger rhythmic and melodic results. In this tutorial Akala gives really useful advice on how the beat of a track dictates the style of the rap and how the two should work together to ensure there is no timing issue or need to rush your delivery. In the same vain, he explains how the structure of a Hip Hop track has the same needs as any other genre of music. For instance, the structure may need to be amended to suit and complement the beat progressions and this in turn will indicate a suitable way to structure choruses and verses and so on... Electro Living is an essential track for any avid UK Hip Hop fan or aspiring lyricist!
(TUTORIAL DURATION: 13:00 MINS)PREVIEW
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