Here’s a step by step guide for taking free beats and producing your own hip-hop. Have fun!

1. Get a Digital Audio Workstation.

Here are some free options:

Windows – Try Reaper (http://reaper.fm) Reaper User Guide (http://www.cockos.com/reaper/userguide/ReaperUserGuide2.00h.pdf)

Mac – Try GarageBand

Linux – Try Ardour (http://www.ardour.org) Ardour online manual (http://ardour.org/files/manual/index.html)

2. Find your groove

Import the loop.

Reaper – Go to the main menu and choose Insert -> Media File or use the Media Explorer: View -> Show Media Explorer. (page 72 in the Reaper user guide)

GarageBand – Look up the file in Finder and simply click ‘n’ drag it to an empty spot in Garage Band.

Ardour – Click on the Edit item in the editor’s menu bar, then from the popup choose Import -> … as new tracks. (chapter 3.4 in the Ardour online manual)

3. Loop it up – repeat it

Reaper – Hover the mouse over the edge of the file until you see a double-headed arrow. Now click and drag the to the right for looping it. (page 119 in the Reaper user guide)

GarageBand – Hover the mouse over the upper right edge of the file until you can see a bent arrow, then click and drag to loop.

Ardour – For looping in Ardour you will have to copy manually. Hold Ctrl while clicking ‘n’ dragging to create a new copy. Line them up one after another. (chapter 4.4 in the Ardour online manual)

4. Record your raps

I hope you got a mic. In that case, just rap man! The only thing to watch out for is so that the signal going in don’t hit the red in the meter. If it does there can be some nasty distortion going on. And not the good sounding analog one, but the horrible digital one.

As far as inputs and connections to your sound card goes, you’ll have to find that out for yourself. They’re all different and there are lots of them out there.

So create a track, record enable it and hit record.

Reaper – Choose Track – > Add track. Click the record arm button on the track and then the record button on the transport (or Ctrl+R). (page 56-57 in the Reaper User Guide)

GarageBand – Choose Track -> New Track… -> Real Instrument Track. It should be record armed from the beginning, otherwise click the record arm button on the track. To start recording, click the record button in the transport.

Ardour – Choose Session -> Add track/bus and create a mono track. Click the record arm button on the track. Click the record button in the Transport and then play to start recording. (chapter 8.1 in the Ardour online manual)

5. Bounce it

When you’re done you might want to export the whole thing to a new file to play in a media player, burn on CD, etc. etc.

Reaper – Choose File -> Render (page 182 in the Reaper user guide)

GarageBand – Look under the Share menu and choose how you want to do it.

Ardour – Choose Session -> Export -> Export Session to audio file.