"Ottolenghi" is a song by Loyle Carner featuring Australaian-based Jordan Rakei. Loyle Caner is a Britsh rapper who has been releasing music since 2012, inclduing three albums and a handful of collaberations. His real name is Benjamin Gerard Coyle-Larner, with his stage name being a spoonersim of his last name. He was born in South London on the 6th October 1994. His carrer success include featuring on FIFA 20, 22 and 23 as well as playing at major festivals like Glastonbury and Creamfields, and most receleny headlining Nass Festival last summer.

instrumentation

The instruments present in this song is two male vocals, a Rhodes electric piano, piano, drum kit, synth pad, and a bass guitar. The two male vocals perfectly complement one another. Loyle Carner raps in a spoken word style, whereas Jordan Rakei sings more melodically in the chorus. The Rhodes introduces the chord progression and sets the vibe for the whole song, smooth and dreamy. The piano occasionally repeated these chords and accents them. The drum kit carries the main rhythm of the tun. The synth pads act as a tonal drone to fill out the empty space in the mix. The bass is played on a bass guitar. I know this because in the video below, it shows Carner playing the song live and a bass gutiar can be easily seen. 

tempo

The tempo for this song 95 BPM. It is a slow, relaxing tune, which the tempo reflects. For lofi rap, this is quite a fast tempo. For example, another famous lofi rap song is "Death Bed" by Powfu has a BPM of 71 or "Good Morning, Sunshine" by Jay Squared has a BPM of 80. Below are the examples of these songs. In my own production, I make lofi beats at around 75-90BPM.

timbre

All the instruments played in this tune sound smooth and tranquil. The piano's chords play long, legato notes that create a dreamy atmosphere and texture. The rapping is spoken word, which is said softly. The drums are hit softly. A snare for example can be hit with a lot of force to create a sharp crack and lots of resonance, or hit with some sort of padding on it, like a wallet, to dampen the sound. This is what has been used in this song as the snare has more of a dull thud sound.

lyrics

The lyrics are seen below from Genius, https://genius.com/17548311:

Staring out the window at the rain (aye)

I heard this little lady must've felt the pain ask her mum if the blazing sun’ll ever shine again

I felt ashamed feel the same not her mother though

Nah, started to laugh got her son involved (aye)

Mention the past like a running joke

And told her 'without all the rain there's no stunning growth’

Close, ah

To everything and nothing

Picture past the honeymoon and bluffing

Where the wooden spoon is only cuffing

Shorter the discussion but the roots can't manoeuvre out of nothing

I've been suffering these dreamy days

 (ah)

Remedy and lust don't hold any memories of us

Rather hold you everyday until the memories are dust

Yo we only caught the train 'cause you know I hate the bus

Never get enough

[Chorus: Jordan Rakei]

Born and raised

Made attempts to crawl away

Find a way to exist and hide your face some relate

Leave everything in yesterday

[Verse 2]

(Aye) They ask about the bible I was reading

Told them that the title was misleading labelled it Jerusalem but really its for cooking Middle-Eastern

I could see your mind was changing with the seasons shady for a reason (ah)

They will start decreasing, leaving like the orange in the evening

It was creeping through the clouds but now I'm proud to see the images releasing

I just wish the little lady could've seen it but she was dreaming (ah)

Reckon she's standing with her mum saying to her ’look, mother here’s the sun' rooted in the moment til the memories are done

So I sit and start to wonder on the woman she’ll become

Wonder if I'll have a son or a daughter, ones that I brought up never strong never telling me to run

Never tried to find a sum, tryna get it done yo I wonder if she'll ever be as clever as her mum, one

[Chorus: Jordan Rakei]

Born and raised

Made attempts to crawl away

Find a way to exist and hide your face some relate

Leave everything in yesterday

Born and raised

Made attempts to crawl away

Find a way to exist and hide your face some relate

Leave everything in yesterday

[Outro: speach]

Life can be bad, it can turn bad in a second

So remember what I'm tryna show you this life can be good one minute and next minute it can turn bad

So don’t look down on nobody 'cause that's how life can turn for everybody

So remember its love everybody and I'm gonna look for that for my babe

Thank you

In an interview with NME, www.nme.com/big-reads/big-read-loyle-carner-interview-not-waving-but-drowning-2481201, Carner explains how the song came about. He describes how he was reading the chef Ottolenghi's cook book "Jerusalem" on a train when someone approached him and said "Why are you reading that bible on the train?". This is because in some parts of London there is some issues with anti-Semitism and Palestine. He replied how it was not a Bible, but a cookbook, which cause the man who approached him to leave the train in a fuss, swearing as he did so. When Carner reached the studio, he told his producer the story, and the song was born. This story is referenced in the song when it says, "They ask about the bible I was reading. Told them that the title was misleading labelled it Jerusalem but really its for cooking Middle-Eastern". Loyle then thought it only right to "pay homage" to the chef as the song "wouldn’t exist without him", so names it after him. Since then he has done a video for YouTube channel GQ, with the chef where they talk about how he was a cameo in the music video. He has also said in other interviews how he finds cooking therapeutic and enjoyable, with it helping with his ADHD. This is not the only song by him that mentions cooking in someway, as he also has a song called "Carluccio" named after the Italian chef and in the song "Flourance" the lyrics talk about how he promised his sister some "pancakes". He also references some of his major rapping influences in "Ottolenghi". The line "To everything and nothing. Picture past the honeymoon and bluffing. Where the wooden spoon is only cuffing", is a play on words with rapper Roots Manuava's song "Dreamy Days" as in this song the lyric is "To everything and nothing. So can you picture past the honeymoon. Where you beat me with a wooden spoon". He then goes on to rap the words "roots" and "dreamy days". At the end of the song, there is a recording of an uncredited man leaving a powerful message about how we should all be grateful for what we have, as you don't know how long it will last. This leaves the song with such a powerful ending message, which ties in perfectly with how beautiful and powerful the tune is. 

structre & dynamics 

The song is structured in basic song structure: verse, chorus. The song starts with a verse, then a chorus sung by the vocalist Jordan Rakei, a second verse, the chorus, then a spoken speech. The dynamics in this song are very quiet. Dynamics play a huge part in dictating the mood of a song, here is the opening chords for this song played on a piano. The first, softer one sounds much more intimate and emotional, which is the vibe Loyle Carner is trying to create. However, the second is much harsher with the velocities being all the same, so there is no contrasting dynamics. A change in dynamics allows for pieces of music to stay interesting.

rhythm and syncopation

The drums in this song are all off beat and syncopated. They are also swung. This website details what swing is, https://blog.landr.com/what-is-swing/. I have learnt that in music swing is interpreting rhythm where eighth notes are played like triplets to create a galloping, swinging sound. It is a technique used by jazz drummers, which is fitting as lots of Loyle Carner's musical inspirations have a jazz heritage. Here is an example of two drum rhythms, one has no swing and the other has lots of swing, a high swing percentage. I have purposefully made it extreme in order to easily tell the difference. This is different to syncopation as both of them have been programmed with the exact same midi notes, just one has had a major swing percentage increase.

tonality, melody and harmony

This song is in the key of G Major, which means it has one sharp F. However, unlike most songs where they will start on the root chord, "Ottolenghi" starts on the relative minor, E minor. The chord progression is Em7 (vi), D/F# (V) and G6 (I). The D major chord is written as D/F# for this piece because it has been inverted, so the F# is in the bass. This is done so the piece sounds more coherent, and creates a walking bass line. This is when the bass notes go up by one note at a time. Also in this chord progression there is the use of chord extensions, like the 7ths are 6s. A 7th chord is when the basic triad is played as well as the note that is a 7th interval from the root note. In this case, an Em chord consists of an E, G and B. Seven notes from E in the scale of G major is D, so this is added to make the Em7 chord. This follows the same rule for a 6 chord, but instead it is a 6th interval from the root of the chord. For this example, a G major triad is G, B and D. Six notes from G is E, so this is added. Unlike in normal counting, when counting intervals the first note you start on is 1, not 0.

Also in this piece, there is a tonic drone being played by the synth pad. This means that the pad is playing the root note of the scale, G, consistently throughout the piece.

effects & music tech

Effects in this piece are very generic and similar to that of "Time". There is reverb on the vocals, compressor on the drums and EQ on all the instruments. However, as there is a Rhodes piano, there is an obvious use of tremolo. Tremolo is the modulation of the volume from left to right to create a shimmering effect. As Rhodes was bought out by Fender, the guitar company, it was labeled '"Vibrato" to keep it consistent with their current instruments. Even though they are very similar, vibrato is the change in pitch, not volume. Here is an example of tremolo, it can only be heard if you are listening through a stereo output, like headphones. 

Some vinyl ambience has also been added to this song, which is typical of lofi rap as it adds to the nostalgic emotions that the music tries to create. In my own music, I use a plug-in called RC-20 by XLN Audio, which acts as a vinyl emulator to create the wobble that vinyl sounded, as well as adding vinyl noise.

rap RESEARCH

birth

Hip-Hop is a genre of music that contains heavy rhythmic drum and clever lyrical rapping. The whole genre grew from four major milestones: DJing, rapping, break dancing and graffiti. This website explains how rap music was created, https://www.masterclass.com/articles/hip-hop-guide. Here I explain it in my own words what I have learnt. It originated in New York City, USA in the 1970s as a collaboration between people from all different nationalities as they all came together to make this music. At block parties, teenagers from Black, Caribbean and Latino heritage played soul and funk music. DJs such as DJ Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa started to try out new techniques in order to make the music more exciting. This included playing long percussive breaks, which were called break beats, so that people could break dance to these rhythms. Another skill that came out of this was scatching. This was pioneered by DJ Grand Wizzard Theodore, who, when he was 12, accidentally scratched his record when his mother shouted at him to turn his music down. Scratching is the art of moving a vinyl record forwards and backwards so the needle would "scratch" the vinyl playing. It creates a rhythmic and often melodic sequences that when paired with the crossfader, to duck out the volume, creates interesting and unique routines. It is now a staple for hip hop music with the rappers complimenting them with their rhythms and rhymes. In 1979, the first rap record was released into the world. It was "Rapper's Delight" by The Sugarhill Gang and according to whosampled.com, https://www.whosampled.com/sample/100/Sugarhill-Gang-Rapper%27s-Delight-Chic-Good-Times/, it sampled the song "Good Times' by Chic. It was such a successful record that it made the US Top 40 and solidfided Hip Hop and Rap music as a full-fledged genre.

drum machines (808)

In the early 80s, drum machines gained populority, espcially in the hip hop scene. This website, https://blog.andertons.co.uk/learn/what-is-a-drum-machine, details what a drum machine is. It says it is "an electronic musical instrument that produces its own sounds, and can program them into a rhythm." This means that is a machine with many differnt drum sounds that can be played and sequqcned, this stops the need for producers to need real drum kits or an intricet understading of drum synthesis to make their rap beats. The Roland TR-808 is regarded as the most important and crucial drum machine for the growth of rap music. They were manafactured from 1980-82, with 12,000 units sold (according to this website https://www.roland.com/uk/promos/roland_tr-808/) untill they were discotiuned as they were not considerted a commercial successs. Funnily, this was not the case as it was at this time that hip hop producers used them to create their ground breaking music. The 808 was been used in some many differnt songs of the era, as well as modern day because of the bass lines it could create. Here are is a video of the 808 in action and it being used in the song "Sexual Healing" by Marvin Gaye.

the golden era

From the late 80s to the early 90s, this was the golden age of hip hop. The genre really started to blossom in this time, artists were starting to break through into the mainstream charts, such as The Notourious B.I.G, Grandmaster Flash and Run DMC. WIlliam Jelani Cobb said in an interview that this was the time of inovation, prasing "the sheer number of stylistic innovations that came into existence".(https://historyofthehiphop.wordpress.com/music-genres/golden-age-hip-hop/). An example of this is Run DMC, the rap trio, merged rap with rock music when they worked with the band Areosmith on the song "Walk this Way" in 1986. This song sampled Areosmith's original from 1975, and was an instant hit, it even reached number 8 on the official charts, https://www.officialcharts.com/search/singles/walk-this-way/. Sampling came in full swing during this era. This website, https://blog.andertons.co.uk/learn/what-is-sampling-in-music, describes sampling as "taking a section of audio from another source – in this instance, an existing song – and then reworking it into the creation of a new track". Sampling is often looked down upon in the modern era and view it as cheating, the Grammys even banned any song with samples in from winning their prestigous Song of the Year award, as deatiled in this article https://www.spin.com/2014/06/grammy-awards-samples-song-of-the-year-alternative-edm/. However, I disagree, there is so much that can be done to a sample to alter it in a way that makes it unique. So many genres were bulit of sampling: jungle, rap and techno. A problem with sampling is getting is "cleared". As it is not their orirngal music, producers need to get clearance and permission from the oringal sound creator to use it. This can be exepensive or not possible at all. People's dislike for the establishment, like the government and police, could really be seen in the music. N.W.A's song "Fuck the Police" came out in 1988 and the lyrics brought to light how racists and prejucice the police were being. With lyrics such as "cause I'm brown... police think they have the authority to kill a minority" really exposing this. Ice Cube said in an interview with The Rolling Stone magazine, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/ice-cube-trump-campaign-interview-1076681/, about how "police were never held accountable" and claimed he was lashing out at the problem of police brutality.

1990s

By the 1990s, rap music was fully solidified as a popular, mainstream genre. Artists such as Jay-Z, Eminem, 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg really pioneered the scene. According to this website, https://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/music-hip-hop.htm, this time period saw the birth of DAWs and audio effects to create genres such as jazz rap and alternative hip hop. Groups like De La Soul and The Fugees used reggae R&B samples in their work to create their own unique style of rap music, with songs like "Ready or Not" (which got a jungle remix by DJ Hype) and "Me Myself and I". Dr Dre is a producer and rapper that became popular in the 90s. He has produced rappers like Snoop Dogg and started Eminem's prolific career. In 1995, the Grammy's announced that they were adding the category for "Best Rap Album", that year it was won by Naughty by Nature for their album "Poverty's Paradise". The 90s also saw the birth of the genre Trap, which to this day is one of the most popular rap genres, with its fast intricate high hat patterns and violent offencive lyrics. This article, https://www.quora.com/What-does-trap-music-mean-and-why-is-it-called-that, details why genres got it's name. The reason is that the music was often associated with drug dealers and rough, derelict neighbourhoods. In Atalanta, the places where people buy and sell drugs was referred to as the "trap house", hence the name. They were called this because they could go their to make money, but also be arrested by the police. Like a mouse trap, they could get the cheese or die. Another issue rap music tried to tackle was feminism. 2Pac tried to bring light to the patriarchal society that undermined the country by releasing the song "Keep Ya Head Up" in 1993, with lyrics in it including, "since a man can't make one. He has no right to tell a woman when and where to create one", referencing men's control over women wanting access to safe abortions. Also throughout this time, their was a heavy influence of gang culture and as such gang wars within rap music. It was caused by the East Coast - West Coast rivalry, where artists such as TuPac and Biggie both dissed each other in songs like "Against All Odds" and "Hit 'Em Up". Their feud ended with both of their deaths. Although both remain unsolved murder cases, it has been strongly thought that they were both killed by the opposition gang. 2Pac died on the 13th of September 1996, six days after he was shot by an unknown gunman while driving on the Las Vegas strip at the age of 25. The Notorious B.I.G (Biggie) died on March 9th 1997 in Los Angles, also by a drive-by shooting at the age of 24. Here are some examples of music from that era.

2000s - now

The 21st century saw the evolotion of technology which allowed hip-hop and rap fans to enjoy the music and cuture digitally. Artists such as Kanye, Drake, Post Malone and Eminem all grow in popularity and started to conquor the charts and streaming services. Since Spotify's inception, the top 10 most streamed artists, according to this website https://ledgernote.com/blog/interesting/most-streamed-artists-ever/, are:

1. Drake

2. Bad Bunny

3. Ed Sheeran

4. Taylor Swift

5. The Weekend

6. Justin Bieber

7. Ariana Grande

8. Eminem

9. Post Malone

10. BTS

This list includes three major rap artists, which shows how much rap music dominates today's music scene. In 2018, rap music made up the highest percentage of albums sold by genre, with it being 21.7% in the United States, https://www.statista.com/statistics/310746/share-music-album-sales-us-genre/.

Genres such as lofi rap and drill were also started in this time period. Lo-fi rap was made possible by the Roland SP-303 and 404 samplers which has integrated "lo-fi" effects as a sperate button. This website, https://www.productionmusiclive.com/blogs/news/lofi-effect-explained, explains that lo-fi means low fidilety and how, in music it degrades the sound, which makes it sound distorted with inperfections like an old vinyl player. When this is paired together with jazz samples and sampled drum breaks it creates a feeling of nostalgia. Rappers used these beats with emotioatial, meaningul lyrics to create lof-fi rap. Some notable muscians for this genre include Eevee, Aimless and Rxseboy. People would listen to this music to relax or study, often in the confort of their own home. This is because studies have been shown that this style of music can help with anxerity and stress. This website, https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/lo-fi-music-is-booming-during-pandemic-science-explains-why.html, explains how the music has an effect on the human brain. The process is called "cocooning", which it explains how it "wraps you in predictable, soft sound, protecting your thinking from the unpredictable and harsh outside world. That helps you relax and focus. You get more done as a result." Lots of YouTube channels do live streams where they play lo-fi music to those who need it 24/7. I personally listen to lo-fi beats and rap when I want to relax and unwind.

Soundcloud rappers also started to become famous in this time. These were just normal people that posted their beats and songs, unsigned to a label to their Soundcloud accounts to get noticed. This worked for some well known artists, and with guidance from industry professionals they managed to land record deals and release music to a wider audience. Some of the artists included:

In the future, rap is only going to grow. As it merges with other generes, like drum and bass, it is going to become more and more populor.