How to Use Logic Pro X for Hip Hop

Music production technology has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade or two, giving anyone who wants to produce their own music the power to do so on a relatively tight budget. You can even download a free app onto your phone and begin making music in a matter of minutes!

Which can be a lot of fun if you’re just looking for a way to kill time. If you’re serious about making your own, however, you’ll want to consider buying a full-service digital audio workstation (DAW) for your laptop or computer. And Logic Pro X (for Mac) is one of the best, used by professionals across all genres of music.

How to Make a Beat on Logic Pro X

Every beat maker, audio engineer, and music producer started from somewhere. Lucky for you, the technology has improved from four-track recorders, two turntables, and a microphone. Logic Pro X is one of the premier digital audio workstations on the planet, and we’ll give you the basics of how to make a beat in Logic Pro X.

This will be based on your having a cursory understanding of the software, such as where the instruments are located on the interface, how to access audio effects, and other foundational building blocks of any DAW. But you shouldn’t need any other gear to get the basics.

Getting Set Up To Make Beats on Logic Pro X

Start A Session – After opening Logix Pro, you’ll want to create an empty project so you can build up from scratch (so to speak). There are demo projects and templates you can start from, but creating something out of nothing is a more valuable experience at the start.

Create Tracks – Once your empty project appears, you’ll see an empty timeline and library off to the left. At this point, there are two types of tracks to choose from: software instrument and audio track. The software track allows you to use any sounds from the huge instrument library offered by Logic Pro X.

An audio track is used if you’ll be supplying sounds via an external source. This could be a mic, an electric guitar, or whatever else can be plugged directly into the computer. Select one software and one audio track for starters.

Preferences – You’ll want to set up some parameters, including enabling Logix Pro’s advanced tools. Do this under preferences, show advanced tools, and enable. Why not use everything that’s available to you? Other preferences can be default at this point, but as you learn the software, you’ll find altering some of the audio presets can be helpful for certain tracks.

Learn the Workspace – After familiarizing yourself with the instrument library to the tracks to the timeline, start playing around with the different controls at hand. The Inspector icon (an “i” with a circle around it) will bring up controls that give you more in-depth options. In this channel strip is everything you control: panning, volume, inputs, outputs, and effects.

Record, play, stop, cycle, and others are found at the top of the timeline. Cycle allows you to choose a section of a track and lets you loop that selection. Tempo, beats, bars, metronome, and more are featured to the right of those controls.

Begin to Record – Choose a software instrument track and then pick an instrument and lead. Hit the record icon (or “R” on the keyboard), listen for the count in, and then start hitting notes on the keyboard. When finished, stop the recording and then click within the track to open an editor to see a more in-depth look at what you recorded.

For the audio track, you’ll click the R on the track to enable recording and then activate input monitoring (the I) so you can hear your instrument or voice. Logic Pro also has a built-in tuner for your tracks – it’s the tuning fork icon at the top of the timeline.

Learn How to Use Logic Pro X for Hip Hop from the Pros

Once a recording is complete there is still a lot of work to be done, cleaning up, quantizing, creating loops, and so forth. But learning how to best take care of those tasks comes with exploring, practicing, and experiencing the Logic Pro X DAW.

The Recording Connection Logic Pro Electronic Music Production and Hip Hop & Beat Making Programs are designed to give you a front-row seat into how the music you listen to every day is made. You’ll be paired with a mentor with years of experience, working in their studio, and learning the gear that’s used by the biggest names on the globe.

Our curriculum is based on your strengths and your experience. If you grew up playing an instrument and have an understanding of music theory, your Academic Facilitator and mentor will work with you to develop a course that gives you less of what you know and more of what you don’t.

The best part of our program is the connections you make and the opportunity to work with those already in the industry. Many of our students go on to work in the very studios they externed in or found a job based on the recommendation of their mentor. Are you ready to amplify your life? Get started today.