Like the G-Funk sound that still pops up frequently in West Coast hip-hop (see Dr. Dre’s “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang”), the stomp sound isn’t something Barber is actively focusing on; it’s just “what’s in right now.”
Barber points out that “Grindin'”‘s beat has inspired other copycats; J-Kwon’s “Tipsy” has a similar bass line to “Grindin’,” but the song’s Tribe-esque stomps actually sample Queen’s “We Will Rock You”; Barber’s kids only recently got started listening to the song after country artist Shaboozey’s platinum track “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” which features a J-Kwon original.
Barber points out that Tribe-like production breadcrumbs have popped up many times in hip-hop, like Three Six Mafia member Juicy J’s trademark “yeah, ho” and the shaker used by D-Dot Angeletti, Jermaine Dupri and the Hitmen in the late ’90s, while another distinctive shaker was popularized by Atlanta producer Zaytoven a decade later.
Endurance
The Korg Triton is especially important to Evan Ingersoll, better known as Chuck English, a rapper, producer and one half of the hip-hop duo Cool Kids, who first learned how to make beats on the now-iconic synthesizer.
If English remembers correctly, “Grindin'” was released the day he graduated from high school. A friend showed English a Korg Triton, and he went over to a B116 percussion kit and showed him all the sounds of The Neptunes’ Beats.
Twenty years after Clipse released “Grindin’,” The Kool Kids used Tribe on the track “SCAM LIKELY” from their 2022 album. Before things get weirdEnglish produced the song with Don Trevino and Slade da Monster, and – spoiler alert for Kool Kids fans – he’ll be using the sound in a “cheeky” way on their next album.
English says Tribe’s sound has a nostalgic, familiar feel that makes it an essential ingredient in their beat recipe book. As another example, he points to Nelly and Kelly Rowland’s “Dilemma,” which features the “ahhh!” sound from a Roland M-DC1 rack module that, thanks to producer Zaytoven’s influence, has since been heard on tracks by Travis Scott, Nicki Minaj, Migos and more.
“It would have gotten Pharrell biting me” for using the sound so soon after “Grindin'” came out, English says. But 22 years have passed. “Now it’s common knowledge.”
In the ’90s, people were looking back to previous decades for sounds, and one of the reasons we recognize the “Grindin'” beat may be because producers were referencing these now-vintage sounds.
“I believe there needs to be a certain energy for someone to be interested in or discover your music,” English says. Tribe is a sound that grabs people’s ears, a sound that feels familiar the first time they hear a new beat. When someone hears it, they think, “That’s an instant hit.” I like that.”
He compares it to the staying power of Jordan sneakers. “These kids weren’t born to see Michael Jordan,” he says. “But that doesn’t stop them from wearing Jordans, and they can go back and see how influential Jordan was.” The Tribe sound, or “Grindin’ Stomp,” he says, is being repurposed in a similar way. “The nostalgia remains, and it’s warmer to hear because that sound is from something familiar.”
Sound on Sound
Like many people who work in the field of audio production, Lehmkuhl not only loves music; soundOutside of his home studio, he recorded an entire library of sounds using ambient sounds captured on a Tascam recorder in the Costa Rican rainforest.
Photo: Natalie Bering
