What app to use for rapping?
Rapping is a form of vocal delivery in which rhythmic and rhyming lyrics are rapidly recited over a beat or instrumental. Rapping is a core element of hip hop music and culture. People rap for a variety of reasons including expressing themselves, storytelling, showing verbal skill, competing in rap battles, and pursuing a career as a rapper.
Rapping over pre-made beats allows rappers to focus on their lyrics and flow rather than having to produce the beat themselves. Quality beats provide the rhythmic foundation for rappers to creatively deliver their lyrics. Beat selection is an important part of the rapping process, as the vibe of the beat impacts the delivery and flow. Rapping over beats helps rappers develop their vocal skills and style.
With the popularity of rap music, many people are interested in rapping over beats as a creative outlet, social activity, or potential career path. This has created demand for beat making apps that provide quality instrumental tracks for rappers.
Top Recommended Apps
When looking for a quality app to rap over beats and record vocals, a few stand out as top choices based on reviews and popularity. Here are some of the most recommended options for aspiring rappers:
Garageband (1) is one of the most popular free music creation apps for iOS. It provides a full recording studio interface allowing you to lay down vocal tracks and customize beats. Quality effects like reverb and compression help polish your sound.
FL Studio (1) is a digital audio workstation for creating professional sounding hip hop tracks. You can mix beats, add samples and record vocals. Popular with pros for its robust toolset.
Rap Fame (2) lets rappers record over hot beats, promote songs, and share with a community of millions. It’s fun for beginners seeking a social rap experience.
Garageband
Garageband is one of the most popular and full-featured apps for creating music on iOS devices (GarageBand on the App Store). It allows users to record vocals and raps, create original beats and instrumentals, and fully produce songs using a variety of Touch Instruments right on their iPhone or iPad. Garageband has features similar to professional desktop digital audio workstations like customizable keyboards, drum pads, samplers, synthesizers and more.
With Garageband, rappers can easily lay down vocal tracks and recording using the built-in mic or external mics. The app has an intuitive interface that makes it simple to edit and enhance recordings. Users can add effects like reverb, compression and EQ to get the perfect sound for vocals. One standout feature of Garageband for rapping is the ability to record vocals in sections, comp verses and choruses, and rearrange parts quickly.
For beat making, Garageband includes Alchemy synth and smart and drums instruments to create custom instrumental backgrounds from scratch. There’s also an extensive loop library featuring hip hop, EDM, rock and more genres. Using the built-in sequencer and mixer, rappers can arrange loops, add parts, adjust levels and automate volume. Finished tracks can be exported in standard formats like MP3, AAC, WAV.
FL Studio
FL Studio is one of the most popular digital audio workstations for creating beats and music production. It was originally designed for Windows PCs, but is now also available for Mac, iOS and Android devices. FL Studio offers a user-friendly interface and powerful tools for sequencing, mixing, editing audio, and more.
FL Studio is well-suited for rapping and hip hop production. It comes with many preloaded synthesizers, samplers, drum kits, loops, and effects that cater to urban music styles. You can drag-and-drop samples, create drum patterns, record vocals, and arrange your song right within FL Studio.
Key features of FL Studio for rapping include:
- Step sequencer for quickly programming drum beats and basslines
- Piano roll editor for drawing melodies and chords
- Audio recording with pitch correction and time-stretching
- Mixer with effects like compression, EQ, delay, reverb
- VST instrument and effect support
- Automation for parameter changes over time
While the signature edition is somewhat limited, Producer and Signature bundles provide the full set of tools and sounds at reasonable prices. Overall, FL Studio is an accessible starting point for beginner rappers and producers.
For an overview of using FL Studio for hip hop, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0DEpKCsepQ
Other Notable Apps
While Garageband and FL Studio are two of the most popular and powerful apps for creating original music, there are a few other noteworthy options to consider as well.
Cubase by Steinberg is a robust digital audio workstation with advanced features like configurable key commands, chord trackers, and a chord pad for melodic and harmonic editing. There’s also Studio One by PreSonus which offers intuitive drag-and-drop functionality, melodic and chord trackers, and advanced virtual instruments.
Key Features to Look For
When selecting a rap app, some key features to consider include:
Quantization – This allows you to snap recorded vocals or audio to a set tempo or beat grid to ensure everything lines up perfectly. Good quantization capabilities are essential for crafting professional sounding rap tracks (Groovepad – Music & Beat Maker).
Editing tools – Look for capabilities like trimming, fading, pitch correction and more to polish your vocals and beats. Advanced editing can take your tracks to the next level (Rap Fame – Rap Music Studio).
Built-in beats and instruments – Many apps come loaded with beats, loops and virtual instruments so you can start making music right away. The more high-quality options included, the better (BandLab).
Exporting – You’ll want the ability to export your finished tracks in common formats like MP3, WAV, etc. to share online or with collaborators (Voloco: Auto Voice Tune + Harmony).
Additional handy features include effects like reverb and compression, audio recording, sound libraries, collaboration tools and more. The best rap apps provide a robust toolset for both creating original music and polishing it into professional sounding final tracks.
Creating Original Beats
Making your own original beats as a rapper can be immensely satisfying and give your songs a signature sound. Here are some tips for crafting unique beats:
Focus on coming up with creative drum patterns with varied rhythms and accents. You can start with basic kick and snare patterns and build from there (Source 1). Building drum loops with your own style gives your beats an original foundation.
Explore different chord progressions and melodies until you find some interesting combinations. Try tweaking built-in synth and sample sounds or using MIDI instruments to design your own melodies from scratch (Source 2). Put your own melodic spin on beats.
Don’t be afraid to experiment with unorthodox tempos, time signatures, and beat structures. Switching up the usual 4/4 time signature or throwing in polyrhythms keeps listeners on their toes.
Use audio effects like filters, distortion, pitch/time stretching to manipulate and warp samples into entirely new sounds. Get creative with effects processing.
Mix and arrange various elements like drums, basslines, samples, instruments into a cohesive beat. Focus on smooth transitions and developing the beat over time. Arrangement is key.
Don’t overproduce – sometimes a basic, sparse beat can be powerful. Build beats around a few key elements with space for vocals to shine.
Collaborating and Sharing
Collaborating with other artists remotely has never been easier thanks to music creation apps. According to Seven Tools for Collaborating on Music Remotely, some top apps for collaborating include:
- JamKazam – Allows real-time jam sessions
- Soundtrap – Cloud-based studio for recording and collaborating
- Ableton Link – Sync tempo over a wireless network
In addition, How to Collaborate on Music Remotely recommends Soundcloud for easy uploading and sharing of private tracks to collaborate on. Most music apps have built-in tools to share projects, leave comments, and provide feedback.
When collaborating remotely, communication is key. Discuss the project vision, set deadlines, provide updates on progress, and give constructive feedback. With the right music app and some coordination, you can collaborate with artists around the world to make hit songs.
Additional Equipment
To take your rapping to the next level, you may want to invest in additional audio equipment beyond just a mobile device and headphones.
Microphones
A high quality studio microphone can greatly improve the overall sound quality of your vocals. Condenser microphones tend to work best for recording rap vocals. Some popular options are:
- Shure SM7B – A dynamic microphone used by many professional rappers and singers.
- Audio-Technica AT2020 – An affordable studio condenser mic with excellent sound.
- Neumann TLM 102 – A high-end condenser mic that captures crisp vocal recordings.
Audio Interfaces
An audio interface lets you connect microphones and other equipment to your computer. This bypasses your computer’s built-in sound card to provide higher quality audio conversion and preamp functionality.
Some recommended affordable audio interfaces for rapping include:
- Focusrite Scarlett 2i2
- Presonus Audiobox USB 96
- Behringer U-Phoria UMC202HD
Using an audio interface along with a condenser mic will provide the best home recording setup for vocals and rapping.
Conclusion
In summary, GarageBand and FL Studio stand out as two of the top apps for rapping and music creation. GarageBand offers an intuitive and fully-featured DAW optimized for Apple devices, while FL Studio provides comprehensive beat making tools and advanced capabilities like audio recording. Other great options include apps like BandLab, Soundtrap, and Beatmaker 3. When choosing a rapping app, look for seamless beat creation features, audio recording abilities, effects and plugins to enhance vocals, song publishing and sharing tools, and accessibility across devices.
No single app is necessarily the “best” for every use case. Consider your skill level, budget, device ecosystem, and specific needs around original beat authoring, recording/engineering, collaboration, and more. While GarageBand and FL Studio cover many bases, exploring alternatives like Beatmaker 3 may better suit your goals. Most importantly, choose an app aligned with your creative vision that keeps you engaged and makes the process of rapping enjoyable.
With intuitive design and extensive capabilities, today’s apps eliminate virtually all barriers to rapping and reaching an audience. Whether hoping to craft original songs or engage with other artists, modern mobile and desktop production software places a fully-fledged recording studio at your fingertips.
