Years ago, when I was in college at Marshall University, I was given an assignment for my music technology class. We had just learned how to use the music production software called Logic Pro. It’s just like GarageBand, but it’s a more advanced and costly version of it. I absolutely loved it! And still do to this very day! The assignment was counted as our ‘final’ for the class. We had to create something unique using certain features that the software offered (things like reverb, EQ, panning, etc.). The moment it was assigned, I started forming some ideas and that was when an original tune called “The Struggle” was suddenly conceived.
Writing and Recording the Tune
My brain juggled many ideas for chord progressions and I finally settled on the right one. All I needed was a melody and a nice beat. Logic had many beats for me to choose from. With me being a jazz studies major, I wanted something urban. I decided to go with a nice 90s hip hop beat, which went nicely the jazzy chords.
After forming the chords and selecting the beat I was going to us, I then decided to focus on the melody. I had my saxophone and other equipment set up to start recording. Then, I hit play on the computer that already had my chord progression and beat already in place. I listened to it on loop a couple times and then started playing around with some ideas for a melody.
I played through at least five ideas on my saxophone before I played what I thought was the right one. A few more times on the sax and then decided to hit the record button. It took a few takes, but I recorded the melody exactly the way I wanted it.
I played what I had recorded back through some headphones and was mostly satisfied. But I couldn’t help but thinking that something was missing from the melody. I then recorded another part that harmonized with the main melody. I played it back and said to myself, “That’s it!”
Then, I threw in a rap!
For the rest of “The Struggle,” I kinda set it up as a song somebody would hear on a radio. The melody served as the chorus and then I threw in a verse or two for vocals. For this final assignment for class, I decided to ask one of my friends to rap a verse on my tune. He was actually in my class and we both agreed to help with each other’s projects.
After a few takes, and a lot of editing, he rapped a nice verse that I was able to easily slide into my project. His rap was mainly about the daily struggles of the world and how they need to change. That’s exactly how I came up with the title of the tune.
The Finished Product
After recording all of the things I needed to record, I then spent days and days editing, until I felt it was worthy enough to submit for a grade. When I was finally satisfied, I submitted the recording of the tune with a sense of accomplishment.
Final grades from the semester went out about a week after classes ended. I looked up my grade for music technology and saw that not only did I get an A for the course, but I got an A on my final project! I was excited and knew that what I had done was something truly great.
“The Struggle” is Available for Download
Today, my tune is available for download on my website. CLICK HERE to download it and maybe even check out more of my originals. For now, I’ll give you guys a 30-second sneak peak. Let me know what you guys think!
Response Magic