A pro guide for adding riffs to your beats.
From classic sampled funk loops to modern melodic hooks a la Post Malone or Playboi Carti, a guitar can add emotion and melody to any sample-based track. In this article, we show you exactly how it’s done, with examples of riffs that have shaped the genre’s most recognizable songs.
Using a guitar in a hip-hop session can add melody and warmth to your recordings.
Dial in Your Amp Tone
Getting the right base tone is essential when using guitar in hip-hop production. Amp emulator plug-ins like those found in UAD Paradise Guitar Studio allow you to get the sound of classic tube amps used by pro guitarists, without plugging into a real amp.
To find a sound that sits nicely over a beat, start with a clean or slightly overdriven tone from an amp like the Dream ‘65 Reverb or Ruby ‘63 Top Boost.
To get your guitar to blend in with loops and samples, try rolling off the low end on your EQ. This will keep your tracks from clashing with 808s and vocals. Then, you can add subtle compression and room ambience with Paradise’s onboard compressor and reverb.
With classic amps and essential studio effects like EQ, compression, and reverb, Paradise Guitar Studio gives you the core elements of any great studio guitar track.
Create a Mood with Effects
Using effects can turn a simple guitar part into something more atmospheric, and enhance the emotional impact of your beats.
For example, using a pitch shifting effect is a powerful way to push a traditional guitar tone into new territory. You can try pitch-shifting your guitar down to create darker moods, or using subtle detuning for instant lo-fi character.
If you’re after grit and texture, you can add gentle saturation warmth with tape plug-ins like the Studer A800 Multichannel Tape Recorder, or try an overdrive or distortion effect for something that’s more in-your-face.
“The Raw Distortion is my go-to. I have it saved in UAD Console for all my Dr. Dre stuff.”
Curt Chambers (Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, Alicia Keys)
Treat Your Riffs Like Loops
Since hip-hop production typically relies on a loop-based song structure, recording guitar parts in shorter phrases or single chord hits allows you to treat your hooks like any other sample in your track.
Then, you can construct longer loops by combining short chops or isolating phrases from a larger take. This is a great way to build inspiring arrangements and unlock new ideas for your beats or keyboard elements.
Layer Synths for Stereo Width
Layering guitar with synths or keyboard parts is a common technique in modern hip-hop production. Guitar can add warmth and midrange texture, while synths are great for sustain and stereo width.
The Brigade Chorus or Studio D Chorus are great effects for either guitar or keyboard, if you want to add some stereo width and movement. To get your guitar to blend nicely with a layered synth, try using the Pultec EQP-1A to carve out some midrange and fatten up the lows.
“No Sleep Till Brooklyn” – Beastie Boys (1986)
The origins of hip-hop, punk, and metal can all be traced to the underground music scene of the 1970s and ’80s. The convergence of these sounds and cultures is the foundation of an iconic track off the Beastie Boy’s License to III.
Produced by Rick Rubin — who also performed rhythm guitar — the song featured a solo by Slayer’s Kerry King, whose ratty, overdriven tone is a hallmark of the raw energy that guitar can bring to a beat.
Whether you’re going for King’s searing lead work or Rubin’s instantly recognizable riff, you can explore a similar cranked Marshall tone with the Lion ‘68 Super Overdrive Amp. To get that classic ‘80s ambience, you can lean on the Lexicon 224 Digital Reverb. Together, these sounds bring hip-hop and hard rock together for a cheeky fusion throwback.
“You Got Me” – The Roots ft. Erykah Badu and Eve (1999)
While a distorted electric guitar is the perfect tool to bring the energy, an acoustic guitar can bring a soulful and vulnerable vibe to your production. The Roots displayed this technique on their Grammy-winning single Things Fall Apart.
Captured by engineer David Ivory at the legendary Electric Lady studio in New York City, the track’s delicate acoustic picking tastefully into the mix.
To capture the detail in an acoustic guitar performance, most producers rely on condenser microphones like SC-1 Condenser Microphone. When it comes to the mix, vintage tube compression from the Teletronix LA-2A, paired with a room reverb like Ocean Way Studios Deluxe, can enhance a raw acoustic track and elevate it to match the other elements in the mix.
“Rapp Snitch Knishes” – MF Doom (2004)
It’s impossible to talk about guitar in hip-hop production without mentioning sampling. British-American rapper MF Doom, who uses the alias Metal Fingers, crafted the now-legendary track titled “Rapp Snitch Knishes” around a sample from David Matthew’s cover of the Bowie classic “Space Oddity”.
Was that too much to follow along with? Well, that’s the nature of sampling. Often call-backs from other genres or eras, samples are often sped up or re-pitched by hip-hop producers and placed over a boom bap drum beat.
The original instrumental for this song was titled “Coffin Nails” and has become one of the most easily recognizable samples of the early 2000s. As Doom’s undisputed top track, it’s an example of how guitar continues to find a place in underground hip-hop production.
“Boredom” – Tyler, The Creator ft. Rex Orange County and Anna of the North (2017)
While he’s weaved through different sub-genres throughout his meteoric rise to the top of the hip-hop charts, Tyler, the Creator’s Neo-Soul and Jazz inspired Flower Boy leans most heavily into guitar-centric production.
Performing on multiple tracks from the album, Austin Feinsteen’s dense chords quietly defined the use of guitar in major hip-hop releases in the late 2010s.
His tones are deceptively simple, featuring clean sounds likely from a Fender-style amp. If you want a similar tone, the Dream ‘65 Reverb Amplifier is up for the task. You can also mirror the compression used in this track with a vintage FET compressor like an 1176, which delivers snappy dynamics control.
“Rockstar Made” – Playboi Carti (2020)
Musical genres have a way of coming full circle. Modern rappers with aggressive styles have brought the genre back to its shared history with punk and metal. For Playboi Carti’s album Whole Lotta Red, he collaborated with guitarist Oji of production duo Ojivolta, and even recruited him to perform live so fans could admire his distinct and virtuosic seven-string stylings.
Oji’s high-gain guitar sound is a perfect accompaniment to Carti’s aggressive rapping and production style, especially when his parts are chopped and edited to sit with the grainy synths and brutally heavy 808s.
While his final recorded tones are likely heavily edited, his live sound is identifiably driven by a high-gain scooped american amp sound. To recreate this style of guitar tone, you should look to a modern metal amp for inspiration. Something the Knuckles ‘92 Dual Rec Amplifier would absolutely do the trick.
— Austin Lyons
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