WEBVTT 00:00:55.789 --> 00:00:59.109 Welcome to Why Make Music, dot dot dot, the podcast 00:00:59.109 --> 00:01:02.070 that celebrates sound, soul, and storytelling. 00:01:02.810 --> 00:01:06.650 I'm your host, DJ Warm Cookies butt. Now that 00:01:06.650 --> 00:01:10.409 we're friends, you can call me Willa Mae. I was 00:01:10.409 --> 00:01:13.049 named after my great -grandmother, and let me 00:01:13.049 --> 00:01:16.010 tell you, she was the kind of woman who didn't 00:01:16.010 --> 00:01:19.590 just make cookies. She made music with her hands, 00:01:19.750 --> 00:01:22.849 love with her eyes, and healing with her food. 00:01:23.409 --> 00:01:27.010 Her kitchen was a drum loop. Her words were layered 00:01:27.010 --> 00:01:30.629 like harmonies. Her warmth is what inspires me 00:01:30.629 --> 00:01:34.150 to speak to you today. Normally, you'd be hearing 00:01:34.150 --> 00:01:38.590 from the man himself. That's T -H -I -N -K -T 00:01:38.590 --> 00:01:42.310 -I -M -M. But today, I've got the mic, while 00:01:42.310 --> 00:01:44.730 he stays behind the scenes, doing what he does 00:01:44.730 --> 00:01:48.170 best. Crafting the sonic world that holds all 00:01:48.170 --> 00:01:51.150 this together. And yes, what you're hearing underneath 00:01:51.150 --> 00:01:55.989 this, that groove, that movement, That breath 00:01:55.989 --> 00:01:59.670 between thoughts. That's Think Tim. And this 00:01:59.670 --> 00:02:03.650 episode right here. This one's special. This 00:02:03.650 --> 00:02:07.469 one's called Serving Up a Sample. Because sampling 00:02:07.469 --> 00:02:11.090 ain't just a technique. It's a theology. It's 00:02:11.090 --> 00:02:14.750 how we remember. How we rebuild. It's how we 00:02:14.750 --> 00:02:18.250 make yesterday speak to you today. So grab your 00:02:18.250 --> 00:02:21.490 tea. Roll the chair back from the desk. Turn 00:02:21.490 --> 00:02:23.789 your headphones up. And let's journey together. 00:02:24.520 --> 00:02:27.280 Let's talk about sound the way it was meant to 00:02:27.280 --> 00:02:31.180 be talked about. With soul. Let's begin with 00:02:31.180 --> 00:02:35.439 a little time travel. Picture it. The 1940s. 00:02:35.879 --> 00:02:40.240 Cairo, Egypt. A young composer named Halim Eldab 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:43.580 walks into a radio station and records a group 00:02:43.580 --> 00:02:46.759 of traditional musicians. But he doesn't stop 00:02:46.759 --> 00:02:50.379 there. He takes that recording, runs it through 00:02:50.379 --> 00:02:54.699 wire recorders. Distorts it. Cuts it. Reshapes 00:02:54.699 --> 00:02:57.759 it. Until it becomes something entirely new. 00:02:58.060 --> 00:03:01.400 That wasn't just a recording. That was the first 00:03:01.400 --> 00:03:04.780 documented act of sampling. Long before hip -hop. 00:03:04.979 --> 00:03:08.860 Long before laptops. Long before anyone knew 00:03:08.860 --> 00:03:12.419 what a loop was. This man was out here remixing 00:03:12.419 --> 00:03:16.539 reality. That moment held up's momentary. Minds 00:03:16.539 --> 00:03:20.080 us that sampling isn't theft. Sampling is transformation. 00:03:21.180 --> 00:03:24.900 Sampling is love in reverse. He didn't just hear 00:03:24.900 --> 00:03:28.139 music, he heard possibility. And that's what 00:03:28.139 --> 00:03:31.219 every great producer does. That's what Think 00:03:31.219 --> 00:03:34.439 Tim does. And you better believe I'm gonna keep 00:03:34.439 --> 00:03:38.659 saying that name. T -H -I -N -K -T -I -M -M. 00:03:39.099 --> 00:03:42.719 Because behind every beat, there's a mind. And 00:03:42.719 --> 00:03:45.800 behind every mind, there's intention. And Think 00:03:45.800 --> 00:03:49.259 Tim's intention. It's all heart. We're in the 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:54.930 Bronx. 1970s. It's hot, it's loud, it's alive. 00:03:55.349 --> 00:03:59.189 And a Jamaican -born DJ named Kool Herc is about 00:03:59.189 --> 00:04:02.330 to change the world with two turntables and a 00:04:02.330 --> 00:04:05.930 mixer. He finds the break where everything drops 00:04:05.930 --> 00:04:09.889 except the drums and he extends it, spins it 00:04:09.889 --> 00:04:13.930 back, loops it, and the people, they don't stop 00:04:13.930 --> 00:04:17.269 dancing. That breakbeat becomes the pulse of 00:04:17.269 --> 00:04:20.800 the block, the heartbeat of a culture. From that 00:04:20.800 --> 00:04:24.100 heartbeat, hip -hop is born. You hear what I'm 00:04:24.100 --> 00:04:27.319 saying? Sampling didn't start in a boardroom. 00:04:27.500 --> 00:04:32.100 It started in community. In culture. In response. 00:04:32.519 --> 00:04:35.920 It started because people needed to speak. Without 00:04:35.920 --> 00:04:39.540 permission. Without restriction. And that's still 00:04:39.540 --> 00:04:45.660 true today. Why make music? Now I know some folks 00:04:45.660 --> 00:04:48.779 get caught up in illegal talk. So let's go there. 00:04:49.370 --> 00:04:51.829 Because it wouldn't be right to celebrate sampling 00:04:51.829 --> 00:04:54.209 without acknowledging what's tried to silence 00:04:54.209 --> 00:04:59.329 it. Let's start with 1991. Bismarck -y. Alone 00:04:59.329 --> 00:05:02.449 again. That case wasn't just about one song. 00:05:02.709 --> 00:05:05.569 That was the music industry, planting its flag 00:05:05.569 --> 00:05:09.550 and saying. Sampling without clearance. That's 00:05:09.550 --> 00:05:13.930 stealing. And look, I get it. Respect the original 00:05:13.930 --> 00:05:18.319 artists. Compensate the creators. We all want 00:05:18.319 --> 00:05:22.120 fairness. But sometimes, the law don't understand 00:05:22.120 --> 00:05:25.860 the soul. What that ruling did, it scared a generation 00:05:25.860 --> 00:05:29.459 of artists. It turned something beautiful into 00:05:29.459 --> 00:05:32.560 something dangerous. And then came Bridgeport. 00:05:33.079 --> 00:05:38.279 2005. The infamous line, get a license or do 00:05:38.279 --> 00:05:41.560 not sample. Suddenly, the spirit of hip -hop 00:05:41.560 --> 00:05:44.480 was caught in the courtroom. The question wasn't, 00:05:44.480 --> 00:05:47.459 did you transform it, or did you elevate it? 00:05:48.120 --> 00:05:51.459 The question was, did you ask permission first? 00:05:51.939 --> 00:05:54.959 But let's be real. How do you get permission 00:05:54.959 --> 00:05:58.040 to remember? How do you copyright a feeling? 00:05:58.600 --> 00:06:00.860 How do you tell a broke kid in their bedroom 00:06:00.860 --> 00:06:03.540 that they can't flip a four -second loop without 00:06:03.540 --> 00:06:06.360 cutting a five -figure check? That ain't protection. 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:10.389 That's gatekeeping. And still we found a way. 00:06:10.990 --> 00:06:14.410 That's where interpolation came in. Instead of 00:06:14.410 --> 00:06:17.189 sampling the sound, you recreate the spirit. 00:06:17.470 --> 00:06:21.949 You re -sing it, re -play it, re -make it. And 00:06:21.949 --> 00:06:24.930 in that act of recreation, something even more 00:06:24.930 --> 00:06:28.670 powerful was born. Because it said, I don't need 00:06:28.670 --> 00:06:31.470 your master file, if I got my own master plan. 00:06:31.689 --> 00:06:35.269 It was legal, it was layered, and it was genius. 00:06:36.649 --> 00:06:40.149 What artists like Ariana Grande did. Selena Gomez. 00:06:40.629 --> 00:06:44.829 Kendrick. Beyonce. And most producers too. They 00:06:44.829 --> 00:06:48.629 don't just borrow. They build. Why make music? 00:06:49.569 --> 00:06:55.110 To honor. To reimagine. To reclaim. To remind 00:06:55.110 --> 00:06:57.790 the world that we were always more than samples. 00:06:58.269 --> 00:07:01.990 We are the source. And here's the part that makes 00:07:01.990 --> 00:07:04.910 my heart beat a little faster. Because we're 00:07:04.910 --> 00:07:07.009 living in a time where the boundaries of sound 00:07:07.009 --> 00:07:11.050 are shifting again. I'm talking about AI. Artificial 00:07:11.050 --> 00:07:15.129 intelligence. Algorithms with rhythm. Machines 00:07:15.129 --> 00:07:18.910 that sample. Without asking. Some folks hear 00:07:18.910 --> 00:07:22.310 that and panic. Are we replacing musicians with 00:07:22.310 --> 00:07:25.889 machines? They ask. Will producers still matter 00:07:25.889 --> 00:07:29.850 when AI can flip a sample in seconds? And I hear 00:07:29.850 --> 00:07:33.389 that fear. I do. But let me offer you a different 00:07:33.389 --> 00:07:38.089 lens. AI is not the end of creativity. It's the 00:07:38.089 --> 00:07:41.769 extension of it. AI is just another crate to 00:07:41.769 --> 00:07:45.790 dig through. It's a bottomless, invisible, digital 00:07:45.790 --> 00:07:48.990 record bin. You can sample voices that never 00:07:48.990 --> 00:07:52.329 existed. You can blend genres that never met. 00:07:52.870 --> 00:07:55.449 You can manipulate sound in ways that stretch 00:07:55.449 --> 00:07:58.970 the imagination. But, and this is a big but, 00:07:59.740 --> 00:08:03.180 It still takes human hands to shape it. Human 00:08:03.180 --> 00:08:06.639 ears to hear the nuance. Human hearts to give 00:08:06.639 --> 00:08:10.300 it. Feeling. Because you can feed AI a library. 00:08:10.779 --> 00:08:14.899 But you can't feed it. Your childhood. You can 00:08:14.899 --> 00:08:17.519 train a model with the drum patterns. But you 00:08:17.519 --> 00:08:21.319 can't train it. On soul. Only you. Have that. 00:08:21.680 --> 00:08:25.160 Only Fington has that. That's why his music hits 00:08:25.160 --> 00:08:28.259 different. That's why every beat feels like it 00:08:28.259 --> 00:08:31.040 remembers something. Because it comes from lived 00:08:31.040 --> 00:08:35.960 experience, from heartbreak, from joy, from curiosity, 00:08:36.299 --> 00:08:39.779 from countless late nights and quiet mornings 00:08:39.779 --> 00:08:42.899 where only the speakers were awake. Why make 00:08:42.899 --> 00:08:47.620 music? So now let's talk about transformation. 00:08:48.340 --> 00:08:51.200 Because when you sample, you don't just loop, 00:08:51.360 --> 00:08:54.720 you evolve. You take something that was one thing, 00:08:54.879 --> 00:09:00.649 and you shape it into something new. It's a conversation, 00:09:01.049 --> 00:09:05.529 and every flip, every chop, every stretch, is 00:09:05.529 --> 00:09:08.549 a message back to the original. I heard you, 00:09:08.710 --> 00:09:13.110 I feel you, now let me speak. I need to be heard. 00:09:13.710 --> 00:09:17.429 That's why I always say, sampling is a form of 00:09:17.429 --> 00:09:21.269 reverence. It's musical ancestry. It's honoring 00:09:21.269 --> 00:09:23.629 the foundation by building a new floor above 00:09:23.629 --> 00:09:28.070 it. And think Tim, he builds floors, like a cathedral. 00:09:29.129 --> 00:09:32.750 His work doesn't just bounce. It breathes. It 00:09:32.750 --> 00:09:36.330 feels limited. It feels warm, in the best way. 00:09:36.789 --> 00:09:40.470 Like denim. Like family. You hear one of his 00:09:40.470 --> 00:09:43.889 tracks, and it's like, yeah, I've been here before. 00:09:44.350 --> 00:09:46.789 And maybe that's the beauty of music done right. 00:09:47.409 --> 00:09:50.710 It brings us back to ourselves. But even more 00:09:50.710 --> 00:09:54.230 than that, it invites others in. Because when 00:09:54.230 --> 00:09:56.330 you hear something familiar and something new, 00:09:56.529 --> 00:10:01.720 you feel connected. You feel welcomed. And isn't 00:10:01.720 --> 00:10:04.659 that what we all want from music? To feel like 00:10:04.659 --> 00:10:08.100 we belong inside it. That's what Why Make Music 00:10:08.100 --> 00:10:12.539 dot dot dot is about. It's not just a platform. 00:10:12.840 --> 00:10:17.159 It's not just a podcast. It's a feeling. That's 00:10:17.159 --> 00:10:19.799 what the merch represents. That's what the website 00:10:19.799 --> 00:10:23.639 holds. That's what the catalogue speaks. Every 00:10:23.639 --> 00:10:28.039 beat. Every episode. Every hoodie, tee, sticker, 00:10:28.259 --> 00:10:32.460 and print. It's all part of the movement. So 00:10:32.460 --> 00:10:37.700 yeah, go visit www .teepublic .com slash thinktim 00:10:37.700 --> 00:10:44.480 and thinktim .threadless .com Not because I said 00:10:44.480 --> 00:10:48.659 so, but because you feel it. Because you recognize 00:10:48.659 --> 00:10:52.500 that this isn't fast fashion. It's future frequency. 00:10:53.440 --> 00:10:56.539 It's wearable wisdom. It's culture on cotton. 00:10:56.799 --> 00:11:02.799 Why make music? To speak. To connect. To clothe. 00:11:03.000 --> 00:11:07.080 The soul in sound. You hear that? That's the 00:11:07.080 --> 00:11:11.480 chant. That's the rhythm. Rising from the basement 00:11:11.480 --> 00:11:16.679 to the rafters. That's a million voices. In the 00:11:16.679 --> 00:11:20.679 country of India. Chanting in unison. Willa may. 00:11:20.980 --> 00:11:35.980 We want more. This is Revival. This is Ritual. 00:11:36.379 --> 00:11:39.879 We've turned this mic into a pulpit and this 00:11:39.879 --> 00:11:43.159 beat into a bomb. And what we're doing here, 00:11:43.220 --> 00:11:47.019 it's not just documentation. It's liberation. 00:11:47.480 --> 00:11:51.129 Because for too long, this industry Made us feel 00:11:51.129 --> 00:11:54.590 like we had to pick a lane Like we couldn't sample 00:11:54.590 --> 00:11:59.129 and still be serious Like we couldn't be soulful 00:11:59.129 --> 00:12:02.769 and still be strategic But I'm here to tell you 00:12:02.769 --> 00:12:06.549 You can sample James Brown and run a business 00:12:06.549 --> 00:12:10.570 You can loop Nina Simone and license your sync 00:12:10.570 --> 00:12:14.549 You can flip gospel records and wear your own 00:12:14.549 --> 00:12:17.870 merch line like a crown Because we are not limited 00:12:18.750 --> 00:12:21.990 We are layered. We are producers and poets and 00:12:21.990 --> 00:12:25.230 publishers and prophets. And you better believe 00:12:25.230 --> 00:12:28.730 that's what Think Tim represents. That's why 00:12:28.730 --> 00:12:34.009 when I say T -H -I -N -K -T -I -M -M I say it 00:12:34.009 --> 00:12:38.110 slow. I say it clear. Because names carry weight. 00:12:38.409 --> 00:12:43.210 And his, his name carries legacy. Legacy built 00:12:43.210 --> 00:12:47.679 from scratch. Legacy built from silence. Legacy 00:12:47.679 --> 00:12:51.220 built one beat, one bounce, one breath at a time. 00:12:51.659 --> 00:12:55.059 That's what this whole thing is about. Why make 00:12:55.059 --> 00:13:00.279 music? To remind the world who we are. To tell 00:13:00.279 --> 00:13:02.720 our story before someone else tries to sample 00:13:02.720 --> 00:13:06.220 it without credit. To loop our culture on our 00:13:06.220 --> 00:13:11.039 own terms. So yeah, I hear the crowd. I feel 00:13:11.039 --> 00:13:15.299 the swell. And baby, I'm not stopping. Because 00:13:15.299 --> 00:13:18.000 we're not just in the pocket. We are the groove. 00:13:18.580 --> 00:13:21.559 And since we're riding waves, let's look ahead. 00:13:22.139 --> 00:13:25.159 Let's set our coordinates, power up the engines, 00:13:25.460 --> 00:13:28.659 and aim that wave motion gun dead at the future. 00:13:28.879 --> 00:13:31.919 Because what's coming? It's not just a continuation. 00:13:32.379 --> 00:13:37.620 It's a convergence. Sampling. AI. Virtual performances. 00:13:38.659 --> 00:13:42.120 Algorithmic curation. Synthetic voices. Spitting 00:13:42.120 --> 00:13:45.309 bars written by machine minds. And some folks 00:13:45.309 --> 00:13:48.250 out there, they're scared. They're frozen in 00:13:48.250 --> 00:13:51.409 the past. They don't know what to do with a world 00:13:51.409 --> 00:13:54.649 where the groove thinks for itself. But let me 00:13:54.649 --> 00:13:58.830 be clear. DJ Warm Cookies ain't scared. Willa 00:13:58.830 --> 00:14:02.470 Mae. She was born for this. Because the future 00:14:02.470 --> 00:14:07.570 doesn't wait. It invites. It challenges. It samples 00:14:07.570 --> 00:14:10.429 the best of who we've been. And stretches it 00:14:10.429 --> 00:14:13.879 forward. And we, we're not fighting the wave. 00:14:14.159 --> 00:14:17.200 We're riding it. We're pressing record in the 00:14:17.200 --> 00:14:20.659 eye of the storm. We're looping moonlight. We're 00:14:20.659 --> 00:14:23.519 chopping lightning. Because the art form ain't 00:14:23.519 --> 00:14:27.100 going extinct. It's evolving. Pink Tim knows 00:14:27.100 --> 00:14:30.299 this. That's why he stays ahead without forgetting 00:14:30.299 --> 00:14:33.259 where he came from. He's already using tools 00:14:33.259 --> 00:14:36.480 most folks haven't even heard of. He's training 00:14:36.480 --> 00:14:39.950 systems to echo soul. He's bending tech to the 00:14:39.950 --> 00:14:43.190 will of tradition. And that's the future. It's 00:14:43.190 --> 00:14:46.690 not binary. It's not cold. It's not disconnected. 00:14:47.090 --> 00:14:50.649 It's soulful. It's sampled. It's syncopated. 00:14:50.909 --> 00:14:54.070 And it's branded in bold, embroidered letters. 00:14:54.590 --> 00:14:59.090 Why make music? You want to know what's next? 00:14:59.409 --> 00:15:02.970 It's already here. It's streaming. It's looping. 00:15:03.129 --> 00:15:08.700 It's available now on www .thinktim .com. On 00:15:08.700 --> 00:15:12.159 Spotify. On Apple. On every platform that can 00:15:12.159 --> 00:15:15.139 carry vibration. And in every moment where the 00:15:15.139 --> 00:15:18.960 silence needs to speak. So hold tight. Because 00:15:18.960 --> 00:15:21.940 we're about to jump to light speed. And wherever 00:15:21.940 --> 00:15:25.120 we land. We're bringing the funk with us. For 00:15:25.120 --> 00:15:29.440 all to groove. Transmission received. Frequency 00:15:29.440 --> 00:15:34.120 locked. And the next signal. Oh baby. It's pure 00:15:34.120 --> 00:15:38.559 electricity. This one's for the believers. The 00:15:38.559 --> 00:15:41.759 bedroom beat makers. The church -trained vocalists 00:15:41.759 --> 00:15:44.720 laying hooks on cracked software. The high school 00:15:44.720 --> 00:15:47.240 kids uploading SoundCloud links like lifelines. 00:15:47.679 --> 00:15:50.860 This one's for the doubters too. The ones who 00:15:50.860 --> 00:15:53.519 stopped creating because someone told them it 00:15:53.519 --> 00:15:56.460 wasn't real music. The ones who shelved their 00:15:56.460 --> 00:15:59.539 dream after the third rejection. The ones who 00:15:59.539 --> 00:16:03.100 were told, sampling ain't original. I'm here 00:16:03.100 --> 00:16:06.539 to tell you, not only is it original, it's essential. 00:16:07.690 --> 00:16:11.549 Because originality doesn't mean isolation. It 00:16:11.549 --> 00:16:15.250 means innovation. It means transformation. And 00:16:15.250 --> 00:16:18.470 guess what? We've been innovating. We've been 00:16:18.470 --> 00:16:22.029 transforming. Since wax cylinders and coded drums 00:16:22.029 --> 00:16:25.529 on talking drums. Since spirituals in the field 00:16:25.529 --> 00:16:29.110 morphed into jazz, blues, funk, and hip -hop. 00:16:29.970 --> 00:16:32.649 Sampling is just the latest chapter in a book 00:16:32.649 --> 00:16:35.389 we've been writing in 12 eighths time since before 00:16:35.389 --> 00:16:38.399 they gave us paper. So don't you dare let anybody 00:16:38.399 --> 00:16:41.039 make you feel like you're less of an artist because 00:16:41.039 --> 00:16:44.519 your song started with a sample. You didn't start 00:16:44.519 --> 00:16:47.419 with someone else's idea. You started with their 00:16:47.419 --> 00:16:50.600 spirit. And you built a bridge from their heartbeat 00:16:50.600 --> 00:16:54.840 to yours. That's sacred. That's science. Why 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:58.980 make music? Because we are carriers of rhythm. 00:16:59.580 --> 00:17:02.600 Because we are guardians of groove. Because we 00:17:02.600 --> 00:17:05.700 don't just move to the beat. We are the beat. 00:17:06.200 --> 00:17:09.420 And the world. It needs us now more than ever. 00:17:09.819 --> 00:17:13.680 So keep making. Keep flipping. Keep looping. 00:17:13.940 --> 00:17:16.759 And when they ask you what it's all for. You 00:17:16.759 --> 00:17:19.240 tell them. It's for the ones who came before 00:17:19.240 --> 00:17:22.740 me. It's for the ones who come next. It's for 00:17:22.740 --> 00:17:25.859 the culture. It's for the community. It's for 00:17:25.859 --> 00:17:29.480 the movement. And it's for me. Let that transmission 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:33.319 echo. Let it resonate. Let it ripple through 00:17:33.319 --> 00:17:36.269 the next generation. Because we're not done yet. 00:17:36.569 --> 00:17:39.710 We're just getting tuned in. Now breathe with 00:17:39.710 --> 00:17:44.250 me. Now relax. Inhale the hi -hats. Exhale the 00:17:44.250 --> 00:17:47.089 kick drum. Let the bass line steady your pulse. 00:17:47.450 --> 00:17:50.829 Because this next part, it's not about the past. 00:17:51.390 --> 00:17:54.549 It's not even about the future. It's about right 00:17:54.549 --> 00:17:58.789 now. This moment. This breath. This loop we're 00:17:58.789 --> 00:18:02.259 living in. Right now. There's someone out there 00:18:02.259 --> 00:18:04.819 sitting in front of a cracked laptop with free 00:18:04.819 --> 00:18:08.380 plugins and a $40 controller and some Dre beats 00:18:08.380 --> 00:18:11.859 from 2012, wondering if they should even keep 00:18:11.859 --> 00:18:15.759 going. This part is for them. Let me tell you 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:18.980 something, Tommy. If the beat is in you, that's 00:18:18.980 --> 00:18:21.960 all you need. You don't need industry connections. 00:18:22.440 --> 00:18:25.759 You don't need fancy gear. You don't need permission. 00:18:26.299 --> 00:18:29.859 What you need is belief. You need volume in your 00:18:29.859 --> 00:18:33.640 heart. Not just your monitors. You need consistency, 00:18:34.059 --> 00:18:37.940 not clout. And you need community. That's what 00:18:37.940 --> 00:18:42.900 Why Make Music... is building. A community of 00:18:42.900 --> 00:18:45.700 creators who understand that sound is sacred. 00:18:46.200 --> 00:18:50.420 That music is a language understood by all. Think 00:18:50.420 --> 00:18:53.839 Tim knows this. That's why he never strays from 00:18:53.839 --> 00:18:57.339 the groove. That's why his beats breathe. That's 00:18:57.339 --> 00:19:00.009 why his tracks have weight. Because he's not 00:19:00.009 --> 00:19:03.869 trying to go viral. He's trying to go deep. So 00:19:03.869 --> 00:19:07.210 let's keep going. Let's keep building. Let's 00:19:07.210 --> 00:19:09.930 keep making our music into the foundation of 00:19:09.930 --> 00:19:12.569 tomorrow. Because the world's gonna keep spinning. 00:19:12.849 --> 00:19:15.329 And it's up to us to give it a soundtrack worth 00:19:15.329 --> 00:19:19.329 dancing to. To keep feeling human. Even when 00:19:19.329 --> 00:19:22.609 the machines start singing. Now I want to shift 00:19:22.609 --> 00:19:25.630 for a moment. From the technology to the texture. 00:19:26.329 --> 00:19:29.809 Let's talk about feel. Because in this age of 00:19:29.809 --> 00:19:33.589 perfect quantization and pristine plugins, sometimes 00:19:33.589 --> 00:19:37.529 what's missing is the dirt. The hiss of the tape. 00:19:37.769 --> 00:19:41.349 The pop of the vinyl. The slight drag of a finger 00:19:41.349 --> 00:19:44.250 just a fraction behind the beat. That's what 00:19:44.250 --> 00:19:47.890 makes a track come alive. See, when Think Tim 00:19:47.890 --> 00:19:50.609 builds an instrumental, he's not chasing perfection. 00:19:51.029 --> 00:19:55.160 He's chasing presence. He's chasing vibe. You 00:19:55.160 --> 00:19:57.839 can feel when a beat was made at 3am with the 00:19:57.839 --> 00:20:01.099 lights low. You can feel when it was made during 00:20:01.099 --> 00:20:04.299 a crazy breakthrough. Or after a nervous breakdown. 00:20:05.119 --> 00:20:08.420 We don't just make music. We keep emotions from 00:20:08.420 --> 00:20:11.539 disappearing. Every note we play is a memory 00:20:11.539 --> 00:20:15.460 we refuse to forget. Every beat we program, or 00:20:15.460 --> 00:20:18.079 for those sampling, is an echo turned into expression. 00:20:18.759 --> 00:20:21.640 And don't get it twisted. Producing isn't easy. 00:20:22.339 --> 00:20:26.420 It's not just drag and drop. It's hours of contemplating. 00:20:26.599 --> 00:20:30.380 Of hit or miss. Of questioning. Of believing. 00:20:30.819 --> 00:20:34.799 And then, you still have to make it work. Make 00:20:34.799 --> 00:20:37.720 it sound like it has existed forever. Because 00:20:37.720 --> 00:20:39.940 the goal ain't imitation, it's transformation. 00:20:40.700 --> 00:20:43.940 Think Tim knows this. That's why his projects 00:20:43.940 --> 00:20:47.599 aren't just beat tapes. They're storybooks. From 00:20:47.599 --> 00:20:51.279 Demotional, to Noman Clefture. To the next project 00:20:51.279 --> 00:20:54.490 you haven't even heard yet. It's all created 00:20:54.490 --> 00:20:57.650 with care. That's why we say his name fully. 00:20:58.029 --> 00:21:03.329 T -H -I -N -K -T -I -M -M. Because every syllable 00:21:03.329 --> 00:21:06.690 carries intent. And every track is a message 00:21:06.690 --> 00:21:09.750 to the next generation. You don't need permission 00:21:09.750 --> 00:21:12.529 to be brilliant. You just need to press record. 00:21:13.130 --> 00:21:18.190 Why make music? Because it's how we stay heard, 00:21:18.349 --> 00:21:22.119 even in silence. And here's the thing. They'll 00:21:22.119 --> 00:21:24.940 try to tell you this is a trend. They'll say, 00:21:25.059 --> 00:21:28.700 sampling is overdone. They'll say, it's not original. 00:21:29.220 --> 00:21:32.859 They'll say, everybody's doing it. But they don't 00:21:32.859 --> 00:21:35.740 understand that a sample, that creation, is never 00:21:35.740 --> 00:21:38.740 just a sound. It comes from a creative force. 00:21:39.079 --> 00:21:43.900 A voice in one's mind. It's a timestamp. It's 00:21:43.900 --> 00:21:47.200 a location. It's an emotion trapped in a groove. 00:21:48.240 --> 00:21:50.839 Sampling is the art of pulling a moment out of 00:21:50.839 --> 00:21:55.619 time and saying, this, this still matters. It's 00:21:55.619 --> 00:21:58.680 what we do when words fail us. It's what we do 00:21:58.680 --> 00:22:01.900 when we need to remember. Our memories are samples, 00:22:02.019 --> 00:22:05.119 because music triggers the closest thing we have 00:22:05.119 --> 00:22:09.019 to time travel. And sampling, sampling is the 00:22:09.019 --> 00:22:12.900 flux capacitor, and music is our DeLorean. It's 00:22:12.900 --> 00:22:15.730 how we visit grandmom's house again. It's how 00:22:15.730 --> 00:22:18.130 we bring back the smell of the block you grew 00:22:18.130 --> 00:22:21.450 up on. Even cleaning the house with mom on Saturday 00:22:21.450 --> 00:22:25.009 morning after watching cartoons. Blasting planet 00:22:25.009 --> 00:22:28.089 rock while sitting on the porch. It's how we 00:22:28.089 --> 00:22:30.329 relive the first time we fell in love with sound. 00:22:31.049 --> 00:22:33.190 It's not nostalgia for the sake of nostalgia. 00:22:33.789 --> 00:22:37.470 It's preservation. And no one understands preservation 00:22:37.470 --> 00:22:40.710 like Think Tim. That's why he's not just a beat 00:22:40.710 --> 00:22:44.220 maker. Not just an independent producer. He's 00:22:44.220 --> 00:22:47.640 an archivist. Every track he creates is layered 00:22:47.640 --> 00:22:51.240 with history. Every project he drops is a museum 00:22:51.240 --> 00:22:53.559 of his memories flunking and jabbing in your 00:22:53.559 --> 00:22:57.539 head. You ever like something? A sound of a guitar, 00:22:57.779 --> 00:23:01.180 and don't know why? Did you ever wonder why the 00:23:01.180 --> 00:23:03.740 drums and the bass and that lead line is stuck 00:23:03.740 --> 00:23:07.559 in your brain? That's intentional. That's memory 00:23:07.559 --> 00:23:11.259 doing its dance. That's the sample. That seed. 00:23:11.599 --> 00:23:15.680 That voice whispering. I'm still here. So shout 00:23:15.680 --> 00:23:19.019 out again to Think Tim. That's T -H -I -N -K 00:23:19.019 --> 00:23:22.359 -T -I -M -M. Because without producers like him, 00:23:22.500 --> 00:23:25.000 the soundscape would be a little less alive. 00:23:25.500 --> 00:23:28.059 And to anyone listening who's ever questioned 00:23:28.059 --> 00:23:30.500 if their art is valid because it borrows from 00:23:30.500 --> 00:23:34.039 the past. Even Think Tim knows everything comes 00:23:34.039 --> 00:23:38.500 from somewhere. Borrowing isn't stealing. Borrowing 00:23:38.500 --> 00:23:42.380 is building. Borrowing is bridging. Borrowing 00:23:42.380 --> 00:23:45.460 is belief. Belief that the past still matters. 00:23:46.160 --> 00:23:48.779 Belief that you can carry it and play it forward. 00:23:49.519 --> 00:23:52.019 Belief that your voice belongs in the same room 00:23:52.019 --> 00:23:54.940 as the greats. Also with the way music moves 00:23:54.940 --> 00:23:59.220 today in 2025, you sampling someone may offer 00:23:59.220 --> 00:24:01.839 them a chance at financial security that may 00:24:01.839 --> 00:24:05.380 not have existed in their prime. Why make music? 00:24:05.849 --> 00:24:09.569 Dot dot dot. Because we hear the echoes. And 00:24:09.569 --> 00:24:12.910 we refuse to let them fade. Let's talk community. 00:24:13.589 --> 00:24:16.710 Because sampling doesn't live in a vacuum. It 00:24:16.710 --> 00:24:19.569 doesn't happen in isolation. It's born out of 00:24:19.569 --> 00:24:23.950 connection. Collaboration. Conversation. It's 00:24:23.950 --> 00:24:26.369 one producer in Philly flipping a groove that 00:24:26.369 --> 00:24:29.630 was born in Detroit. That sampled a choir recorded 00:24:29.630 --> 00:24:32.690 in Mississippi. That was inspired by a rhythm 00:24:32.690 --> 00:24:35.759 carried across oceans. by enslaved ancestors, 00:24:36.240 --> 00:24:40.000 who refused to let their music die. See the thread? 00:24:40.460 --> 00:24:43.539 That's the beauty of it. Sampling is lineage 00:24:43.539 --> 00:24:47.319 in loop form. And just like blood, it moves. 00:24:47.579 --> 00:24:52.140 It evolves. It adapts. It survives. It survives 00:24:52.140 --> 00:24:55.839 algorithms. It survives censorship. It survives 00:24:55.839 --> 00:24:59.599 being misunderstood. Because the truth is, some 00:24:59.599 --> 00:25:02.359 things were never meant to be explained. They 00:25:02.359 --> 00:25:05.200 were meant to be felt. That's why we sample. 00:25:05.859 --> 00:25:08.480 That's why Think Tim creates beats that don't 00:25:08.480 --> 00:25:11.859 just knock. They communicate. They speak to the 00:25:11.859 --> 00:25:14.960 parts of us we thought we'd forgotten. You hear 00:25:14.960 --> 00:25:17.619 a Think Tim instrumental and your head nods before 00:25:17.619 --> 00:25:20.680 your brain even catches up. That's ancestral 00:25:20.680 --> 00:25:24.680 design. That's rhythm in the DNA. That's what 00:25:24.680 --> 00:25:28.380 this whole brand is about. Why make music? Dot 00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:31.920 dot dot isn't just a podcast. It's not just a 00:25:31.920 --> 00:25:35.170 tagline. It's not just merch, though the merch 00:25:35.170 --> 00:25:38.710 is dope. And yes, I'm talking about that gear 00:25:38.710 --> 00:25:41.910 you can cop right now at tpublic .com, thinktim, 00:25:42.049 --> 00:25:48.670 and thinktim .threadless .com. It's a reminder. 00:25:49.049 --> 00:25:52.509 It's a declaration. It's an invitation to tell 00:25:52.509 --> 00:25:56.150 your story. Because in the end, that's all sampling 00:25:56.150 --> 00:25:59.849 really is. Storytelling. Through frequencies. 00:26:00.210 --> 00:26:04.210 Through feeling. Through fragments. And we take 00:26:04.210 --> 00:26:06.910 those fragments. And we make them whole again. 00:26:07.450 --> 00:26:10.710 And let's be real sometimes. The fragments are 00:26:10.710 --> 00:26:14.349 all we have. A dusty record your uncle left behind. 00:26:14.910 --> 00:26:18.789 A sample pack you downloaded at 2am. A voice 00:26:18.789 --> 00:26:21.549 memo you forgot about, but suddenly hits just 00:26:21.549 --> 00:26:26.230 right. It don't take much to spark a flame. Producers 00:26:26.230 --> 00:26:29.359 know this better than most. We live for that 00:26:29.359 --> 00:26:32.299 flicker. That sound that makes you sit up straight. 00:26:32.680 --> 00:26:35.880 That one second of magic in a five minute track. 00:26:36.319 --> 00:26:40.039 That's the pulse. That's the inspiration. And 00:26:40.039 --> 00:26:42.940 that's what makes the work sacred. Because this 00:26:42.940 --> 00:26:47.140 ain't just music. It's ministry. Sampling is 00:26:47.140 --> 00:26:51.440 ceremony. Beat making is ritual. Mixing is meditation. 00:26:52.279 --> 00:26:55.279 That's what Think Tim does every time he steps 00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:58.430 into his creative space. He's not just sequencing 00:26:58.430 --> 00:27:02.309 sounds. He's communing with spirit. Every album 00:27:02.309 --> 00:27:06.069 he drops. That's altar work. You can hear it 00:27:06.069 --> 00:27:08.849 in the swing of the drums. You can feel it in 00:27:08.849 --> 00:27:11.710 the chord progressions. You can sense it in the 00:27:11.710 --> 00:27:14.809 silence between bars. This isn't production. 00:27:15.190 --> 00:27:17.970 This is prayer. And if you've ever been in that 00:27:17.970 --> 00:27:21.450 zone. Where the beat makes itself and the melody 00:27:21.450 --> 00:27:24.430 pours through you like water. You know what I'm 00:27:24.430 --> 00:27:27.099 talking about. That's when you're not just making 00:27:27.099 --> 00:27:30.579 music. You're remembering it. You're tuning in 00:27:30.579 --> 00:27:33.099 to something older than you. Wiser than you. 00:27:33.380 --> 00:27:36.759 More alive than you expected. That's the moment 00:27:36.759 --> 00:27:40.400 where art meets ancestry. And for a few seconds, 00:27:40.700 --> 00:27:43.980 you're not just you. You're everybody that ever 00:27:43.980 --> 00:27:47.559 came before. That's what I mean when I say, why 00:27:47.559 --> 00:27:51.079 make music, dot dot dot. Because it brings us 00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:54.700 home. And I know, home doesn't always feel like 00:27:54.700 --> 00:27:58.359 a place. Sometimes it's a frequency. Sometimes 00:27:58.359 --> 00:28:01.440 it's a drum pattern. A chord that opens your 00:28:01.440 --> 00:28:04.940 chest. A melody that makes you cry and don't 00:28:04.940 --> 00:28:09.380 even know why. That's what music does. It bypasses 00:28:09.380 --> 00:28:12.240 logic. It speaks in the language of feeling. 00:28:12.599 --> 00:28:17.200 And when we sample, we speak in dialect. We sample 00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:19.559 because we want to hold onto something we weren't 00:28:19.559 --> 00:28:22.839 ready to let go of. We sample because it reminds 00:28:22.839 --> 00:28:26.109 us of what's true. We sample because sometimes 00:28:26.109 --> 00:28:29.529 the past says it better than we ever could. That's 00:28:29.529 --> 00:28:32.809 not copying. That's communion. And if you've 00:28:32.809 --> 00:28:35.450 been listening to this podcast or anything from 00:28:35.450 --> 00:28:38.450 Think Tim, you already know that's the mission. 00:28:39.009 --> 00:28:42.170 He's not chasing clout. He's not following trends. 00:28:42.829 --> 00:28:46.309 He's building something timeless. You feel it 00:28:46.309 --> 00:28:50.069 in his drums. You see it in his structure. You 00:28:50.069 --> 00:28:53.789 hear it in the silence he allows. That's an artist 00:28:53.789 --> 00:28:57.049 who trusts the space. And when you trust the 00:28:57.049 --> 00:29:01.230 space, you allow the spirit to show up. You don't 00:29:01.230 --> 00:29:04.930 force the beat. You follow it. You don't fight 00:29:04.930 --> 00:29:08.789 the sample. You finesse it. And that's what separates 00:29:08.789 --> 00:29:12.210 a loop from a legacy. Think Tim is building legacy. 00:29:12.750 --> 00:29:15.690 That's why it's more than music. That's why the 00:29:15.690 --> 00:29:18.650 brand matters. That's why this podcast is different. 00:29:19.359 --> 00:29:24.259 Why make music? Isn't asking a question. It's 00:29:24.259 --> 00:29:28.079 answering one. It's saying, we're here. We're 00:29:28.079 --> 00:29:31.119 creating. We're remembering. We're imagining. 00:29:31.400 --> 00:29:34.359 And if you've got something to say, then it's 00:29:34.359 --> 00:29:37.660 time to sample your story. Sample your tears. 00:29:38.339 --> 00:29:42.740 Sample your triumphs. Sample your dreams. Because 00:29:42.740 --> 00:29:46.220 someone out there needs that sound. Needs your 00:29:46.220 --> 00:29:49.559 truth. Needs your memory turned into melody. 00:29:50.019 --> 00:29:55.859 Why make music? Not to follow rules, but to rewrite 00:29:55.859 --> 00:30:00.259 them. Not to replicate, but to reimagine. Now 00:30:00.259 --> 00:30:03.200 let's talk about the 1980s, where technology 00:30:03.200 --> 00:30:06.839 met culture and changed everything. Enter the 00:30:06.839 --> 00:30:11.940 Fairlight CMI, the emulator, the SP -1200. These 00:30:11.940 --> 00:30:15.079 weren't just machines. These were magic boxes. 00:30:16.089 --> 00:30:19.450 Gateways to sonic alchemy. You fed them vinyl. 00:30:19.630 --> 00:30:23.069 You gave them fragments. And what you got back? 00:30:23.230 --> 00:30:27.069 Whole new worlds. Producers became composers. 00:30:27.869 --> 00:30:31.730 DJs became architects. People who had never touched 00:30:31.730 --> 00:30:34.269 a traditional instrument were now scoring the 00:30:34.269 --> 00:30:37.470 soundtracks to our lives. And again, this wasn't 00:30:37.470 --> 00:30:40.470 theft. This wasn't cheating. This was innovation. 00:30:40.950 --> 00:30:44.579 This was survival. Because see, when you come 00:30:44.579 --> 00:30:46.619 from a place where they don't give you orchestras, 00:30:46.740 --> 00:30:49.619 you turn your record player into a string section. 00:30:50.319 --> 00:30:53.440 When they don't give you synths, you flip a snare 00:30:53.440 --> 00:30:57.359 and pitch it up till it sings. Sampling is how 00:30:57.359 --> 00:31:00.579 we took what we had and made it beautiful. And 00:31:00.579 --> 00:31:03.200 look, I'm not here to romanticize the struggle. 00:31:03.819 --> 00:31:05.920 But let's not ignore the brilliance that came 00:31:05.920 --> 00:31:08.880 out of it either. I think about the first time 00:31:08.880 --> 00:31:12.099 I heard Public Enemy. The bomb squad was layering 00:31:12.099 --> 00:31:16.460 samples like it was jazz. Horn snaps. Screams. 00:31:16.759 --> 00:31:21.880 Sirens. Malcolm X speeches. Funk hits. You didn't 00:31:21.880 --> 00:31:24.940 just listen, you got hit in the chest. It was 00:31:24.940 --> 00:31:28.720 chaotic. It was radical. It was black. And it 00:31:28.720 --> 00:31:32.279 was brilliant. Sampling was language. Protest. 00:31:32.700 --> 00:31:36.480 Power. And to this day, that spirit lives in 00:31:36.480 --> 00:31:40.000 every track that dares to remix reality. That's 00:31:40.000 --> 00:31:42.779 the energy Think Tim channels in every instrumental. 00:31:43.200 --> 00:31:47.119 You feel me? This ain't background music. This 00:31:47.119 --> 00:31:50.019 is coded communication. Go streamed emotional. 00:31:50.380 --> 00:31:54.420 Quote feelings. Go play nomenclature. Verbal 00:31:54.420 --> 00:31:58.799 scales. Go experience those instrumentals. Each 00:31:58.799 --> 00:32:03.789 one is a diary. A document. A declaration. Because 00:32:03.789 --> 00:32:06.910 think to him isn't just making beats. He's building 00:32:06.910 --> 00:32:11.470 memory. Why make music? Dot dot dot. And just 00:32:11.470 --> 00:32:14.549 like that, we've come to the end of another rhythm. 00:32:14.809 --> 00:32:18.250 Another reflection. Another reminder of why we 00:32:18.250 --> 00:32:21.470 do what we do. You've been listening to Why Make 00:32:21.470 --> 00:32:25.009 Music? Dot dot dot. And I've been your host, 00:32:25.210 --> 00:32:29.190 DJ Warm Cookies. But now that we're family. Just 00:32:29.190 --> 00:32:32.650 call me Willa Mae. I want to thank you, yes, 00:32:32.849 --> 00:32:36.430 you, for riding with us today. Whether you were 00:32:36.430 --> 00:32:39.930 walking, working, vibing, or just taking a moment 00:32:39.930 --> 00:32:42.710 to breathe, I hope this episode gave you something 00:32:42.710 --> 00:32:46.750 to feel. Now don't forget, every groove you heard 00:32:46.750 --> 00:32:49.490 playing underneath this monologue, that was crafted 00:32:49.490 --> 00:32:53.309 by the man himself, Think Tim. That's T -H -I 00:32:53.309 --> 00:32:58.900 -N -K -T -I -M -M. Artist. Architect. Archivist 00:32:58.900 --> 00:33:03.019 of sound. The soul behind the silence. Give that 00:33:03.019 --> 00:33:05.900 man his flowers, and stream everything he's ever 00:33:05.900 --> 00:33:08.660 touched. And if you love what we're building 00:33:08.660 --> 00:33:12.799 here, this movement, this mantra, tap in. Follow 00:33:12.799 --> 00:33:30.630 the journey website. merch, tpublic .com slash 00:33:30.630 --> 00:33:36.890 thinktim, plus thinktim .threadless .com, and 00:33:36.890 --> 00:33:40.329 stream the music on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, 00:33:40.710 --> 00:33:44.089 Tidal, Amazon Music, wherever vibrations live. 00:33:44.569 --> 00:33:48.609 As for me, well, let's just say, this might not 00:33:48.609 --> 00:33:50.970 be the last time you hear my voice on this podcast. 00:33:52.119 --> 00:33:54.420 They might be keeping a mic wall for DJ warm 00:33:54.420 --> 00:33:57.700 cookies after all. Until next time, keep your 00:33:57.700 --> 00:34:00.839 spirit in tune, your sample packs loaded, and 00:34:00.839 --> 00:34:05.220 your heart on beat. Why make music? Because the 00:34:05.220 --> 00:34:09.119 groove never lies. Peace, love, and resonance. 00:34:10.019 --> 00:34:11.119 Willa Mae out.