Hi everyone - back after a little self-imposed isolation in order to try and get some inspiration back.
I hope you like this track - I'd love to write a whole album of this kinda fusion between the sacred and hip-hop. Until that becomes reality, curious to hear what you think of this one - THANKS, as always, for your time in listening and hopefully commenting on it ... all feedback very welcome, of course.
EDIT, 2 February 2021: just added a video for it :-)
THE LYRICS:
DONA NOBIS PACEM
Kyrie. Eleison.
Christe. Eleison.
Gloria in excelsis Deo.
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord ... Do This In Memory of Me.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in heaven.
Our daily bread, give us today, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.
Let us not fall into temptation, but deliver us from evil ...
Dona nobis pacem. Amen.
THE BAND
****** Song Summary ************* Title: Dona Nobis Pacem - 1 February 2021 File:Dona Nobis Pacem - 1 February 2021.SGU Key=Bbm, Tempo 65, Length (m:s)=3:19 No intro. 50 bar chorus, from bar 1 to bar 50. Repeat x1 chorus No Melody No Soloist track. Song is saved with Volume, Pan, Reverb, Chorus, Bank0, Style is _PROVISO.STY (Proviso Minimal Chillout Pop)
RealTracks in style: ~2579:Bass, Synth, RnBModernSub Ev16 065 RealTracks in style: 1542:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm PopBelieve Ev16 065 Loop in Song: Chillout\Chillout - air_74_ conga_e_minor ev16.wav RealTracks in style: 2542:Pedal Steel, Background ModernBalladAtmosphere Ev16 065 Loop in Song: Chillout\Chillout - chilly night_80_percussion_a_minor ev16.wav RealDrums [in style:RnBModernEv16^01-a:Kick, Clap , b:Kick, LightHiHat
*******************
Done in Audacity, with dynamics compressor and proximity correction effects. Run through Bandlab Mastering, with the Enhance Clarity effect. Added Hi-Fi Scoop effect to the voice track only, mastered again on Soundcloud, then reduced volume in Audacity for a final render. In other words: messed around with it randomly until I liked how it sounded :-)
Last edited by musician17; 02/01/2107:30 PM. Reason: added YouTube video
what an interesting fusion between sacred music and hiphop. Maybe the new genre could be called "worsHIP-HOP"
I never would have thought of this in a million years. I don't know if that means it's creative, but it certain involves thinking outside MY box! Very cool.
"WorsHIP-HOP" ... superb!!! Now THAT's creative! :-)
The only reason I thought of it is that I saw Eminem on TV, a few years ago, getting absolute pelters just because he's not afraid to write some dark hip-hop, etc. . As he himself said, people were like: "He's full of hate, so let's kill him" . Anyway, I thought: what if I wrote sacred stuff on top of hip-hop music? That way, I could preserve the sound and no-one could say it's full of hate, because the text is worshipful ... and that's how I got into "worsHIP-HOP" :-)
How creative and surprising; the melody versus the lyrics! And beside that, your performance with the band is very good. Your recordings have improved a lot like your way of singing. I think this is 'your thing'. If you didn't know that, just continue on this musical path...
Oh, after typing this I just notice Floyd wrote almost the same in his last line. Well, that makes two who want you to continue this way ;-)
James..great work. First, the music—really solid groove and good sound, so that’s good on its own. Second, your concept of sacred music/hip hop..I am a big proponent of smashing themes and styles together in unconventional ways, so I like your idea here. Now, if you plan on getting some parish to actually authorize and use this kind of music at Mass, good luck! You’ll need to find an Uber-Vatican II pastor who would go along with it!!
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Thank you, each one of you! I've just added a video, above, because Ezekiel's comment sparked the idea ... if you have any more time to spend on this track of mine, haha, I hope you like it - as basic as the video is :-) Again, thanks for each and every comment!
floyd jane: praise from you is, well, genuinely music to my ears. Thank you - yes, I think I will continue writing like this. There's something comforting about writing hip-hop music ... the timbre, the "darkness" ... I'm glad it's registering with people other than myself, too! and, when a musician like you suggests I should keep doing what I'm doing, that's both high praise to me and advice well worth taking :-)
Hans: thank you so much! Someone else that likes it, too! I like that you "shoot from the hip" whenever you comment ... you don't sugar-coat things, so - again - when you say you liked something, I can trust that. I will definitely try to write some more like this!
Tano: thank you! Yes, you're right ... no self-respecting priest, however post-Vatican II "enlightened" will accept this kind of music in his church without at least a fight, haha (I hope I'm wrong!) ... but that's what it's about, right? :-) - i.e. challenging pre-conceptions and boundaries, as you rightly say.
Ezekiel: thank you. That's why I've just made the video above, haha ... to put some images to the soundtrack. It's incredibly basic, but ... you've given me an idea! Thanks :-)
Captain Moto: I know the feeling, re: church attendance. I haven't been in years. Then again, Jesus Himself said "don't pray so much in public, but rather in the secret of your own room" ... so that's my excuse, haha. But I digress - thanks for the immense compliment (not sure I deserve it, but thanks!)
David: can't please everyone, haha ... but thanks for being honest and forthright about it! I still hope to "convert" you one day ... to the music, not the religion, of course - haha. Even if I never do, thanks for still giving it a spin! :-)
(since you mentioned hip-hop, I was expecting a bit more of a "rapid-fire" lyric delivery...)
I think you should continue down this path...
James ...
I think Floyd nail it in his comments. I couldn't agree more. I always enjoy your spoken word creations. You have the perfect voice for it. This was such a nice listen! Yes, you should do more of this! Thank you for some inspired listening. Wishing you the very best. Take care ...
Thank you so much Alan! Always ever so thoughtful and kind with your comments. I agree - I will be doing more of this. This was a little darker a track than most of my other spoken word stuff, but I was reasonably happy with the end result, so yes - expect more! haha. Thank you so much once more, please take care and stay safe!
WOW this is so good and so creative! I would have never thought about blending Sacred and Hip-Hop let alone having it come out this good! James, you have created a new music genre!
Everything about this is absolutely fantastic. And yes peace is something that is desperately needed.
It takes courage for a man to admit his wife was wrong.
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James, I enjoyed the surprise of contrast- the hiphop feel is light and there`s still a feeling of reverence in your vocal delivery. A choir I was in went all-in on a rendering of this text... it was very good in a formal way;this makes me wonder if a little modern interpretation could have taken it beyond church.
Yeah, this was very cool. “WorsHip-Hop” . . . what a great term for it, LOL! The mix is terrific and as Robertkc mentions, it adds a lot of sincerity and power to the vocal. For me, the percussion really stands out—those congas work really well in this. Cool stuff!
"Maybe the new genre could be called "worsHIP-HOP"
Most creative indeed...a journey down that path could be very interesting particularly given the cinematic feel.
Fascinating.
J&B
Our albums and singles are on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Pandora and more. If interested search on Janice Merritt. Thanks! Our Videos are here on our website.
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Few things are certain in life: death, taxes, and a brand spankin’ new XPro Styles PAK! In this, the 10th edition of our XPro Styles PAK series, we’ve got 100 styles coming your way! We have the classic 25 styles each from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, and rounding out this volume's wildcard slot is 25 styles in the Praise & Worship genre! A wide spanning genre, you can find everything from rock, folk, country, and more underneath its umbrella. The included 28 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Here’s just a small sampling of what you can look forward to in XPro Styles PAK 10: Soft indie folk worship songs, bumpin’ country boogies, gospel praise breaks, hard rockin’ pop, funky disco grooves, smooth Latin jazz pop, bossa nova fusion, western swing, alternative hip-hop, cool country funk, and much more!
Special offers until December 31st, 2025!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 10 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
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