BEAT-MAKER:

Beat-makers don’t necessarily produce a record. Their job is to make a beat from scratch or sample material into their beat than sell/lease the material off to an artist and leave at that. Some beat-makers end up becoming producers because they might already have a set-hook or melody in their head. There are way more beat-makers in this world than award winning record producers. Just because you make beats on fruity loops does NOT consider you a record producer. If that was the case every beat-maker that existed would be a so called a, “producer”. Beat-makers spend most of their time working on their production and craft. Most beat-makers don’t want to be involved in the recording process and rather let the producers handle that. But if you are someone who makes a beat, records the artist, and does all the duties of a music producer than you would be qualified as one. I’ve listed some of the roles the music producer plays in the studio.

PRODUCER:

A producer does not just make beats, a producer makes records. The producer is responsible for taking a song in its most basic form and turning it into a finished record. Sometimes the producer will wear two hats. First, they are the creative force behind the project. Second, they have to control the business side of things. Being able to master both jobs at once is a great skill to carry, but the most important part is to be good with people. Some artists are sensitive and out of their minds that you need to have their egos catered to. A producer really needs to be able to deal with different attitudes and different people.

[via IdOMusic]

A producer is the person who decides the direction of the project. They take the beat and help it to evolve into a song. They are there in the studio and have active voice in the arrangements, pitches, and tone. They are then given producer rights for their input and hard work. Sometimes a beat maker is involved in the production of the song depending on their level of involvement. This starts to get a little tricky depending on the situation. For example producers like Jazzy Pha, Jermain Dupri, and Timbaland have beat makers signed to them. This allows them to have a variation of different sounds to fit different artists. But because they have these beat makers signed to them, they are able to take the headline credit for the work even though they are just involved in the direction. Although the beat maker receives payment they often don’t receive the credit at the end of the day.–Lola Sims

You may be a Producer at heart…but until you produce a “record”, you are just a beat maker…