Hello, readers and listeners!
This week’s post is dedicated to the reigning king of sampling. The “Godfather of Soul,” James Brown is the most sampled artist of all time — 8,403 times to be exact! The Winstons, Public Enemy, Run-DMC, and The Notorious B.I.G. are just a few legendary artists to share a spot on that list with Brown.
While doing some research, I learned that two of Brown’s favorite fans are Jay-Z and Kanye West. They reference Brown in so many of their collaborations together, but those are two men that I could do a whole other post on!
Not only is James Brown the most sampled artist, the most sampled song of ALL TIME, “Funky Drummer,” belongs to Brown. The song has been sampled 1,750 times by many artists like Dr. Dre, Public Enemy, N.W.A., LL Cool J, Nicki Minaj, and George Michael (just to name a few!)
So, with that being said, I will begin by sharing “Funky Drummer” first. Enjoy listening to the other discoveries I made on the blog as well as the Instagram page which you can navigate by scanning the account’s QR code enclosed in this article!
Happy Listening!
James Brown: “Funky Drummer” (In the Jungle Groove) – 1970
N.W.A.: “Fuck Tha Police” (Straight Outta Compton) – 1988
James Brown: “The Payback” – 1973
Total ft. Notorious B.I.G: “Can’t You See” (New Jersey Drive Pt. I) – 1995
James Brown: “Mind Power” (The Payback) – 1973
The Black Eyed Peas: “They Don’t Want Music ft. James Brown” (Monkey Business) – 2005
James Brown: “I Got You (I Feel Good)” (Out of Sight) – 1964
Lil Wayne: “I Feel Good” (Free Weezy) – 2015