SAMPLED is a recurring column that examines the skeletal production of a contemporary Rap/R&B/Hip-Hop or Pop song. From what song did the loop, sample, or chopped up vocal providing the backbone for a new interpretation originate? SAMPLED looks at the original song with some historical context, and then presents the contemporary production that utilizes a sample from the original. For better or worse, this is the process by which a huge portion of contemporary pop music is assembled.

This week, the sample in question comes from The Fugees’ 1996 song “Ready Or Not”:

“Ready Or Not” was featured on The Score, The Fugees’ 1996 sophomoric album that ultimately broke the group to a more mainstream audience. Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, and Pras Michel had formed as a group in the early nineties, and had already released one album (1994’s Blunted On Reality) to underground acclaim, but The Score became one of the biggest hits of 1996, and one of the best-selling hip-hop albums of all time, selling over 10 million copies. The Fugees quickly garnered a reputation for their inventive re-interpretations of classic songs, including singles from The Score, such as “Killing Me Softly,” and “No Woman No Cry.” The song “Ready or Not” is a combination of the music from Enya’s “Boadicea,” and many of the lyrics and melodies from “Ready or Not, Here I Come (Can’t Hide from Love)” by the Delfonics. The union of these two pieces of music is “Ready Or Not,” a classic 90s hip-hop song that showcases the Fugees’ ability to choose their samples wisely.

“Ready Or Not” was recently sampled by Meek Mill, on his Dreamchasers 2 mixtape:

Meek Mill is Maybach Music’s hottest young prospect with no album out. Since he released the Jahlil Beats produced “Ima Boss” smash in 2011, hype has been building for the release of Dreams and Nightmares, the forthcoming debut album from the Philly rapper. Despite having no album out, Meek Mill has no shortage of material. The 25-year-old has released no fewer than 12 mixtapes in the last 7 years, the most recent being Dreamchasers 2. It’s hard to talk about Dreamchasers 2 in the context of a mixtape, because it doesn’t feel like one. There are no borrowed beats, there are no freestyles, and the guest features are star-studded. Meek Mill’s material is so strong, it’s more like a free album than it is a mixtape. Maybach Music mixtapes are starting to get a reputation for quality — Rich Forever by Rick Ross could have easily been a proper album. “Ready Or Not” definitely speaks to the overall quality of Dreamchasers 2, and Meek Mill’s ascension to the next level. Meek Mill’s relentless rapid-fire flow sits perfectly atop a fluid and epic beat by producer All Star. All Star chops the first 8 bars from The Fugees’ “Ready Or Not,” and pitches it up a few steps. To complete the loop, he’s added a drum kit, a sub bass, and some ethereal synths to fill out the arrangement. It sounds solid enough to be an album track. The only thing that makes it fit on a mixtape is that he probably didn’t have to clear the sample.

Some view sampling as a symptom of a lack of creativity, and that’s exactly why it is a polarizing topic in terms of contemporary pop music. Critics liken it to Hollywood’s nasty habit of repurposing old franchises and old ideas, updating and remaking anything that was once profitable. On the flip side, many argue that sampling is an art form not to be discredited. On a weekly-ish basis, SAMPLED aims to take it on a case-by-case basis, and examine the dividing practice of using samples in the creation of music.