#SwinginFlipChallenge
A quick look at the first Micro-Chop sample challenge.
In 1993 Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota natives Mint Condition dropped their sophomore album From The Mint Factory.
The album’s second single “U Send Me Swingin’” became a solid hit thanks to impressive harmonizing and strong production values, eventually peaking at #33 on the Billboard Hot 100 in late March of 1994 after four months on the charts.
15 years later Huntsville, Alabama production pioneers The Block Beattaz flipped the song on G-Side’s underground smash Starshipz And Rocketz for the track “Swangin’” featuring Darrien and The Speed of Sound Choir. Serving as one of the standout cuts from a very stellar album, the enhanced percussion and chopped and screwed-style chorus help introduce Mind Condition’s early-‘90s classic to a new audience of listeners.
I was one of those listeners and I’ve been a fan of the Mint Condition original and G-Side song/sample flip ever since. So I guess it makes sense that 12 years later I selected “U Send Me Swingin’” for the first ever Micro-Chop sample challenge—the #SwinginFlipChallenge to be exact.
For those unfamiliar, a sample challenge/flip challenge is when someone (usually a producer) posts a song and challenges other producers to make a beat out of it. Challenges are usually accompanied by a hashtag to help them catch on with a wider audience on social media.
Before I go any further, I want to give a big shoutout to Nelac The Beat Ninja. I know sample challenges have been around for a minute, but he really inspired me to do a Micro-Chop sample challenge after creating two separate challenges based on my articles.
I’d also like to shout out to Dibiase, his sample challenges were likewise a big inspiration.
I started the #SwinginFlipChallenge on Sunday, November 15th with very little expectation. I decided not to overthink it, rank participants, or offer any prizes for first place. I just wanted to make it fun, low pressure thing. I really wanted to see what people would cook up without the pressure of it being overly competitive.
The response so far has been incredible. I’ve already lost count of the number of producers participating (thank god for the hashtag) and the songs people have cooked up in a matter of hours/days have been ridiculous.
Here are a few of the most viewed creations so far:
Producers, here’s the good news. I didn’t set a cut off date or time so you can still participate if you want to. When the submissions stop coming in, I’m going to compile all of them into one Micro-Chop article to send out to my subscribers.
You never know who’s reading and listening.
If you’re a producer and you want a chance to flip a truly unique and beautiful record into something new, I suggest you give it a go. Make sure to use the #SwinginFlipChallenge hashtag in your tweet and @micro_chop so I can find your work and retweet it.
I’m really looking forward to seeing what other people come up with.
Let’s keep it going.
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