Where to Find the Perfect Vocals for Your Tracks, Remixes and Productions
Where to Find the Perfect Vocals for Your Tracks, Remixes and Productions
If you're a music producer, aspiring remix artist, mash-up creator or DJ you'll need to know the best sources to download vocals for your tracks. The right vocals can really make or break you track so finding the perfect vocal sample, stem or acapella is crucial to your tracks success.
You might be creating an original track or a remix and need the perfect icing on the cake. Vocals really make a track memorable and thus increases its reach and ability to go viral. It's a fact, tracks with vocals and generate more fans and followers than instrumental tracks. Almost all popular music has lyrics and vocals because the human voice adds that magical touch that elevates the track and helps it become an unforgettable classic.
In this article, we explore the different ways you can find and download vocals for your tracks and productions. Bookmark and use this blog to help you find the perfect vocal for your project. So, let's explore all the myriad sources available to producers to help them uncover that special vocal for their songs. As usual we will make a short-form list of all the places you can find vocals and then later on give more detail on each source. Read on for more...
List of all the places music producers can find vocals for their tracks, remixes and mash-ups
- Splice
- Acapella Downloads
- Vocal Stem Isolation
- Record Your Own
- Sample Packs
- Sample From Vinyl Records
- Sample from CD or DVD
- Vocalizr
- SoundBetter
- Reddit & Community Groups
- YouTube
- TikTok
- Field Recordings
- License
And now for more detail about the pros and cons of all these sources of vocal samples, acapella and stems...
Splice has risen from obscurity to become the dominant platform for samples for electronic music production. It's a subscription based website and app where you can browse thousands of samples including vocal samples. It's one of the main sources producers get their royalty free samples from. However the massive con to this is that everyone is browsing the same library and can often end up using the same samples. For this reason, we recommend avoiding Splice if you're trying to produce something original.
There are numerous ways you can source and download acapella for your productions, mash-ups and remixes. An acapella is the vocal part of song, isolated from the instrumentation. This means it's easy for a music production or DJ to use the vocals without having to worry about all the other sounds. You can find many popular songs in acapella format, but not all songs.
The major con with using popular acapellas in your productions is that you won't have official permission. If you make a track using an acapella that you don't have the license to use the owner of the vocal might demand that you remove your track from sale or chase you for financial damages. However, they are great to use in mash-ups and casual remixes that you don't intent to sell.
There are numerous ways of finding great acapellas, click here for our dedicated blog on the subject. The most popular sites to download acapella vocal samples and stems are Acapellas4u, Beatport, YouTube (rips) and Voclr.
- Vocal Stem Isolation
AI has created many recent advances in music production technology. One of the most useful is the ability to use programs to isolate the vocal from a track and extract it. You can now take any track and simply run it through a program to remove the vocals and separate it from all the other sounds in the music. This way, you can get a acapella from any track. The most popular ways to isolate the vocal stem from a track include: AudioStrip, Splitter, iZotope – RX10, Acon Digital – Acoustica 7.3, Hit’N’Mix – RipX DeepRemix/DeepAudio, Audionamix – XTRAX STEMS and Omnisale – Lalal.ai.
Many DJ software programs have also recently added tools to allow you to extract vocals including Virtual DJ and Serato.
4. Record Your Own
One of the best ways to get vocals for your tracks is simply to record you own. This is the ultimate way to create original music and avoid any copyright issues. You'll also have total control of the key, the BPM, the lyrics and the style. If you're not a great singer yourself you can find a singer to work with and easily record with minimal tech required.
Many bedroom producers will record vocals with a simple microphone plugged into a soundcard which then attaches to their computer and DAW. You can record many takes until you get the perfect one and then edit it fine tune it. Many producers will layer vocal and adjust them using plugins like Autotune.
If you're new to recording vocals in your home studio we recommend getting a simple set-up like a Focusrite Scarlett Solo Studio 3rd Gen sound card with a condenser mic and headphones. You should then try and record in an acoustically dead space with as little sound interference as possible. Many bedroom producers will record in their wardrobe as the clothes do a great job to absorb the sound reflections!
- Sample Packs
Other than Splice there are thousands of sample packs with royalty free vocal chops, loops, one shots and stems. You should explore all the options but remember the main downside to using sample packs is that any other producer might also be using the same sound. If you really want something original you'll need to heavily chop up or edit the sample so it's less recognisable, or record your own original vocals.
Popular sample pack websites that offer free vocal samples include: Looperman, Zero G, Loopmasters, W.A, Ableton Packs, Production Music Live, Sample Swap, Cynmatics, Sample Sound, Sound Packs, ADSR Sounds, Producer Spot, Producer Loops, Mode Audio & Wave Alchemy.
- Sample From Vinyl Records
One of the best and lesser explored source of samples is directly recording them from vinyl records, namely older records. Granted, these will not be royalty free but in many cases the original record might be so old that no one notices. It's a grey area. You'll need to be the judge of wether or not you can legally get away with using the sample. Often, if the sample is quite obscure, like a kick drum sample or something very short, then you won't have any issues.
Sampling from vinyl records is also very enjoyable. You can hunt for records in charity shops, record shops and car boot sales. You can also explore records for sale on Discogs, Ebay and Bandcamp. Often, old records are extremely affordable and you can buy some records for as little as £1 or $1.
Top Tip: Wondering where you've heard that sample before? Check out the website WhoSampled.com to find out which producers are using which samples!
- Sample from CD or DVD
Many music producers also sample from CDs or even DVDs. You can often buy CDs and DVDs very cheaply and easily online or in retail shops. CD and DVD sampling is high quality because the original formats are lossless. This means that you'll get excellent quality samples. DVDs are great for sampling small sound effects or words. We like to take quote from old movies or even speeches and monologues.
Vocalizr is a website that connects music producers with singers. You can browse a large database of singers and vocalists who will be willing to record vocals for you in exchange for payment. If you're looking for something original this is one of the best ways you can do it. It's especially useful for producers who live in rural areas where there isn't a lot of local singing talent. You can hear examples from singers, including original tracks and demos. You might ask them to write a song for you or sing a song you have written.
Make sure that you discuss the ownership and rights of any material you collaborate on. It's wise to have a contract.
Soundbetter is a website where you can find music producers, vocalists, song writers and singers to collaborate with or hire for their services. We like that singers on this site also have reviews so you can see who has a good track record.
- Reddit & Community Groups
Many sample sleuths will trawl community forums like Reddit and Discord in search of the perfect sample. Perhaps you're looking for something obscure and need the help of an army of keyboard researchers. Reddit is an amazing forum for multiple subjects including music production. Reddit subgroups and communities often share samples and resources. The same goes for Discord.
Here are some reddit threads we found for vocal samples:
https://www.reddit.com/r/IsolatedVocals/
https://www.reddit.com/r/StudioAcapellas/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Acapellas/
YouTube is one of the most popular ways to sample. There is an incredible array of millions of videos that include sound on the platform. The only downsides being that it's illegal to copy from Youtube and it's also very low bitrate (quality). Some producers sample from YouTube anyway as it's the easiest way to find certain sounds. Just be aware of the risks!
- TikTok
TiKTok is a social media platform that is heavily geared toward viral sounds and video content. These viral sound clips make for popular samples and producers will often copy a viral sound and add it into their productions hoping to ride the popularity wave. This is very common with EDM remixes and mashups. Meme culture in general often provides viral samples that can make a track instantly popular.
- Field Recordings
Sometimes to get something truly unique you need to record out in the open! Field recordings are recordings made on location. You might take a recording device to a cafe to record the ambient sounds, to a funfair to record the rollercoaster screams or perhaps to convert to record the applause. In some cases, you can skip the recording part and find a sample in a field recording database such as Freesound.org
- License
You'll notice that many of the most famous tracks in the charts contain samples of old tracks. This is often confusing for new producers because as many people know, you don't have permission to use these samples and sounds unless you get a license. So the question is, how do you get a license to use a sample? The answer is that anyone can ask the owner of a sample for permission (a license) to use the sound. However, big record labels that own most of the famous tracks will closely guard these valuable samples. It's unlikely that a new unknown or unestablished producers to be given permission to use a famous sample. Normally, the big record labels will only allow artists who are already well known to use their back catalog for sampling. Mostly those who are already signed to their record label.
Conclusion
There are many sources to find great quality samples for your productions, remixes and tracks. The main thing to think about is originality and legality. Has anyone else used this sample and do you have permission to use it? As discussed in this blog the best way to find original vocal samples is to work with a singer or vocalist. Try and find a vocalist you can work with for your music productions and learn how to record vocals yourself. The sky is the limit when you can do it yourself.
If you're interested in learning how to produce and record vocals get in touch and book a music production course at LSA. You can learn online or in-person.
