FL STUDIO
Fruity Loops Studio
What is it?
Fruity Loops Studio (FL) is one of the most popular music production software in the industry.
Ease of access and the price of FL has opened gates for non-wealthy producers. Soulja Boy was one of the first producers to make a top hit through FL. He produced his first major hit Crank Dat on FL, a software that got him from rags to riches. Soulja Boy did not take a music production course and did not play an instrument. This track today still gets played in clubs, which again, shows the success of FL.
Another producer who has made his way to fame is the one and only Metro Boomin. Metro Booming has produced for many hip-hop artists such as Future, Drake, Travis Scott, 2 Chainz, Kanye West and much more. Metro Booming started off as a 'bedroom producer'. Meaning he had little money for more high-end software so decided to utilise more accessible ones. As a producer, he's created his own style of music and has made a name for himself in the industry as one of the best in the rap/hip-hop world today. FL has provided him with enough tools and instruments he needs to express his creativity in music. In this video we have Metro Boomin having a studio session with Travis Scott. If you're a fan of hip-hop this video will amaze you. Most of the production of this track was done in FL, so to those that have insulted me and claimed FL studio is a kids software.. the success of the software speaks for itself.
Where can I get the software?
https://www.image-line.com/downloads/flstudiodownload.html - Download here!
Although the link above is the safest and more importantly legal way to get the software, most people download illegally. I would not recommend illegal downloads due to computer viruses and obvious legal implications.
FL is one of the easiest software to get your hands on. 'Bedroom' music producers are very fond to this software. Why? Because it's cheap and produces high-quality work. A 12-year-old can go onto Pirate Bay or any other torrent and simply download the software within minutes, having access to electronic mixers, equalizers, sound recorders, instrument sounds, sound manipulators etc. Every used in professional music studios to match your needs. When you look at the cost of FL compared to another software like Logic Pro, it will always be the cheapest alternative. FL is designed to be compatible with Windows. Bootcamp is a programme which enables the software to be compatible with Mac devices. Nonetheless, Windows computers can be purchased for as little as £200 which benefits those not wanting to splash out. Bargain!
But how does a step sequencer work? A step sequencer consist 8 to 16 buttons know as "steps", which control when an instrument is played. These patterns are cropped down to 8 to 16 bars, which musical term for how many times your metronome taps. Within these programs, you have to ability to design multiple patterns to create your sequence. I know it's confusing to hear in words, it's something that is hard to explain in theory. But if you get your hand on it, understand the program manually is quite simple.
FL Studio 3.0 (2001)
FL Studio 3.0 was developed in 2001, along came with it was its new interface. Image Line brought new tools and features to the program, making it more all around production software. Fruity Loops 3.0 added a playlist feature, which allows users to add different patterns to structure a musical track. This update came with the new plugin 3x Osc (Oscillator), a tool used to create sound through digital waves. The piano roll was another new feature to this update. The piano roll allowed producers to draw out key notes onto a grid, allowing the composure of music to happen.
FL Studio 5.0 (2004)
FL Studio 5.0 came out in 2004. By this time, it had added new features to the mixer, allowing the mixing interface to have ease of use, but sampling was the main focus on during this update. Around these times, producers such as Kanye West and Timberland brought sampling into the rap game, making sampling popular for producers. Which is, still popular today. This update consisted of a lot of audio updates. Audio clips were now allowed to be added to the playlist, making sampling a lot easier. Loop recording was now possible, allowing producers to create their own sample. MP3's were now allowed to be uploaded into sampler channels, meaning you could now chop samples into notes. Time stretching and pitch shifting was now a tool to use on audio tracks. This may not have seemed as interesting to a regular person but to a music producer, it was a game changer.Don't know much about sampling? Sampling is when a producer takes the sound from a song, creates a loop, tweaks it and produces a whole new sound to it. Don't understand me? Here are some of Kanye West's samples from the early 2000s to familiarise with. It's old Kanye, not new Kanye.
FL Studio 9.0 (2009)
FL Studio 9.0, another update that came with new features. This update focused mainly on improvements to the tools already provided, making the process of producing a lot smoother. When FL Studio 9 came out, it was now an official competitor on the market with products such as Logic Pro, Reason, and Ableton Live. Most of the updates were developed to compete with the new interfaces that other companies were putting out there. This was around the time technology was making a big step in the industry so Image Line prioritize new tech. Most of the updates were design to make the program run faster and to remove any bugs that the program had.
FL Studio 12.0 (2015)
By now FL Studio was a top competitor in the industry. There was a range of successful producers who have complimented the program and have produced some of the biggest hits in the industry today. FL Studio 12, once again focus on fixing bugs and improving the design of the software, most the fixating of bugs. As technology developed and touch screen laptops and computers were now available, FL Studio added a touch screen feature to the mixer, allowing producers to mix with the touch of a finger.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of7LXoom3dk
Links (in order):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UFIYGkROII
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXNbt0yCfL-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkwnTFziNAM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjVTfJmC_-o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XaDeC2LEdA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daKRsPXTkbs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of7LXoom3dk
What is it?
Fruity Loops Studio (FL) is one of the most popular music production software in the industry.
The program was developed by a company in Belgium called Image Line. The program is known as a digital audio workstation (DAW), mainly designed for Microsoft Windows. Fruity Loops uses pattern-based music sequencers to create music. Many music producers today tend to undermine the music program as you don't need much knowledge on how to play an instrument. Producers such as Metro Boomin, Young Chop, and Avicii have proven that this software has the capability of producing a track that can make it to the charts!
Another producer who has made his way to fame is the one and only Metro Boomin. Metro Booming has produced for many hip-hop artists such as Future, Drake, Travis Scott, 2 Chainz, Kanye West and much more. Metro Booming started off as a 'bedroom producer'. Meaning he had little money for more high-end software so decided to utilise more accessible ones. As a producer, he's created his own style of music and has made a name for himself in the industry as one of the best in the rap/hip-hop world today. FL has provided him with enough tools and instruments he needs to express his creativity in music. In this video we have Metro Boomin having a studio session with Travis Scott. If you're a fan of hip-hop this video will amaze you. Most of the production of this track was done in FL, so to those that have insulted me and claimed FL studio is a kids software.. the success of the software speaks for itself.
Where can I get the software?
https://www.image-line.com/downloads/flstudiodownload.html - Download here!
Although the link above is the safest and more importantly legal way to get the software, most people download illegally. I would not recommend illegal downloads due to computer viruses and obvious legal implications.
FL is one of the easiest software to get your hands on. 'Bedroom' music producers are very fond to this software. Why? Because it's cheap and produces high-quality work. A 12-year-old can go onto Pirate Bay or any other torrent and simply download the software within minutes, having access to electronic mixers, equalizers, sound recorders, instrument sounds, sound manipulators etc. Every used in professional music studios to match your needs. When you look at the cost of FL compared to another software like Logic Pro, it will always be the cheapest alternative. FL is designed to be compatible with Windows. Bootcamp is a programme which enables the software to be compatible with Mac devices. Nonetheless, Windows computers can be purchased for as little as £200 which benefits those not wanting to splash out. Bargain!
An FL project of my own.
Above is a YouTube link to some of the music I have created on FL a couple years ago. I have had overall 5 years experience with the software. My five years have involved a lot of trial and error to see what does and does not sound appealing to the ear. Although house is not my usual genre to produce, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and make something a little different. When creating this FL provided me with all the tools a needed to produce this track.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkwnTFziNAM
The Evolution of FL Studio
Where it all started (1992-1994)
A company named Image-Line created Fruity Loops. It was founded by two friends (Jean-Marie Cannie and Frank Van Beisen) in Belgium. Jean and Frank wanted to escape their boring jobs in stock market software and network solutions and decided to become game developers. The company actually originated from video game designers.
The duo began by recreating Tetris and giving freebie demos out on floppy disks for Computer Magazine. This smart marketing technique created a lot of attention and people started to ask for more. Around these times CD-ROM video games were being developed. Jean and Frank took advantage of this situation and collaborated with another a company (Private) the games Private Prison and Private Castle. They entered a competition held by IBM (gaming solutions) where they designed and submitted their game. Along the way, they met a developer called Didier Dambrin, who was only 19. Didier worked alongside them and developed a video game called Eat This. Didier coded the video game and did the visuals.
Didier had an interest in the music industry. After being inspired by applications such as Rebirth 338 and Hammerhead, which were rhythm makers and sequencers, he developed Fruity Loops, merging both together. After a few days of its release, tonnes of people downloaded the demo according to the developers, but for the first couple of years, it was a struggle for the company to push their product into the market. Everyone has to start somewhere.
FL Studio has history and it's different versions it's made in the past and what version is out today. I will be jumping through the main updates and when the program brought a new feel to producers. The reason why I skip from 1 to 3 is because I'm skipping to each main update, for example, it would be like me skipping from the Sony PS3 to PS4, instead of PS3 to PS3 Slim.
FL Studio 1.0 (1997)
A company named Image-Line created Fruity Loops. It was founded by two friends (Jean-Marie Cannie and Frank Van Beisen) in Belgium. Jean and Frank wanted to escape their boring jobs in stock market software and network solutions and decided to become game developers. The company actually originated from video game designers. The duo began by recreating Tetris and giving freebie demos out on floppy disks for Computer Magazine. This smart marketing technique created a lot of attention and people started to ask for more. Around these times CD-ROM video games were being developed. Jean and Frank took advantage of this situation and collaborated with another a company (Private) the games Private Prison and Private Castle. They entered a competition held by IBM (gaming solutions) where they designed and submitted their game. Along the way, they met a developer called Didier Dambrin, who was only 19. Didier worked alongside them and developed a video game called Eat This. Didier coded the video game and did the visuals.
FL Studio has history and it's different versions it's made in the past and what version is out today. I will be jumping through the main updates and when the program brought a new feel to producers. The reason why I skip from 1 to 3 is because I'm skipping to each main update, for example, it would be like me skipping from the Sony PS3 to PS4, instead of PS3 to PS3 Slim.
FL Studio 1.0 (1997)
FL studio was first developed in 1997 (Fruity Loops 1.0). It first started out a MIDI only step-sequencer, allowing users to create music electronically through patterns and step sequencing. A step sequencer is designed for creating drum patterns. FL Studio 1.0 was designed for creating drum patterns.
Most step-sequencers before this software was released were, as previously mentioned, designed for more of a practical experience as opposed to digital. An example of a music instrument that was out around the first release of FL 1.0, was the Roland TR 909 Drum kit. The TR 909 was used by the super producers Daft Punk when creating the song Revolution 909. Around this era, a lot of producers cared about drum patterns. The technology back then wasn't developed enough to digitally produce the sounds of instruments unless it was recorded through a microphone.
FL Studio 3.0 (2001)
FL Studio 3.0 was developed in 2001, along came with it was its new interface. Image Line brought new tools and features to the program, making it more all around production software. Fruity Loops 3.0 added a playlist feature, which allows users to add different patterns to structure a musical track. This update came with the new plugin 3x Osc (Oscillator), a tool used to create sound through digital waves. The piano roll was another new feature to this update. The piano roll allowed producers to draw out key notes onto a grid, allowing the composure of music to happen.FL Studio 5.0 came out in 2004. By this time, it had added new features to the mixer, allowing the mixing interface to have ease of use, but sampling was the main focus on during this update. Around these times, producers such as Kanye West and Timberland brought sampling into the rap game, making sampling popular for producers. Which is, still popular today. This update consisted of a lot of audio updates. Audio clips were now allowed to be added to the playlist, making sampling a lot easier. Loop recording was now possible, allowing producers to create their own sample. MP3's were now allowed to be uploaded into sampler channels, meaning you could now chop samples into notes. Time stretching and pitch shifting was now a tool to use on audio tracks. This may not have seemed as interesting to a regular person but to a music producer, it was a game changer.Don't know much about sampling? Sampling is when a producer takes the sound from a song, creates a loop, tweaks it and produces a whole new sound to it. Don't understand me? Here are some of Kanye West's samples from the early 2000s to familiarise with. It's old Kanye, not new Kanye.
FL Studio 9.0 (2009)
FL Studio 12.0 (2015)
By now FL Studio was a top competitor in the industry. There was a range of successful producers who have complimented the program and have produced some of the biggest hits in the industry today. FL Studio 12, once again focus on fixing bugs and improving the design of the software, most the fixating of bugs. As technology developed and touch screen laptops and computers were now available, FL Studio added a touch screen feature to the mixer, allowing producers to mix with the touch of a finger.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of7LXoom3dk
Links (in order):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UFIYGkROII
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXNbt0yCfL-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkwnTFziNAM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjVTfJmC_-o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XaDeC2LEdA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daKRsPXTkbs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of7LXoom3dk
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