
One of the most common task when mixing the vocals to the free hip hop beats, is to find out how loud the vocal should be in the track.
If the vocals is too loud you can lose the energy from the beats and it will sound boring, and if the vocals are too low, it can be hard to hear the words.
First you need you compress the dynamic of your vocals with a compressor. Most recording software has several compressor plugins. I like to go with vintage sounding compressor plugins, like the UAD L2 plugin. Don’t compress too much. I like to compress hip hop vocals 4-6 db avarage.
To find the best level for the vocals, you should compare your mix with some of your favorite songs. Always listen a low to medium volume. If you listen too loud, you ears will fatique, or even worse, you can lose some of your hearing over time.
When finding the right level, I like to listen at low volume and to small speakers. Compare with other recordings and make sure the overall level is the same as your mix. When listen to the music first, adjust your mix so the level feels the same, and then slowly increase the level of the vocal until you clearly can hear the words. Compare again with your favorite songs, this time listening to the vocal level.
Good luck mixing…