# Buying a boom bap type beat versus downloading a free one and why a leased dark 90s instrumental like SLICK usually wins

What to check in a boom bap type beat: BPM, key, license and mix. SLICK by Raias Beats runs at 95 BPM in G# minor, free for non-profit use only.

Source: https://fyuiuod.shop/buying-a-boom-bap/ · based on the channel [Raias Beats](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCCnRGmFAYxHRiE-5kanCfQ) · Video: [(FREE) "SLICK" - Funky Rap Beat | Hard Freestyle Boom Bap Type Dark 90s Beat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvZ1h2Ln9O0) · 2026-10-29

![Buying a boom bap type beat versus downloading a free one and why a leased dark 90s instrumental like SLICK usually wins](https://fyuiuod.shop/buying-a-boom-bap/buying-a-boom-bap.webp)

## Key takeaways

- SLICK by Raias Beats is a boom bap type beat at 95 BPM in the key of G# minor.
- The free download is licensed for non-profit use only; Spotify and Apple Music releases require a purchased lease.
- Raias Beats sells exclusive beats in tiers of $50, $100 and $150.
- The beat is built around heavy drums, a powerful bassline and mysterious funky melodies in a 90s East Coast style.
- A free pack of 30 boom bap beats is available alongside a membership with unreleased instrumentals.

A boom bap type beat is worth downloading free only if you are testing a flow, freestyling or building a demo; the moment a track is meant for Spotify, Apple Music or any paid placement, you need a lease or an exclusive. The practical middle ground is a free-tagged download for writing plus a cheap lease for release, and Raias Beats makes that easy: you can grab the untagged version of "SLICK" via the [paid download and license page](https://bsta.rs/y6JN3M) and keep the free file for practice.

## What a boom bap type beat actually is and why 90s drums still win

Boom bap is a sample-based hip hop style defined by a kick-snare pattern that lands like a punch and a snare on the backbeat, usually between 85 and 95 BPM, with swung hi-hats and a dusty, sampled feel. The name comes from the onomatopoeic description of the kick ("boom") and snare ("bap"), a sound codified in New York in the late 80s and early 90s by producers working with the SP-1200, Akai MPC60 and E-mu SP-12 samplers, which gave drums a gritty 12-bit character that modern plugins still imitate.

A boom bap type beat is a modern instrumental built in that tradition but not tied to a specific artist's catalogue, so rappers can license it. The style rewards a rapper's cadence rather than burying it: there is space between the snare hits, the loop usually sits in a minor key, and the low end is deliberately heavy so a vocal can sit on top without fighting the bass.

## SLICK by Raias Beats: the numbers behind the beat

"SLICK" is a dark, funky boom bap instrumental at 95 BPM in G# minor, produced by Raias Beats and published as a free tagged download with an untagged paid version. The tempo sits at the top of the classic boom bap range, which makes it comfortable for double-time flows, triplet pockets and straight 4/4 freestyles without the beat dragging. G# minor gives the melodic loop a cold, slightly ominous colour that suits street storytelling and punchline-heavy verses.

The description points to Mobb Deep, Method Man and Big L as reference points: heavy drums, a powerful bassline, mysterious funky melodies and a sneaky, hypnotic groove. In practice that means the beat is built for freestyle sessions, battle rounds and hard raps rather than singing hooks, and it will sit next to East Coast, underground and golden-era playlists without sounding out of place.

## Free download versus lease versus exclusive: what each option gets you

The licence, not the audio file, is what separates a free boom bap type beat from a usable release. Here is how the three tiers usually work and how Raias Beats structures them:

1. Free download. "SLICK" is free for non-profit use only, meaning practice, freestyles, YouTube videos without monetisation and demos. No distribution to streaming platforms.
2. Lease. Required for profit use such as Spotify, Apple Music and paid placements; leases are typically limited by stream or sales caps and are non-exclusive, so other artists can use the same beat.
3. Exclusive. Raias Beats lists exclusive beats at $50, $100 and $150 tiers; an exclusive removes the beat from the public catalogue so no one else can release on it.

For a single, a lease is almost always the cheaper correct answer. For a project where the beat is part of your identity, the $50 to $150 exclusive tiers cost less than most studio hours and give you full control.

## How to write and record on a 95 BPM dark boom bap beat

A 95 BPM boom bap type beat leaves room for roughly 16 bars of relaxed 4/4 rapping per verse, or eight bars of double-time. Start by looping the beat for five minutes and freestyling until a cadence locks in; the snare is your anchor, so land stressed syllables near it and let unstressed words fall into the gaps. Because the key is G# minor, melodic hooks and ad-libs in G# minor pentatonic will sit naturally without tuning work.

Recording checklist:

- Track at 24-bit and keep peaks around -6 dBFS so the heavy low end has headroom.
- High-pass your vocal around 80–100 Hz to stop it competing with the bassline.
- Use a light compressor (3:1 ratio, 3–6 dB gain reduction) rather than heavy limiting on the way in.
- Leave the beat's drum bus untouched until the mix; these instrumentals are already glued and loud.

If you need a mix and master, Raias Beats offers that as a separate service, which is often the fastest route when your room is untreated.

## Where to find more free boom bap instrumentals and what to check before you use one

Before downloading any free boom bap type beat, confirm three things: whether the file is tagged, whether the licence allows monetisation, and whether the producer requires credit. Tags are audio watermarks that appear in the beat every few bars and make a track unusable for release, so the free file is for writing only. Raias Beats publishes a free pack of 30 boom bap beats, a membership with unreleased instrumentals, and Spotify playlists of the catalogue, all linked below.

A quick quality check on any download: listen for clipping on the kick, confirm the BPM in your DAW matches the stated tempo (95 for "SLICK"), and verify the key so your melodic ideas do not clash.

## All links from the SLICK beat

- Untagged download and licence for "SLICK": https://bsta.rs/y6JN3M
- Membership with unreleased beats: https://raiasbeats.com/memberships
- Free pack of 30 boom bap beats: https://bit.ly/30FreeBeatsPack
- Spotify: https://shorturl.at/wXwp2
- $50 exclusive beats: https://bsta.rs/Qi4Dqn
- $100 exclusive beats: https://bsta.rs/geFINi
- $150 exclusive beats: https://bsta.rs/y7nBue
- More beats like this: https://youtu.be/TukeWfDL8UE
- Custom beat orders: https://bsta.rs/GuH2t
- Mix and master service: https://bsta.rs/xmFd5

## The verdict on free versus paid boom bap type beats

A free boom bap type beat is the right choice for writing, freestyling and testing whether a dark 90s instrumental fits your voice, and "SLICK" at 95 BPM in G# minor is a solid place to start. The moment a song is going to earn money on streaming platforms, the licence becomes the deciding factor, and a lease or one of the $50–$150 exclusives is the cheaper, safer route than a takedown. Raias Beats lays out both paths clearly in the video breakdown and the description, so you can hear the beat, write to it, then upgrade only when the track deserves it. If you already know the answer, skip the free file and [get the untagged SLICK beat with a licence](https://bsta.rs/y6JN3M) before someone else takes the exclusive.

## Questions & answers

**Is a boom bap type beat free to use on Spotify?**

No. Free downloads of type beats are almost always limited to non-profit use, which covers practice, freestyles and unmonetised videos. Distributing to Spotify, Apple Music or any paid platform requires a purchased lease or an exclusive licence, and "SLICK" by Raias Beats follows exactly that rule.

**What BPM and key is SLICK by Raias Beats?**

"SLICK" runs at 95 BPM in the key of G# minor. That tempo sits at the top of the classic boom bap range, so it works for relaxed 4/4 flows and double-time pockets alike, while the minor key gives the melody its dark, cold character.

**How much does an exclusive boom bap beat cost?**

Raias Beats lists exclusive beats in tiers of $50, $100 and $150. An exclusive removes the instrumental from the public catalogue, so no other artist can release a song on the same beat, unlike a lease which stays non-exclusive.

**What should I check before rapping on a free 90s type beat?**

Check the licence for monetisation limits, whether the audio file is tagged with producer watermarks, and whether credit is required. Also confirm the stated BPM and key in your DAW so your vocal cadence and melodic ideas match the instrumental.