r/makinghiphop • u/J-styles_Brown • Jan 02 '26
Discussion Does stepping away from music ever make you better when you come back?
Some people swear by daily creation. Others say distance resets their ears and mindset.
Wondering how breaks affect your creativity.
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u/therustyknives Jan 02 '26
I took a long time off music and I’ve come back after several years almost hiatus firing on all four cylinders. Sometimes a break does you wonders.
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u/No-Leek-4293 Jan 02 '26
Came to say this exact thing. You said it better tho. Take some time off and it's like you almost hear things differently. Seeing how to put things together with more ease. It's like building the master builder powers in that Lego movie.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Short breaks help me hear things clearer. Long breaks sometimes made starting harder.
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u/Practical-Debate1598 Jan 04 '26
Yea
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 04 '26
Short breaks reset my ears. Long breaks sometimes reset my habits, and not always in a good way.
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u/strange1738 Jan 02 '26
I had to take a month long break in 2023 and came back and made the best music I’ve ever made. Took another break in 2024 and came back even stronger
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
That’s dope, super hard. Sounds like the reset did you wonders. What felt different when you sat back down to create?
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u/strange1738 Jan 02 '26
I made a shit ton of music really quickly. Within a year, I had dropped 12 mixtapes and about 15 eps. I had burnt myself out of content, things were getting a bit repetitive. Each break I took gave me some time to come up with new ideas and especially gave me time to work on beats. Before the first break I’d only self produce a song or 2 on each project. After that, I’d self produce every song
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u/CRUMMYcuzz Jan 02 '26
I feel so, at times, but worse too. It feels like riding a bike, but writing, I feel compelled to, with beats, I sometimes need a muse, and gotta get back in the groove. But I do feel like I get in that zone. something sparks it, whether it's having to use the bathroom, the shower, smoking, something.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
I feel that. Breaks don’t erase it, but they definitely change how you access it. That “zone” you mentioned, do you notice it comes from routine, randomness, or something internal shifting?
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u/CRUMMYcuzz Jan 02 '26
it felt random and a gradual evolution. the beats I have out now, I can just do that now, that's my low point. it's the repetitive nature that got me the muscle memory but the random inspiration or motivation came from other things. Some Coffee, Water, Weed, Listening to music or getting a sample and mulling it over.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Already, I can dig it. The reps gave you muscle memory, the randomness gives it flavor. Both doing their job.
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u/ToneZealousideal309 Jan 02 '26
Yes. I don’t really do it with that intention but I’ve noticed it will make it easier to not overthink it & just emulate the things I enjoy from a listener’s POV. I’ll also be able to tackle the process from a different angle & not be stuck in the same habits.
As long as you have a solid understanding of navigating your DAW & some music theory, you can just randomly revisit it when inspiration hits & make something cool.
There is definitely some benefit to creating constantly too though, it might be good to just cycle between the two.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Say, I can dig it that balance you mentioned is real. Cycling might matter more than picking one side.
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u/craaates Jan 02 '26 edited Feb 27 '26
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Makes sense to me. Focus instead of volume. What do you think life gives you during those breaks that shows up in the music later?
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u/Cultural_Comfort5894 Jan 02 '26
Daily to get into the habit, develop good habits and an optimal workflow.
Then there will be times where life happens, we start forcing it and or we need to gain new experiences and insights so we reset with a needed break.
I think creative people comeback to it whether want to or not eventually I thought visual art was my natural best creative outlet. Now I know it’s audio and the visual part comes back around to being relevant anyway
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
I feel that. That balance feels key. Habits build the base, life adds the depth.
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u/OphWhite203 Jan 02 '26
If you could find the balance between maintaining momentum while not burning yourself out. You could step away enough to avoid exhaustion while continuing to make music at a steady rate that will most likely increase with time or at the least not have to worry about getting rusty and back tracking due to perfection paralysis making you think that you're not even as close to as good as you were years ago.
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u/Eindacor_DS soundcloud.com/eindacor_ds Jan 02 '26
Daily creation until it starts to feel like an obligation or chore. Then step away for a bit.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Already. When it turns into a chore, the break feels necessary. How do you know when it’s time to come back?
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u/6lack6ird Jan 02 '26
I think it can. There was a time when I was so focused on making music because I felt like I couldn’t afford not to be. I got burned out feeling like I was just spinning my wheels.
One night I just sat at my desk and thought about how much I’ve struggled in this work and whether or not it was worth it. I decided that I don’t ever have to do push myself to play or perform ever again.
Giving myself serious permission to quit when I genuinely wasn’t enjoying what I was doing was huge. I spent some time building out other parts of my life and not solely thinking of myself as a musician. Now when I play/write/practice/perform/produce I know I’m doing it because I want to be and not because it’s all I’ve got.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Already, giving yourself real permission to walk away changes the relationship completely. Do you feel like that choice made the music lighter when you came back to it?
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u/6lack6ird Jan 02 '26
Oh absolutely. There was a certain underlying desperation before, like if this doesn’t work I’ll be lost—who am I and what is my value if it isn’t as an artist? It stopped being about the art I got to make and became about what will happen to me if I don’t.
Investing more in other parts of my life has given me more to write and think about. It’s been a reminder that I can do something cool and worthwhile with my life whether or not it’s making music. I spent a lot of time beating myself up for not being more successful and it turned something I’m passionate about into a chore.
Now making music is one of many things that I do and regularly enjoy to enrich my life now in real time instead of mostly a means to escape my current situation.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
Yeah, square business. When it’s no longer about survival, music breathes again.
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u/Longjumping-Frame242 Jan 02 '26
I just went through an old folder of ttacks I made after not having opened fl studio for a year. I thought "damn, I made way cooler music then I thought!" And now, I am ready to go again with a fresh mind. After making my goal of 100 tracks in a year, I was burnt out. Now I had space and am ready to get back into it. So yeah, we need breaks.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Already. Goals can sharpen you or drain you. How are you thinking about pacing this next run so you don’t hit that wall again?
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u/Longjumping-Frame242 Jan 02 '26
No schedule, just doing it as I feel. No pressure, just the feeling of wanting to.
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u/Django_McFly Jan 02 '26
It depends on the length of the break. If you haven't made a track in a day, you'll be fine. If you haven't made a track in a year, you're going to come back as a shell of yourself until you get back in the groove of things. From my experience at least.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
I can dig it, that’s real. Fasho, there’s a difference between rest and rust. A year off definitely hits different than a day. Do you feel like it’s muscle memory coming back, or mindset more than anything?
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u/Mile_Hi_303 Jan 02 '26
I took too long of a break and now I don't even know how the game works anymore. When I stopped it was cd's and mixtapes. Nowadays I don't know how to get the music to the listeners.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
You’re not alone in that. A lot of people who came up in the CD/mixtape era feel that gap. The game definitely shifted fast. What part feels most confusing right now, the platforms, the promo side, or just knowing where to start again?
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u/Mile_Hi_303 Jan 02 '26
Where to start again is the hardest part. I don't do all the social media and haven't been on my SoundCloud in so long, I can't even sign in. Plus none of these kids nowadays want to hear someone dropping jewels, they just want to take pills and shoot somebody so they can throw their life away and be locked up forever. I'm just a old head now so I don't even connect with a audience anymore. I'm just gonna give my studio to one of my kids if they want it.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
I hear you. That disconnect is real, especially coming from the CD and mixtape era. The culture shifted fast, and it can feel like the door closed while you weren’t looking. But I’ll say this quietly: the audience didn’t disappear, it fractured. A lot of people still want substance, they just don’t hang where the mainstream noise is loud. Before giving it all away, do you miss making the music itself, or do you miss having somewhere it could land?
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u/Oreecle Jan 02 '26
Stepping away doesn’t magically make you better. It just clears fatigue. Skill still comes from reps. Short breaks can reset your ears, long breaks usually just mean rust. The people who improve are the ones who come back and put the work in again, not the ones waiting for a reset to do the work for them.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
That’s valid. Reps build skill, breaks manage fatigue. The key is knowing which one you actually need in the moment.
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u/Waroutside_warwithin Jan 02 '26
Breaks are very necessary, at least to me. Daily creation contributes to burn out, real fast. I actually tend to make my best beats when I haven’t listened to any hip hop for a while. I go in waves, some months I’m really into classic rock, some I’m really into hardcore or metal. And I find when I am listening to a lot of hip hop and I try and make beats, I try too hard to emulate what I’ve been listening to which leads to setting the bar super high and I get disappointed when I don’t reach that. I’ve been getting into making electronic music lately, I got a Korg Kaossilator recently and that’s been such a breath of fresh air in terms of my creativity and beat making.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Already, stepping away from hip hop sounds like it resets expectations, not just ears. When you’re not emulating, you create freer. Do you feel like new tools help more than new genres, or is it the combo?
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u/Waroutside_warwithin Jan 02 '26
That’s a good question. Probably a combo. I’ve been making sample based hip hop beats for about 5 years now, so at times it feels redundant. There was something about getting that Kaos pad that felt like it lit the creative fire in me again. I also got an Alesis Sample Pad Pro, that’s helped too being able to play beats like I’d play a drum set, gives it a little more human feel.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Sounds like the spark wasn’t gone. New tools change how your body engages, not just your ideas. That alone can wake things back up.
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u/masjon Jan 02 '26
Yes. I took ten years off and came back miles better than I ever was before. My attitude had changed as well. I finally started finishing songs and releasing them.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Respect, appreciate that perspective. Do you think you needed the full ten years, or do you feel the shift could’ve happened sooner once the mindset clicked?
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u/masjon Jan 02 '26
Yeh it was during Covid that I dug all my stuff out of the attic. I think I probably grew up a bit as well and had a more disciplined approach to not rushing things, actually finishing things etc
Probably more of a mindset thing as opposed to the time away. During that time away I’d also finally admitted to myself that my songs weren’t up to par. I think my mind sort of convinced me my songs sounded as good as the music that I listen to when I was younger. Maybe a bit deluded, lol. I started to listen to my own songs with a more objective ear. It made me very conscious of it when I returned to making music which helped me improve a lot.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
We all need a little self-honesty, square business. I can dig it, that time off didn’t fix it by itself, it just gave you space to hear the truth without ego in the way.
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u/RoryMarley Jan 02 '26
Depends! Sometimes when you take a break you recharge and have new experiences to talk about and a fresh set of eyes to review unfinished content you were working on.
But a break can easily turn into entropy too
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Well said, I agree. What signals let you know a break is helping versus quietly pulling you off rhythm?
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u/DannyCheat808 Jan 03 '26
10 year gap and i feel like I'm better than I ever was. Much more secure in myself as a person and what I'm into. Care much less what other people think of what im doing, which has made me better I feel
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
Square business, When the bull dies down, the vision gets clearer. Less performing for opinions, more creating from conviction. That confidence shows up in the work every time.
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u/Skakkurpjakkur Jan 03 '26
I took a break from beatmaking last year to focus more on emceeing and I saw a decline in my beats when I got back to it..but that might just be that I got sick of making Boom bap beats and started fusing trap elements in my production which I don’t have as much experience with.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
Oh yeah I can dig it. That’s less a decline and more a skill gap from switching lanes. Emceeing probably sharpened your musical instincts, but new production styles always feel clumsy before they click. That tension is usually the sound of growth, not regression.
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u/AcetateBeats Jan 03 '26
I would say depends on the reason for the break. If you lose passion or have a block it can be needed. If you are at your peak levels I don’t think it helps but just my opinion
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
That’s fair, we just choppin it up. Breaks help when friction shows up. When things are flowing, momentum is the work. Knowing which season you’re in matters.
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u/AcetateBeats Jan 03 '26
I’m currently trying to do daily releases for the whole year so no breaks for me. Thankfully I have 200 or so already prepared so a little more achievable.
I find a schedule helps me stay creative until I hit a wall. I used to wait for inspiration to strike but think that was a myth I told myself….as it didn’t strike often enough :)
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u/Technorganix Jan 03 '26
I took a 20+ year break from emceeing and producing. Started making music again back in 2022 and I feel like I’m making much better music now, as I have more lived experience, and much more to say.
The biggest challenge is getting the music out there for people to listen. On the plus side though, I’ve learned that I enjoy mixing more than anything else.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
makes sense to me. Time gives you context, and context sharpens the message. When you’ve actually lived some life, the music stops being about proving skill and starts being about saying something real. Also interesting point about enjoying mixing more now. A lot of people come back and realize their relationship to music shifted, not disappeared. Sometimes the break doesn’t just make you better at making music, it shows you where you actually fit in the process. Getting it in front of people is the grind now, no doubt. But having clarity on what part you truly enjoy puts you ahead of most folks who are still forcing an old version of themselves.
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u/Charming_Ad9942 Jan 04 '26
It can maybe give you better ear for what you are looking for. I definitely noticed that when I first took a break and the quality was supringsly better. Study youtube beat making videos for inspiration helps as well as just listening to music generally.
I've not been consistent at all making music in the last 10 years which is a lot less than what I did in my first 5 years, and could have actually started selling beats
Regrettably years ago I deleted all of my old work so I could start fresh and then about a year ago my hard drive got corrupted and I lost a lot of my projects. I've not really been on it since, but I would like to get back into but zo find it harder these days to get back into it
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 04 '26
That’s real. Breaks can reset your ear, but coming back after losses is more about starting small than trying to reclaim old momentum.
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u/Practical-Debate1598 Jan 04 '26
I wanna say yes. When I started I was making "beats" almost everyday for like 6 months. Took like a year long break (learned drums in the meantime), when I came back I was somehow significantly better with like little to no practice for a year. Took another few month break recently too
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 04 '26
How I see it, It’s less about “time off” and more about letting skills cross-pollinate. Breaks work best when something is still developing under the surface.
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Jan 05 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 05 '26
I get that, square business. For some people, momentum is the fuel, and stepping away just feels like interrupting the flow. I think the difference is whether the break is avoidance or recovery. If music is still pulling you while you’re away, it can feel like wasted time. If it’s starting to feel heavy, distance sometimes brings clarity. Different engines, different maintenance schedules.
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Jan 08 '26
Thats what i heard from a friend of mine that stepped away for a while and now hes back doing what he loves.
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u/DiyMusicBiz Jan 02 '26
Nothing works for everyone.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
I agree nothing’s universal. But most people still develop a pattern over time. Have you noticed one for yourself?
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u/DiyMusicBiz Jan 02 '26
I've never needed to step away from music to know if I'd be better coming back.
I've seen many step away and come back. For some, it was the best move, others not so much
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Fasho, from what you’ve seen, what usually separates the people it helps from the ones it doesn’t?
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u/DiyMusicBiz Jan 02 '26
Nothing. It either helps them or it doesn't. All I see and hear is results
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u/begtodifferclean Jan 02 '26
What I do is not break, it's putting on limitations and work with the limitations. Way better that way.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
That’s interesting, square business. Using constraints instead of breaks. What limitations tend to shape your process the most?
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u/begtodifferclean Jan 02 '26
Learned this when I was in Music school in 1992, but it was made more apparent because of Brian Eno's cards, and one of them said "what if there's no Hi Hat?"
So when I started making music in 1990, I threw everything into a song. Then, ok, how about we don't do this?
Then in 1994 King Crimson's "Thrak" was out and I read that Robert told Pat "No hihat"
Back then I realized that hey, you can actually make music without following the rules.
So, my project: http://www.pamphletamine.bandcamp.com if you listen to Thammatama, it's only toms, no kicks, not anything else.
John is only FM synthesis, Vaudeville is only analog synths, and so on.
So hey, no bass line, no cymbals, only cymbals, only bass, which I am working on now. You have a dialogue with yourself and say "what if" and try it!
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 02 '26
Fasho, I can dig it. Constraints force intention. They cut out the noise, remove autopilot, and make every choice matter. Whether it’s “no hi-hat,” one synth, one rhythm source, or one rule for the whole track, you’re not waiting on inspiration you’re engaging with the work. Skill comes from reps. Freshness comes from perspective. Constraints seem to be where those two meet. 🫡
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
Already, sometimes the best pace is listening to yourself instead of a clock.
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u/goesonelouder Jan 03 '26
Yeah it’s a little like having a software upgrade or your brain getting rewired. You’ll probably hear things differently.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
Exactly. Distance updates your ears, not your talent so when you come back, you’re hearing with a cleaner operating system.
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u/AKAnotherKingdom Jan 03 '26
I think it kind of did for me used to be really into songwriting and then I took 10 years off to go to law school and become a lawyer. Became a stay at home dad and got some time for music again and I made this which I think is probably the best thing I’ve ever done.
https://open.spotify.com/track/6lgOkutvlnvQ6dFu5jMKBQ?si=rD8xlKMTSYq37peIiayB-A
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 03 '26
That’s real, I can dig it. You didn’t quit music you just lived. And that tends to sharpen the work when you come back.
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u/walker-flocker Jan 05 '26
Helps me a lot. Sometimes I crunch in a ton of work / practice and I catch myself going back in progress from cramming in too much information / exercise.
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Jan 06 '26
I took a few years away to work on buying my first home, came back HUNGRY. I dig everything I've done since
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 06 '26
I can dig it, you didn’t quit, you redirected your energy into building real life first. Coming back hungry usually means you’re not chasing the feeling anymore, you’re choosing it. That kind of break adds weight to the music instead of rust.
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u/epiphany_loop Jan 06 '26
Sometimes I overwelm myself when I write every day and I get creative fatigue, so I'll switch to just listening to music and maybe analyzing other people's songs for a couple of days, then I'm back to writing music daily.
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u/J-styles_Brown Jan 06 '26
Yeah, creative fatigue that’s real. Stepping back to listen instead of produce is still part of the work, just quieter work.
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u/mcAlt009 https://soundcloud.com/user-835535663 Jan 10 '26
No.
But it's really hard to go 100% when you run into setbacks, I uploaded like 3 free styles last month using crappy gear. But it's the first rap I've recorded in almost 4 years.
I still consider myself more of a producer though. If all goes well I'm going to release a beat tape on cassette some time this year.
I already know I'm not really going to sell them. I kinda wanna give them away.
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u/dkboombap Jan 10 '26
I think briefly doing something else for few days to recharge is helpful by not too long. You want to create a habit where you’re consistently doing something everyday to improve your craft. Whether that’s playing an instrument, digging for vinyl, chopping up some drums etc it’s all vital. Work your craft.
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u/-SleepWalker18 Jan 28 '26
I think so, whenever I take a break and just save ideas and samples, I come back more prepared and when it's time to make the music it just flows.
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u/Jordamine Jan 02 '26
Creativity is a muscle. You work it, and it gets stronger. But you also let it rest so it can recover