169 Aaaah! Uncleared Sample in 90s Hardware

The term 'Wild West' is often used when describing the era of early sampling. Given that it was previously impossible to sample anything at all., no rules were initially in place to prevent or legislate for one artist using a sample in their songs. Here is an interesting example of a hardware unit which contained a copyrighted vocal sample taken from James 'D-Train' Williams track, 'Misunderstanding'. The Roland M-DC1 from 1995 (a rackmount version of the JV80-06 dance expansion) features a preset called 169 Aaaah! which you'll no doubt be familiar with... 

Here's an article on Splice detailing the story:

The Roland M-DC1 was released in 1995, offering a variety of loops, one shots, and drum grooves that are perfect for dance production. Many of the sounds incorporated other Roland products, such as 808 kicks and 909 percussion. Amongst the piano stabs, bass loops, and chord progressions included were a series of vocal one shots – including this one.

Why is this sample so prevalent in hip hop music? Producer Zaytoven has used it in a number of his tracks, including cuts by Migos. "If you listen to the music that I've been producing over the years, I kind of have a sound," he told Complex in 2018. "Like a signature sound. That was just one of the beats where I was just like, 'Oh, I need to throw something else in it. Let me throw the 'Aaaah!' in there.' I just started using it however I felt it on the beat.

Further details on WhoSampled which features 26 pages of 400+ songs which use this sound https://www.whosampled.com/sample/983584/Roland-Corporation-169-Aaaah!-D-Train-Misunderstanding/

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