Decap is the man behind the drums behind your favorite song. That is the title of a profile on The Verge, and it is exactly right. Nicholas Piantedosi, better known as Decap, runs a series of drum sample packs called Drums That Knock, and his work has landed on records by Kendrick Lamar, Olivia Rodrigo, Charli XCX, Freddie Gibbs, Bad Bunny, Mac Miller, BTS, and even Ludwig Göransson’s score for Oppenheimer. He is not a household name, but his fingerprints are all over the biggest hits of the last decade.
The Sample Packs That Changed Everything
Decap debuted Drums That Knock in 2016. The line is now on its 11th installment. Kenneth Blume, formerly known as Kenny Beats, the producer behind hits from Denzel Curry, Vince Staples, Rico Nasty, Idles, and FKA Twigs, said that Decap “changed a million lives with a single snare.”
Unsurprisingly for a man so obsessed with low-end, Decap has a real beef with phone speakers. He still cannot give up his trusty Boss SP-202 Dr. Sample from 1998, the first sampler he ever had, which he chopped his first samples on back in junior high when he first started making beats.
Ableton Live and the Clipper
Decap’s main creative tool is Ableton Live, which he uses to get his ideas out. His favorite underappreciated tool is the clipper. “A soft clipper can give your drums that warm analog sound, or it can make them hit super hard,” he said. “It’s the tool that changed my music.”
His wish for his phone is simple: he wants a fatter speaker. “I wish I could hear a fat 808 on my phone,” he said. “A raw 808 with no processing is basically inaudible on a phone speaker.” He added that “so many people listen to music all day on their phone without ever truly feeling the low end.”
A Sampler From 1998
Decap’s favorite gadget he has ever owned is his Boss SP-202 sampler. It was the first sampler he ever had, back in junior high when he first started making beats, and he chopped his first samples on it.
When asked about a tech trend he wishes would go away, Decap pointed at gatekeeping over gear. “This idea that you’re not a real producer unless you use hardware, or unless you use this DAW or that one,” he said. “It’s not true. If you’ve got a computer, you already have everything you need.”
Advice From His Dad
The best advice Decap has ever received came from his father. “No matter what, make a decision and put a stake in the ground,” he said. “But remember what a stake is. You can always pull it up and move it.”
When he needs to focus, Decap meditates. “It aligns my mind and my body, and when those two are lined up I can focus way more clearly,” he said. “If the mind isn’t right, everything will always be a little off.”
Feeling Stuck? Try the 3M Technique
When he feels stuck, Decap uses a method he calls the 3M technique: make it, mix it down, move on. “It doesn’t have to be perfect,” he said. “It’s about staying in the action of creation, because that’s where the magic happens.”
Decap also knows what he wants to splurge on. Living in Los Angeles, he loves going out for a nice dinner. “There’s no shortage of incredible restaurants,” he said.
The Man Behind the Drums
Decap’s work has made its way across genres. The tagline for his biopic would be “This all started with not wanting a real job.”
| Tool | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Ableton Live | Digital audio workstation for getting ideas out |
| Clipper | Soft clipping for warm analog sound or hard hits |
| Boss SP-202 Dr. Sample | First sampler he ever had, from 1998 |
| Meditation | Aligns mind and body for focus |
Decap’s story is one of steady work, and it is built on the same tools he started with decades ago.
Source material: “Decap is the man behind the drums behind your favorite song,” The Verge.
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