how do producers find artist to sample?

when i hear a hip hop or rap song and it has a sample in it, i dont know who it is. for ex. “what you know” by ti, it has a roberta flack sample called gone away, dj toomp did a good job making and producing that beat. artist like that i never heard before. im trying to build up my music knowing cause i want to be a music producer. i really like the old stuff like funk soul rnb and rock. when i go digging for records i used to look for artist i know. but now i look for artist i dont know and i’ll listen to it and i’ll like it you know. is that a good thing to do? so if you guys know a lot of artist in the 60’s 70’s and 80’s era feel free to make a list of them (ex. sos band, curtis mayfield) and give me tips to improve my artist knowing. peace

This is the most intelligent question I’ve seen on here in a long time.
I think it helps to have a wide range of tastes. Its good you are branching out and trying to find artists you aren’t familiar with.
I would also try talking to older relatives and friends about what they liked growing up. I would continue doing what you are doing by asking for old school recommendations. Finally, I would take a basic Music Appreciation class at a local community college for cheap and then try to learn how to read music and eventually to play an instrument. This will help cultivate your ear for music. You’d be surprised to learn that many, many hip hop producers actually play an instrument.

Here’s a list of my personal classic old school favorites:
BB King
Miles Davis
Patti Labelle
Otis Redding
Carlos Santana
Chuck Mangione
Evelyn “Champaign” King
Morris Day and The Time
The Spinners
The Bee Gees
The Eagles
Percy Sledge

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