This Is a Sampling Sport examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates regarding artistic expression, copyright law, and (of course) money.

This documentary traces the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. For more than thirty years, innovative hip-hop performers and producers have been re-using portions of previously recorded music in new, otherwise original compositions. When lawyers and record labels got involved, what was once referred to as a “borrowed melody” became a “copyright infringement.” The film showcases emerging artists such as Eclectic Method and DJ Spooky, while also featuring many of hip-hop music’s founding figures like Public Enemy, Digital Underground, and De La Soul. It also provides an in-depth look at artists who have been sampled, such as Clyde Stubblefield—James Brown's drummer and the world's most sampled musician—as well as commentary by another highly sampled musician, funk legend George Clinton. As artists find ever more inventive ways to insert old influences into new material, this documentary asks a critical question, on behalf of an entire creative community: Can you own a sound?