as a rapper............... i will not release a song on my "album" unless i have the beat tracked out but i will use it for a "mixtape".
as a producer............ i will (generally) arrange the beat as far as "intro, verse, hook, verse, hook, verse, hook, hook, outro" with breaks and fills placed @ the end of every 8 measures. plus.................. all of my beats are tracked out and are available upon request
as a engineer............. i prefer to have the beat tracked out so that i can arrange and mix the instrumental to better fit the vocals.
thats my recipe................................................................................................................................................