The Polotics of Remixing

[djInTheDark]

(I already know the answer to the question, just thought I would voice my thoughts)...

I've been wondering what other people think about this, so my question is:

Do the artists of songs (almost all professional musicians) go to other artists and ask for a remix or other type of mix to be made, or is it the other way around were the remix artist goes to the original artist and asks if a remix can be made?

No need to include all that legal jazz (copyrights, royalties, ect.) if you don't want to. Talk amongst your selves...

[djInTheDark]

Sorry spelled "Politics" wrong.

[LightKeeper]

I'm going to assume 95% of the time the remix artist goes and asks the original artist for permission to remix there song.

[Mrmilkcarton]

At 9/2/09 03:46 PM, LightKeeper wrote: I'm going to assume 95% of the time the remix artist goes and asks the original artist for permission to remix there song.

In the electronic world we live in it usually goes like this. While people might as to remix a song, professionally they are asked by the label to do it.
Mostly with the knowledge of trance/electronic labels I know that if you submit to a label and they like your stuff they probably will ask you to do remixes more then originals. Most people don't ask to remix songs in that genre but, people that do remixes of some of the popular music on radios usually have to ask for permission.

It really depends on what kind of music you make.

[InGenius]

In electronic genres, predominantly Trance and Dance, remixes are "picked up" by a label around 50% of the time and requested by a label around 50% of the time. Labels will ask big names in the target genre to remix a single quite frequently, but just as often a remix is picked up after a label releases the studio stems for a track and remix artists begin working. It pays to know where and how to get stems, and it also pays to build up a fanbase, have a DJ who has an inroad with the label, etc. It's who-you-know mostly. For most of us, that means remixing what we can find, putting it in the hands of DJ's, and praying it finds it's way to a label exec with some clout who likes it or, more importantly, likes the fact that it has pushed the original single to a new, monetarily strong demographic.

[Khuskan]

Fair use is a concept well applied here. If you release the remix for free. and credit the group, band or artist you remixed, your work potentially stands under fair use, and therefore is legally covered.

If you're releasing to NG, it's fair to assume you aren't getting that much exposure so if anything, you are simply raising awareness of the original song, and thus are working to advertise the artist that you remixed.