Remixing is a modern phenomenon that has turned into a viable way for hi-tech musicians to make money from their skills. But how do you get heard, how do you land a job, and how much should you charge to do it?

Create – Remix songs – UJAM – Make your music.

We get you started with the insider's guide. Sounds simple enough, right? In this article, I'll be telling you what it is like to work in the modern remix industry, and how best to go about breaking into it. Over the years, I've remixed artists including Rihanna, Robbie Williams, Sugababes, INXS and many more. By remixing tracks by artists such as these, it's quite possible that the fans of the artist will keep an eye out for your remixes in the future, simply because you remixed their favourite artist.

People have been 'remixing' music for almost as long as recorded music has existed, especially since the advent of convenient recording media such as magnetic tape in the late '40s. It wasn't until the late '60s and early '70s that the remix as we know it began to develop.

This period saw the development of the dance hall culture in the Caribbean and in Jamaica in particularsomething that was driven by advances in multitrack recording technology. Producers such as King Tubby and Lee 'Scratch' Perry would take the multitrack recordings and, with some heavy editing, create their own interpretations of songs. These were often just extended versions of the originals, created by manipulating the arrangement and dynamics of the original musical parts, but this arguably paved the way for the whole remix culture that has become so prevalent today.

Finally, he began to specialise in actually doing remixes, specifically for the nightclubs. He is said to be the inventor of the 'breakdown' and the inch single format. However, to many others, the true pioneer of the modern remix was Shep Pettibone.

Alongside this, he also helped to establish 'house' music as part of the mainstream dance culture. Technological developments in musical instruments and production tools have continued to create opportunities. In the '90s and '00s, remixes ranged from subtle reinterpretations of recordings to completely new and — ironically enough — often sometimes unrecognisable versions of songs.

Another new arrival on the scene was the 'mashup', the process of taking two recordings and placing them on top of each other 'mashing' them together. Normally this takes the form of an instrumental track and an acapella. This pretty much brings us up to date.

In the world of the superstar DJ and superstar remixer, the fees commanded by the remixer can often exceed the advance paid by the record company to sign the record in the first place!

A quick trawl through the iTunes store will soon show you just how much competition you're up against if you want to get into commercial remixing In my opinion, you really must learn how to produce your own songs first. Yes, you read right: Working from the target audience backwards, you have:.

That is, the punters in the nightclub. If they don't dance to it, forget it, you've failed your mission. As they're the ones in posession of the cheque book or Internet banking password they have to be happy with your work. The reason why the remixer comes last on this list is not because they are the least important far from it!

When you're more established and have some profile of your own, you can be more rigid about what you do: Some commercial sample libraries can have restrictive terms attached, so remember to check the license agreement.

What do you do to stand out from the crowd? But at the same time, you need to be prepared to take constructive criticism — and always remember the list above. Once you have your studio, you market nike stock symbol your 'sound', and you know what you're doing, what do you do best broker for option trading in india Credit Crunch, global financial crisis, recession We're all acutely aware of it, and like most other industries the music industry is suffering.

So you'll need to be prepared to put in the effort and face the possibility that you might do all the work for nothing. The silver lining in this situation is that even if they don't decide to use the remix commercially, you can still include it in your showreel.

I'll come on to this later!

And then your third one There are other things to consider along the way, including some legal issues that you need to be aware of. In almost all cases, although you may make recordings during the remix, you do not own the sound recording; that is covered by part of the fee that you are paid for doing the remix. More often than not, the 'majors' will give you contracts, but only really in order to protect their interests rather than yours.

Most independents simply can't justify the expense of issuing remix agreements which are still contracts given the expected revenue of the track. Payment for the remix is 'full and final'. In other words, don't expect anything else out of the record label in the future. But this is increasingly rare. Ownership of the sound recording lies fully with the record label. This is pretty much standard and to be expected. Any samples used will be declared by the remixer not including the original parts of the recording being remixed, obviously and, normally, will have been cleared is escrow and earnest money the same the remixer prior to submitting the remix.

Of course, sample libraries don't tend to fall into this area — because when you buy the library you are usually given the right to use the samples contained within for commercial purposes.

But in the beginning you have to nse virtual stock market game them to give you your lucky break.

This is why it is important for you to know how to produce your own tracks — because, in the beginning, and in the absence of any other remixes, they need global forex richmond get some idea of what you can do, both in terms of your style and your quality of production.

And they'll want to hear what you are capable of.

How to Remix: 10 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow

One of the most crucial factors when it comes to building your showreel is quality control: Make money remixing songs make it count. And while you might wonder what relevance your web site or MySpace page could possibly have to your production skills, don't underestimate the bulls and bear stock market of the former.

It also helps to do some research to find out, where possible, the name of the correct person to send your showreel to. Sometimes this information can be found on-line, while at other times simply phoning the label and asking for the name and telephone number or email address of the person can be all you need. Some labels seem far less willing to give out that information than others, though You see, the funny thing about the music business — and, from my experience at least, especially the remixing industry — is that if you're available to do remixes, the labels will want you less, whereas if you're too busy they'll want you even more!

So another thing to consider is being selective about who you send your showreel to: Wait to hear back from those few that you sent out initially, and if you don't get any interest from them, move on to the next few. Any time that you spend waiting, you can consider a golden opportunity for refining your production skills. It can be incredibly difficult to manage your expectations when you truly believe that you have got what it takes, but don't go into record labels demanding exorbitant fees from the very beginning.

Once you have those first few remixes under your belt assuming that they're well received! So why should you? You may be able to work with great people, and this all looks very good on your CV. There are less immediately obvious bonuses too: Sound On Sound Ltd, Media House, Trafalgar Way, Bar Hill, Cambridge, CB23 8SQ, United Kingdom. The contents of this article are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, whether mechanical or electronic, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publishers.

Great care has been taken to ensure accuracy in the preparation of this article but neither Sound On Sound Limited nor the publishers can be held responsible for its contents. The views expressed are those of the contributors and not necessarily those of the publishers.

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You are here Home Techniques The Remix Business: Part 1 The World Of The Remixer. Working from the target audience backwards, you have: Yes, that's right, you're down here at the bottom of the list. Technicalities There are other things to consider along the way, including some legal issues that you need to be aware of.

Great Expectations Contract, what contract? Issue navigator Previous article Next article. Technicalities Great Expectations Building Your Showreel Value Your Work From Little Acorns View all ads Create free ad.

The Remix Business: Part 1 |

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