Mashup

Abstract

The origin of the mashup is a matter of debate. According to one theory, the phenomenon began in 2001 with the XFM radio broadcast of the song “Stroke of Genius,” a bootleg remix by the deejay Freelance Hellraiser that incongruously set the pop vocals of Christina Aguilera’s “Genie in a Bottle” against garage rock instrumentals from the Strokes’ “Hard to Explain.” A competing hypothesis credits the culture-jamming Evolution Control Committee, which in 1993 satirically layered the brutal rap lyrics of Public Enemy over swinging Latin arrangements of Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass. Other theories cite Club House’s 1983 medley of Steely Dan’s “Do It Again” and Michael Jackson’s “Billy Jean,” Frank Zappa’s ’70s experiments in xenochrony, King Tubby’s ’60s dub remixes, John Cage’s ’50s compositions for a chorus of radios, and even the Renaissance practice of quodlibet. Although some of these may have been influential—and all are reminders of the role remixing has forever played in the creative process—this long tail of influences scarcely anticipates the explosion of songs combining vocals from one source with instrumentals from another following the Freelance Hellraiser’s XFM debut. In a matter of months mashups numbered in the thousands, with juxtapositions including Missy Elliott vs. the Cure, Art Garfunkel vs. Watership Down, and Whitney Houston vs. Kraftwork. Evoking a wrestling match, A vs. B became the standard formula for citing sources, generally in parentheses following a title playing on names of the original songs. (For instance, “Smells Like Teen Booty” was a mashup of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” with “Bootylicious” by Destiny’s Child.) The sounds of these remixes were as varied as the source materials, and the motivations were as disparate as the historical influences, with intended targets ranging from dance club entertainment to cultural critique. What these works shared, and have in common with the countless additional musical (and video) mashups that have since joined them, is the notion that culture is interactive, a feedback loop rather than a mail chute. Whether done in tribute or ridicule, or simply to create something beautiful, these songs mash up the standard distinction between consumer and producer.