You made a remix of a song you love, it sounds great, and you want it on Spotify. The problem is that your track contains someone else's recording and someone else's song. Before you upload anything, two different sets of owners have to say yes, and that yes needs to be in writing.
Every remix touches two sets of rights
A finished song carries two kinds of rights, and a remix uses both.
- The master. This is the original recording, owned by the artist or label who released it. If you use the original vocal, stems or any part of the audio, you are using their master.
- The composition. This is the song itself: melody and lyrics. It belongs to the songwriters and, often, their publishers.
You need permission for both. Re-singing the vocal yourself or replaying the melody avoids using the original recording, but it does not remove the need to ask the songwriters. You are still building on their song.
Official and unofficial remixes
An official remix is commissioned or approved by the rights holders. Often the original artist or label releases it themselves, as a single or as part of a remix package, with the remixer credited. Sometimes they license it to the remixer in writing, with clear terms.
An unofficial remix, also called a bootleg or edit, is made without permission. DJs play them, producers share them to show their skills, but they cannot be legally distributed to streaming platforms. A distributor will refuse them, platforms can take them down, and on YouTube they often attract Content ID claims.
Two common misunderstandings:
- "The stems were free to download" is not permission to release. Stems shared for a remix contest come with rules, and those rules often say the rights holder owns the result.
- "I credited the original artist" does not replace permission. A credit is not a licence.
How to ask for permission
- Find the owners. The ℗ line on the original release usually shows who owns the master. Songwriters and publishers can often be found in the credits on streaming platforms or through collecting society databases.
- Send a short, clear message. Who you are, a private link to the remix, how you would like to release it and what you are asking for. Keep it to a few lines.
- Get the answer in writing. It should cover who releases the remix and on which artist profile, how it is titled and credited, how income is shared, where it can appear (streaming, YouTube, short-video apps) and whether it goes into Content ID.
- Ask for the official stems if you used ripped or isolated audio. Proper stems sound better and show you are working inside the agreement.
Credits and the title
Remixes follow a familiar naming pattern: the original title, then the remixer in brackets, for example "Night Bus (Theo Lark Remix)". The original artist usually stays the primary artist, and the remixer appears in the remixer role, sometimes also as an additional artist, depending on the agreement and the platform's rules.
Agree whose profile the remix lives on. In many official deals it appears on the original artist's profile, so their listeners find it next to the original. Using another artist's name on your own release always needs their consent. Songwriter credits stay with the original writers. If you added a new verse or a new melody, agree in writing whether that gives you a share of the composition.
How the money is usually split
There is no single standard, but a few models are common:
- A flat fee. The rights holder pays the remixer once, and the remixer has no further income from the remix.
- A royalty share. The remixer receives an agreed share of the master income from the remix, sometimes on top of a smaller fee.
- Composition income stays with the writers, unless new writing was added and everyone agreed to adjust the split.
Whatever you choose, agree before release and write it down. Also agree who pays for artwork, promotion and the video, if there is one.
If they say no or never answer
No answer means no. That is frustrating, but releasing anyway puts your account and your reputation at risk.
You still have options. Keep the remix as a portfolio piece and send it privately to labels and artists as proof of what you can do. Remix songs by friends and artists who openly invite remixes. Or approach the original artist with your next idea before you start, which makes a yes much more likely.
When you release through CULT, as with any distributor, you confirm that you own or have permission for all the audio you submit. For a remix that means both permissions, from the master owner and from the songwriters, kept somewhere you can find them if anyone asks.