5 GREAT Remixes from 2000 – 2020
“A remix is a great way for both an artist and remixer to generate or expand their fan base and further establish themselves as musicians. Often a track remixed by a credible producer can shine light onto an emerging artist, and vice versa.” –MusicGateway.com
Everyone loves a remix, so I decided to shine light on 5 great remixes over the years (in no particular order)
5 – Lollipop (Remix) Lil Wayne Ft. Kanye West (2008)
“Lollipop” was the first pre-released single from American rapper Lil Wayne’s sixth studio album,Tha Carter III, which was released two months after. Carter III contained a Kanye West verse and an added Wayne verse to the hit single “Lollipop.” Which is one of Kanye’s best verses in my opinion.
4 – Versace (Remix) Migos ft. Drake (2013)
The song first appeared on Migos mixtape, Young Rich Niggas or Y.R.N. in 2013.
According to Genius, Drakes involvement on the remix stems from an interview with Beats 1 contributor Ebro Darden. Migos member, Quavo, recalls watching a video of Drake and DJ Drama debating the respective merits of Migos and Rich Homie Quan, both of whom were new, rising artists at the time.
Drama was trying to tell him that Rich Homie Quan is the new thing. In the video, Drake was like “Nah man, have you heard Migos though?” When Quavo saw that, he knew Drake wanted to work with Migos. But they had never met him until Birthday Bash, which is an event which has headlined the Atlanta music and culture scene for almost 25 years. And ever since they met, Quavo sent him two or three records. Drake wanted to get on the song ‘Pronto’ or ‘Versace’ and Quavo sent him Versace.
The rest is history. The Migos involvement with Drake skyrocketed the group into the limelight.
3 – Or Nah (Remix) Ty Dolla $ign Ft. The Weeknd, Wiz Khalifa, & DJ Mustard (2014)
The original ‘Or Nah’ ft. Wiz Khalifa & DJ Mustard was off of Ty Dolla $ign’s first studio EP, Beach House that dropped January 2014. In an interview with Sways Universe, Ty explains how Wiz told him the song was such a hit that it played in clubs all over the world. The Weeknd heard the song in a club in LA with Wiz and told him he wanted to hop on a remix, and six months later it was released and would later go double platinum.
2 – Mask Off (Remix) Future ft. Kendrick Lamar (2017)
Future, the artist responsible for making history in 2017 with back-to-back No. 1 albums in back-to-back weeks with ‘FUTURE‘ & ‘HNDRXX‘, hit single ‘Mask Off’ was released as the second single from ‘FUTURE‘. It would go on to peak at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100, Future’s highest-charting single as a lead artist.
Kendrick Lamar‘s verse on the “Mask Off” remix arrived after Future was surprisingly brought out during Kendrick’s headlining set at Coachella in April 2017 to perform the remixed track. A month later in May 2017, the official remix hit streaming services. Kendrick would go on to perform this song on every stop on the DAMN Tour.
K-dot appearing on the remix proved that he is as a part of the rap culture as he is above it. In the verse he not only tips his hat to highly commercial contemporaries such as Future, but also adds his take on one of the most popular rap tracks of the 2010s.
1 – My N***a (Remix) YG ft. Lil Wayne, Rich Homie Quan, Meek Mill, & Nicki Minaj (2014)
YG’s highest charting album My Krazy Life (#2 on billboard in 2014) contained a pre-released September 2013 single produced by frequent collaborator DJ Mustard, named ‘My n***a’ featuring Jeezy and Rich Homie Quan. It was met with generally positive reviews from music critics. In fact, XXL and Complex named it one of the best songs of 2013.
According to Wikipedia, the official remix to the song was released 4 months later on January 22nd, 2014. It featured Lil Wayne, Meek Mill, Rich Homie Quan and Nicki Minaj. Five days later, the music video for the remix was shot in Los Angeles with YG, Wayne, Meek Mill, Nicki Minaj, and Jeezy among others. The day the video for the remix was shot, the remix was also released as a single for digital download. On February 20, 2014, YG premiered a preview of the remix at a listening session for My Krazy Life which would go onto drop March 2014.
Let us know some of the best Remixes you enjoy. Look out for another list of Remixes to drop soon!
