Mashup Music: The Forgotten Genre?

Greetings, folks, I’m new here! My name is Ray, and I’m proud to be blogging for UIC Radio! I’m a biology major, hoping to graduate early (fingers crossed!) and each week I’ll be serving you some new mashup, indie pop, current events, and most everything in between!

So let’s first talk about this thing called mashup music. Basically, it’s when two songs of different genres make a baby, and 9 times out of 10, that baby is pretty danceable. I was but a wee little lad my senior year of high school when I first listened to mashup music—my album of choice was All Day by Girl Talk—and at first it confused me. But then I was hooked. To this day, a majority of the music on my iPhone is this quirky genre.

My love for mashup stems in part from the appreciation of these artists’ hard work; they probably stayed up till 7 in the morning every day just to splice together some sexy sounds. My deference for these underrated artists also comes from the “Holy crap, that is the most glorious combination of songs I have ever heard!” gut reaction. I may or may not have giggled in joy when first hearing “Shimmy Shimmy Ya” by Ol’ Dirty Bastard layered with Radiohead’s “Creep” (as found in “Jump on Stage” in Girl Talk’s All Day). And I may or may not have cried tears of joy after first hearing Pilot’s “Magic” meet Lil Jon’s “Outta Your Mind” on Bruneaux’s Pure Magic (best album ever!) That’s silly. Ahem.

But just because I love it doesn’t mean everyone else does. Many I’ve spoken with disregard mashup as a bastardized genre. To some extent, I concur with these folks. After all, who delights in hearing godly verses rapped by Kanye West, only to be spoiled by the infectious instrumental to Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines”? The flip-side also holds some truth: who finds pleasure in hearing Aphex Twin’s deep, accidental melodies ruined by Southern hip-hop? But when friends rebuff any of the mashup music I play, I just respond with a “Give it a chance!” It’s weird, but like I said, some sweet loving went into these immaculate creations. Mashup music deserves some more recognition and praise!

And if you’re not familiar with genre, then let’s bring you up to speed with something low caliber: “Acclaim” by mashup artist isosine. The song features Schoolboy Q, B.o.B, and Lady Gaga. This tasty mix combines the percussive “Man of the Year” and “Still in This B****” to the recognizable, art-poppy instrumental of “Applause”. It’s sick, it’s twisted, and it’s fine as hell.

Anyone out there also like mashup music? If you do, link some of your favorite creations!