If you’re a DJ, a thought may have entered your head that you want to put together a mix playing music from your favourite artist or genre. Whether it’s Bruce Springsteen, James Blake or Tina Turner, Bossa Nova or Cumbia, there are so many ways you can honour the subject. From playing their music to playing music that was inspired by them. You can really tell a great story that way, taking a creative approach to let your listeners know just how much you understand the artist.
In this article, we share how you can create the best possible tribute mix on Mixcloud and what to consider when you’re putting it together.
But first, what are Mixcloud’s Featured Artist Rules?
Our Featured Artist Rules apply to all shows that have more than 15 minutes of runtime. They are as follows:
Recommended limits for shows for all listeners
If you want your show to be available to all who visit Mixcloud, we recommend keeping your shows under these limits:
- Include a maximum of three songs from one release – an EP, album or compilation – and no more than two in a row. You can play up to two songs per release back-to-back. But if you want to include a third track from a release, please add a 30+ second break (of music from another release) in between.
- Include up to four songs from one artist and no more than three in a row. You can play up to three songs per artist back-to-back. But if you want to include a fourth track from the same artist, please add a 30+ second break (of music from another artist) in between.
Increased limits for subscriber-only shows
You can include up to eight songs from one artist. But shows with 4-8 songs from one artist are only available to Premium subscribers, fans with Creator Subscriptions, or you as the creator. Listeners without a subscription will not be able to play these shows. In this case:
- The rules for consecutive songs per artist still apply. You must make sure there are no more than three songs played in a row per artist.
- The rules for songs per release still apply. You can include no more than three songs per release, and no more than two in a row.
This means that if you’d like to play 4-8 songs from an artist in your show, you should break these up into groups of up to 2-3 songs with a gap of 2-3 more tunes or talking in between. Make sure that the songs in between are from several albums, EPs or compilations.
Another thing to note, all content uploaded to Mixcloud is scanned using fingerprinting technology. This is so we can identify and track the songs played and make sure that the artists you’re playing get paid. It also allows us to detect uploads that don’t meet the Featured Artist Rules. This normally happens while you’re uploading, which is why you may be unable to publish your show. It can also happen after your show has been published. In this case, your show will be moved to your drafts and will no longer be available for listeners.
Why are the Featured Artist Rules in place?
The Featured Artist Rules are in place as part of our unique licensing deals with major and independent record labels, publishers, collecting societies and others. These rules allow us to operate Mixcloud as a fair, safe and legal platform.
If you stick to the limits of the Featured Artist Rules, you can confidently upload mixes, radio shows and other long-form content to Mixcloud without worrying about takedowns or needing to take care of licensing and royalties yourself. We do the hard work for you!
So, where does this leave your mix?
These rules are important to consider when putting together a tribute mix. They outline what you can and can’t include in your show. This can give you a rough guide as to how to bring your tunes together and how you tell your story. But now is the time to put your imagination to work.
Rather than playing an artist’s tracks you can paint a rich picture by including music beyond their realm. Include the tunes and artists that inspired your subject, the scene or genre they come from and tunes and artists that they influenced. With this, listeners can immediately put the subject into their correct context and can see a great journey unfold.
Play music from the artist’s inspirations
Let’s say you want to put together a tribute mix about Sly & The Family Stone, the incredible 1960s Soul and Funk band. You know you can now play up to four of their tracks. But you can also play other artists from their era like James Brown, Parliament, Funkadelic, Curtis Mayfield and Isaac Hayes so listeners get a feel of that amazing time in music. That way, you place Sly & The Family Stone in the midst of their era. All while paying tribute to it by showcasing the breadth of talent. It’s a great pool of talent!
Share tunes from the artists and movements that inspired them, like the 1960s Motown sound, Psychedelic Rock and Broadway showtunes. Then, you can play the likes of D’Angelo, Macy Gray, Thundercat and OutKast to display those that the band went on to inspire. Not only does this ensure your mix has a great pace but it also has a wide variety of artists to display your music tastes.
How you structure the mix is entirely up to you. You could start with a Sly track then play others in the middle or end. Or, you could play a brief medley of back to back tunes before you get to your other tracks. Then, dig deeper. As Sly Stone was the leader of his band and a solo artist, you can lay down some of his solo tunes to show what he created outside of the group. Or bassist Larry Graham, who also did his own thing beyond The Family Stone.
The one and only Rap producer Pete Rock put together a tribute mix for the legendary Jazz-Funk icon Roy Ayers. He went through his catalogue and played tunes by artists who sampled the great man. Meanwhile, DJ Blighty served up a tribute for DMX packed with his tracks and those he featured in.
If you want to do a genre tribute mix…
Or, maybe you want to show respect to a genre you love, like Jungle. Play classic tracks by Goldie, M-Beat and General Levy and Roni Size. Or, start with The Winstons’ seminal ‘Amen, Brother’ where the ‘amen break’ – that classic breakbeat you hear in Jungle – comes from. Tell the story of how the break found its way to the genre. Then you can explore subgenres like Ragga Jungle and Jump Up to show how Jungle was taken up a notch. When you really sit down and think about your subject and what to include, there’s a list of possibilities!
If you want to turn the mix into a radio show and speak about your subject, that could be a great way to add even more colour to the story you’re telling. Share stories about the artist, where they’re from and their musical journey. Talk about your song choices and their relation to the artist. Show your appreciation for the artists and their impact on you as a music fan. This gives your listeners even more of a great time!
Mark Track dropped an incredible tribute mix dedicated to Jungle between the years of 1993 and 1994. He unearthed some real gems in the process.
Give your listeners a mix to remember!
A tribute mix can go so many ways thanks to your creativity. Bring it to life by thinking outside of the box. Welcome other elements to give it depth and range. With some amazing choices, you’ll pay a great respect to your artist of choice, those that came before them and after. Good luck!