10 Music Mashups that Absolutely Shouldn’t Work, But Totally Do
Laugh, cringe, relax, or dance to these Internet music mashups that combine songs that shouldn’t even be on the same playlists.
Written by Haley Kennis
Photo courtesy of Triple-Q on YouTube
While song remixes have existed for a long time, the invention of the Internet opened the doors of remixing music to a much wider audience than before. A popular form of remixing music online are mashups: taking two or more songs and combining them into one brand new song. Most music mashups on the Internet feature songs that the mashup creator thinks would work together in some way, whether they have a similar mood, sound, topic, etc.
But, this is the Internet we are talking about, and with the rise of meme culture came a simultaneous rise of people trying to combine songs they explicitly think shouldn’t work together. Most of those mashups are rightfully terrible, but some mashup artists have created song abominations that somehow swing around from “so bad, it’s good” to just plain good. Whether or not you think these songs accomplish that is up to you, but here are ten music mashups that work far better than they have any right to.
“Drowning Pool - Bodies but it’s the ‘Drake and Josh’ Theme Song” by William Maranci
An infamous nu-metal song and a Nickelodeon TV show theme couldn’t possibly go together, right? Producer William Maranci, a new madman on the mashup scene, begs to differ. This mashup of “Bodies” by Drowning Pool and the “Drake and Josh” theme song sounds surprisingly like a legitimate song from the 90s grunge era. The dark, crunchy rhythmic guitar combined with the slight growl in Drake Bell’s voice makes this song sound like a lost Nirvana demo. The lyrics go from feeling lighthearted to menacing, and the melody when Bell sings “over your shoulder you know that I told you / I'll always be pickin' you up when you're down” sounds extremely Cobain-esque. This is a mashup you may cringe at initially, but later you find yourself listening completely unironically just because the parts come together so well.
“X Gon Give it to Ya Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen vs. DMX” by oneboredjeu
With over 5.5 million views, this mashup has become a modern meme classic. Many mashup artists like to combine songs from different musical genres to create a new fusion of sounds. “X Gon Give it to Ya Maybe” takes that concept to the extreme by mixing the cheerful, bubblegum pop sound of Carly Rae Jepsen’s hit “Call Me Maybe” with the hardcore hip-hop hit “X Gon Give it to Ya” by DMX. These songs couldn’t be more different sonically or lyrically, but, merged together, the sweetness and harshness seem to balance each other out. It’s hilarious but also a total jam. Throw this one on the next time you can have a get-together (or alone in your bedroom), and you’re bound to have a good time.
“Radiohead - Creep but it’s All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey” by William Maranci
Another example of mixing two songs with completely different moods, the dour sadness of “Creep” by Radiohead plays over the jaunty, festive instrumental of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You.” While the construction isn’t perfect, the hilarious pairing is enough to put anyone in the shoes of an angsty teen who is so not in the spirit at their family’s holiday get-together. This is the Christmas song for total scrooges.
“Death Grips - I’ve Seen Footage but it’s My Humps by The Black Eyed Peas” by William Maranci
This is one of the most baffling musical combos on the list, as there is almost nothing in common between pop group Black Eyed Peas and experimental hip-hop group Death Grips. Somehow, Fergie’s singing and will.i.am's rapping go upsettingly well over the grinding industrial beat. Now that we know what the Black Eyed Peas sound like if they were dark and experimental, a mashup with MC Ride shouting over a bouncy wil.i.am produced beat needs to exist. Maranci is so good at making mashups that listeners simultaneously love and loathe he could probably pull it off.
“K.K. Slider - SiK.K.o Mode” by Overspace
Another big subgenre in the music mashup parody world is mixing popular music with different video game soundfonts. There are many mashups with soundfonts from “Zelda,” “Mario 64,” “Animal Crossing,” “Halo,” and many more. This particular mashup takes the animalese speaking style from the “Animal Crossing” games and makes troubadour canine K.K. Slider sing “Sicko Mode” by Travis Scott. Much like K.K. Slider’s music from the games, this is a total banger. The fake “Animal Crossing” language sounds surprisingly slick over the Travis Scott beat, especially when Slider starts doing little “hm” noises between bars. While you play hours and hours of “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” during the quarantine, throw this song on and turn your desert island into the coolest island in the ocean.
“Who” by Neil Cicierega
A list of meme song mashups is incomplete without mentioning Neil Cicierega. Perhaps one of the longest-lasting and consistent content creators in Internet history, Cicierega is the mind behind dozens of beloved viral videos over the span of two decades like “Potter Puppet Pals,” “Ariel Needs Legs,” “Bustin,” and so many more. Beyond his videos, he also makes music such as “Two Trucks” and “Touch-Tone Telephone” under the name Lemon Demon, as well as incredibly well-produced meme mashup albums. “Who” has a gimmick that Cicierega has used on each of his albums: each of the songs featured relates to one specific word, this one being "who." Featuring songs from 10 artists, including The Who, Men at Work, Blur, the Baha Men, Selena Gomez, and even the Who’s That Pokemon theme, “Who” masterfully takes bits and pieces from each song and turns it into a bouncy electro-pop jam. And this wasn’t even featured on one of his mashup albums — it was an outtake.
“Thank U, Nirvana (Smells Like Ariana)” by Magik Mike
“Thank U, Nirvana” walks right on the line of “so bad it’s good” territory, which is impressive in and of itself. Merging grunge classic “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Ariana Grande’s pop smash “Thank U, Next” feels almost sacrilegious, but the songs are combined in such a careful, precise way that the mashup is perversely good. Cobain’s rough vocals are so much easier to understand over the low-key beat of “Thank U, Next” that it nearly makes sense that they are put together. If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” had come out in 2018, it might have sounded like this.
“T.I.M.E.” by Neil Cicierega
Another entry from the Internet legend himself, this selection from Cicierega’s third mashup album, Mouth Moods, combines “Y.M.C.A” by disco group Village People and “Time” by German composer Hans Zimmer. On paper, this mashup makes no sense; it’s simply something you have to experience to understand. The beginning is stark with just the swelling piano of “Time” and the boastful vocals of “Y.M.C.A.,” but when the orchestra fades in from the background the usually happy lyrics take on a much sadder, desperate vibe. The theatrical music makes it sound like the Village People are in a slow-motion battle defending their beloved Y.M.C.A. from destruction. One commenter summed it up perfectly: “Oh my god. They've turned this goofy song into a plaintive cry made in the face of an uncaring universe.” By the time the whistle from “All Star” by Smash Mouth echoes in the distance as the track ends you will probably feel deeply, and strangely, moved.
“Sucker is a new and original song which doesn’t plagiarize at all” by Triple-Q
Fusing nine songs the creator thought sounded similar, this mega mashup with “Sucker” by the Jonas Brothers features songs from unlikely genres like Italian Eurobeat, 2010s indie-pop, ‘60s Motown, video game soundtrack rock, and even Japanese anime pop. While the creator said they weren’t seriously trying to argue that the Jonas Brothers ripped off all of these songs, this mashup works well to show how similar popular music can sound across the world. At first, the songs might not sound that similar, but when the chorus kicks in and “Kyun! Vampire Girl” replaces the original track, it is almost undeniable how similar the melodies are. This mashup is a cool exercise in finding similar sounds in different genres and carefully working them together into an intense experience (the fantastic editing in the video also helps).
“Youtube duet: Miles Davis improvising on LCD Soundsystem” by Alessandro Grespan
The final entry in this list is a little different from the rest, as it’s not the songs themselves that make it surprising the mashup sounds good — it’s the way they were put together. A recording of Miles Davis’ trumpet improvisation over LCD Soundsystem’s “New York I Love You, But You’re Bringing Me Down” is a special kind of video that could only originate on the Internet. The compatibility of these songs was discovered by pure chance when two people happened to play these two videos at the same time, realizing their potential together. The two videos simply play over one another with no special editing or crafting — they just work. Witnessing Davis’s trumpet coming in right with the drums of the LCD Soundsystem track is sheer magic. The trumpet adds another air of melancholy to the already downbeat song. It is so simple, yet so moving, and one can’t help but wonder how many other mashups are waiting out there for the right people to happen upon them. We are lucky this one was found.