Abstract

Remix and mashup are mechanisms of recycling or transforming materials from other media creators with the aim of producing new content. As distinct from remixing, mashups not only reuse older materials but retain the references that often provide cultural contextualization for the mashup audience. Remixes often attempt to blend these materials to the point where original authorship or identifiers can be lost. Mashups are also often used conceptually as a metaphor or trope for cultural change while incorporating techniques of remixing. This essay explores remix and mashup as cultural processes of transformation and re-creation. I focus attention specifically on the mashup and remix by CalTV and WaxAudio, “Imagine This,” released in 2005/2006 to demonstrate my case. My goal is to address a lack of scholarly attention to the intersection of remix and mashup as they intersect with protest movements.