Versions & edits
Official remix
An official remix is commissioned or approved by the rights holders, usually with stems supplied and a proper release. An unofficial one is made without permission, from the released audio, and circulates informally.
In practice
Official means stems and a release. Unofficial means a stereo master and no catalogue number.
Tag them differently, because the distinction matters when you post a tracklist or upload a mix — an unofficial remix in a recording behaves like an unreleased track as far as matching systems are concerned. When crediting one, name the remixer and say unofficial rather than implying a release that does not exist; producers care about this and so do labels.
Stems
What official gets
Stereo master
What unofficial works from
Credit it
As unofficial, plainly
Where these come from: Release conventions. The measured counts and median lengths per version type are on the remix and VIP pages. For what we can measure, see the measured version data.
Why it matters
The difference determines almost everything practical about the record: whether you can buy it, whether it has a catalogue number, whether it appears in a tracklist without causing a problem, and whether a mix containing it survives being posted.
It also determines quality in a way people do not expect. An official remixer works from stems and can rebuild a track from its parts; an unofficial one is working from a finished stereo master and has to fight the original mix the whole way. The best unofficial remixes are impressive partly because of that constraint.
Frequently asked
How can I tell if a remix is official?+
It has a catalogue number, a store listing and the original artist credited on the release. An unofficial one has none of those and usually arrives as a file.
Are unofficial remixes lower quality?+
Not necessarily, but they are made from a finished stereo master rather than stems, which is a real constraint. The good ones are impressive partly because of it.
Can I put an unofficial remix in a posted mix?+
It behaves like unreleased material as far as automated matching is concerned. The mix-licensing page covers what the platforms actually do.
Related terms
Remix
A remix is a new production built from another artist’s parts — usually a different arrangement, often a different genre and tempo. The original vocal or hook survives; almost nothing else has to.
Bootleg
A bootleg is an unofficial edit or remix released without the rights holder’s permission. It circulates on USB sticks and private links rather than through stores, which is exactly why you will not find many for sale.
Stems
Stems are the separated parts of a record — drums, bass, vocal, melody — as individual audio files. Modern players and software also generate them live from a finished stereo track.
Mix licensing
A recorded DJ mix contains other people’s recordings and compositions, so putting it online is a use that needs permission. Some platforms hold blanket licences covering it; others do not, and the difference decides what happens.
Explore: Bootleg, edit, mashup, VIP or remix · Remix · Mix licensing · All DJ terms