A remix is more than just putting a new drum beat under an acapella. It’s a reinterpretation. You are looking at the original song through your own artistic lens. The best remixes often take a track to a place the original artist never imagined.
Respect the Hook
Identify the one element that makes the original track special—the vocal hook, a specific synth riff, or a bassline. Keep that. Everything else can go. Your job is to frame that core element in a new context. If you remove the hook, you aren't remixing; you're just making an original track with stolen parts.
Change the Context
If the original is a high-energy banger, try stripping it back to a deep, dubby roller. If it's a slow ballad, double the tempo and turn it into a drum & bass track. The most successful remixes work because they allow the song to be played in a completely different environment (e.g., a club) than the original intended.
The "Dub" Mix
Always do a "Dub" version (no vocals or minimal vocals). DJs love Dubs. They are easier to mix, less intrusive, and often have a more timeless quality. Often, the Dub mix ends up being the one that gets played by the big underground jocks.