When genres collide

Cross-genre remixes and collaborations are the big music trend of 2019. It’s a trend that adds longevity to a song reaching the end of its radio rotation, and opens the artists up to new pools of fans.

A bad one could haunt an artist forever, but let’s kick things off with some goodies and, should you want to hear some fails, you know where to find me.

R&B superstar Khalid and country music star Kane Brown have been teasing their Saturday Nights REMIX (featuring Kane Brown) on social media for weeks.

The track finally dropped last Friday, and runs so smoothly I’m convinced The Spice Girls’ song

2 Become 1 was written about this collaboration.

It opens Khalid up to the bizarre world that is country radio and Brown – who is a chart-topper in his own right – to the more hip-hop-leaning crowd. Cha-ching, baby.

Halsey also jumped on board last week, celebrating her single Without Me going No 1 by dropping Without Me (featuring Juice WRLD) ,a remix of the song featuring

2018’s hottest rapper.

Juice WRLD’s verse doesn’t drop until the two-and-a-half minute mark, but boy, oh boy, does it breathe new life into a song that’s been absolutely thrashed on mainstream radio (for good reason).

His brand fits well with hers and so do his rhymes.

The final example worth noting is one that got lost in the pre-Christmas noise.

One of the slower, R&B tracks on pop darling Shawn Mendes’ self-titled album, Why (featuring Leon Bridges) has been given a soulful second wind thanks to Leon Bridges.

Bridges – who performed in New Zealand last weekend – lends his vocals to the second verse, elevating a lacklustre Mendes track to something warm, rich and truly indulgent.