This is a very confusing area of the law, so tread with caution! Intent to profit and many other factors come into play. One of the most famous videos on Youtube, "The History of Dance" which has that goofy motivational speaker doing his routine is set to many well-known songs. He never made a penny off of it. Why? Because all of the songs in the background were copyrighted so he would have been faced with a huge lawsuit if he had. Now, there are exceptions set forth under the "Fair Use Doctrine" inclusive of sections 107-118 of the Copyright law.
Basically, for fair use, consider these four factors:
1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
2. The nature of the copyrighted work
3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole, and
4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work
Fair use only applies to educational, media, criticism, commentary (such as a music reviewer, journalistic critic, etc.) but I don't think it protects against someone wanting to use music for their own gain/enterprise. Here is a golden rule, if you can't get permission from the copyright holder, and you intend to profit or harm the market for the copyrighted work, I would avoid using the beat/song/music or any component thereof.
IP (Intellectual Property) is a tricky battlefield of law best suited for a specialist who has WAY too much time on their hands to understand all the ins and outs of it. I would guess if you try to make money on a cover song/remix or whatever, you're going to face a lot of grief over payment of royalties, copyright infringement etc. and it won't be worth the headache!
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