What is a Stem?

Beats are made with a collection instruments. When downloading beats, you have two choices: purchase a single beat file, or purchase the stems from the beat at an additional cost. 

Stems (also referred to as track-outs) are classified as the layers of an instrumental. If there is a guitar, piano, kick drum, etc. in the beat you plan on purchasing, chances are, you can opt to purchase the stems for further experimentation. These stems will include all of the individual instruments from the beat formatted into their own, specific file.

Normally, artists purchase single beat files because it is the cheaper option. However, when purchasing stems, you are presented with options that simply wouldn’t be possible with just a single beat file. Stems allow your engineer/producer the flexibility to change up the structure of your song, apply individual effects to specific instruments, add extra production, and more - the possibilities are endless.

In addition to this, having the stems from the beat allows for more control in the mixing process, and often leads to a better mix in the end. With single beat files, the mix and song structure of the beat is left up to the producer who created the beat - which can be somewhat limiting if you’re looking to make the song revolve around your creative process.

As engineers, we always prefer to have the stems of the beat so that we can make the mix, and your song, the best it can possibly be. The next time you disregard a beat because of something as trivial as its structure, consider purchasing the stems and asking your engineer to help you re-arrange it.