Where do stems/multi tracks come from?

[Ke$haddicted]

I mean obviously from like pro tools or whatever was used to create the song, but how do people like us get our hands on them? do people actually pay for these stems/multi tracks just to have them leaked? this question came to mind when I came across RiotLuke1 on YouTube who makes acoustic versions of songs which are just a piano instrumental and a mix of the lead vocals stem and Adlibs stems.
for example, his "Me & the Rhythm" acoustic


I also came across a soundcloud page that does acoustic versions in a similar way. they did "Touch It" by Ariana grande and "PILLOWTALK" by Zayn and I love it and am wondering if the stems for the songs are floating around somewhere??
https://soundcloud.com/amandeep-saran1/ariana-grande-touch-it-acoustic
https://soundcloud.com/amandeep-saran1/zayn-malik-pillowtalk-studio-acoustic

 

[mrbassiam]

I'm not sure if this is a real question or not, but I'll bite:

Rips or decrypts from Rock Band, Guitar Hero, Rocksmith, DJ Hero (or whatever it's called), and other rock music games.
Official releases from artists, either as part of commercial releases, educational, or remix promos and contests. Unofficial, bootleg and leaked material from people with access to the original multitrack masters or working demos. Karaoke or backing track sites. 5.1 rips and D.I.Y's. Midi recreations ... and ... I need a beer, it's baseball postseason, Indians are looking good ....


Cheers.

 

[burntscarr]

As mrbassiam said. Most of the stems we get are from Games, remix promos/contests, commercial releases, and people who steal them.

Here's how it works for games:
Game is created
Game developers need songs for players
Developers license with artist agents to get stems (either pre-made or they get the whole thing and mix it themselves)
Developers mix stems (if applicable)
Developers make tracks/dlc/whatever that has a midi for the notes, and then the audio behind it
Rippers take that content (it's obviously mixed down for the game, sadly)

Sometimes, inside people like to release some stuff, or get it for personal use, then end up getting it stolen from them.
I knew a guy who copied every file he mastered for a company to a flashdrive and sold that flashdrive for quite a bit of money.

The home origin of all these tracks is of course the record labels and the artist's agents. They have their mastering people make mixes for certain things, like remix competitions. If you need more clarification just ask, I'll be sure to answer as well as I can.