The Stemz have been playing their unique mix of dub, reggae, rock, and hip-hop since 2005, but have a much longer history. The Orange County-based group is fronted by vocalist Eric Malcomb, aka Mr. Ganjahmon, aka MC Stew, who was an integral part of the OC underground hip-hop scene throughout much of the 1990s as an original member of the Tustin/Santa Ana based Youth International Party.

In 1995, Drummer Craig Ranke (“Lyte Trip”) saw MC Stew opening for De La Soul at the Galaxy theatre. Ranke and guitarist Anthony “Tone Tone” Deacon had been playing music together since the 1980s, and at the time they were playing in Khronic Break, an acid funk power trio. After the show, Ranke approached Stew about a potential collaboration. The formation of The Stemz was still a full decade away, but a bond was formed. Ranke went on to record and engineer some of MC Stew’s solo hip-hop records, and Stew regularly sat-in with Khronic Break as a guest rapper at their live shows. Khronic Break would return the favor by occasionally playing back-up for extended freestyle/open mic jams and underground shows for the Youth International Party.

Khronic Break disbanded in the year 2000, and Ranke mentioned to Malcomb that he’d be willing to work on a new live band project if he was able to find a bass player. The idea sat on the shelf for several years, but began to take shape after Malcomb recorded the reggae-influenced record “Love & War” as Mr. Ganjahmon. The album featured programmed/electronic music and drums, and it marked a change in direction for the long-time rapper, who was now also singing and drastically expanding his approach to vocals.

Malcomb connected with bass player Mike Tran and approached Ranke with this new sound and new bass player to take him up on his offer to start a new project. Ranke brought Deacon back into the fold, and The Stemz were officially launched in 2005. They began by recording six of the electronic tracks off “Love & War” with all live instruments. They went on to write 12 original tracks for their 2008 full-length release, “Tinfoil Hatman”, followed by an additional 5 tracks for their follow-up EP, “Fresh Stemz” in 2011, leading to their second full-length release in 2015 titled “Grow”.