How to separate stems inside Premiere Pro

You can separate stems inside Premiere Pro with StemForge, a plugin that works with a small desktop app on your Mac. Open the panel from Window > UXP Plugins > StemForge, load a track, choose 4 or 6 stems, click Separate Stems, and import the results into your project. Nothing is exported and nothing is uploaded.

What you need

• An Apple Silicon Mac.
• Adobe Premiere Pro 2026 (version 26.0 or newer), installed through Creative Cloud.
• StemForge installed and activated with your license key: the desktop app, plus the Premiere Pro plugin. The setup guide walks through both.

Steps

1. Open the panel. Make sure the StemForge desktop app is running (look for its icon in the menu bar). In Premiere Pro, choose Window > UXP Plugins > StemForge.
2. Load a track. Drag an audio file onto the panel, choose Browse, or load the selection from your timeline.
3. Check the tempo and key (optional). Run Analyze to read the BPM and musical key before you separate. If you need to match a cut, BPM and key detection covers how.
4. Choose how many stems. The 4-stem model gives you vocals, drums, bass, and other. The 6-stem model adds guitar and piano, and it runs slower.
5. Click Separate Stems. The desktop app does the work on your Mac while the panel shows progress.
6. Import the results. Click Import next to a stem to bring it into the active project as a new bin item, then drag it onto your timeline.

Where stems help in an edit

• Bring the drums in exactly on a cut.
• Duck or drop the vocal under dialogue without losing the rest of the track.
• Strip a track back to just the guitar or piano for a quieter moment.

Getting clean results

Results are cleanest on music with distinct vocal, drum, bass, and instrument parts. Dense or heavily processed mixes can leave traces of other parts in a stem. The first time you run it, the desktop app downloads its audio model (about 80 MB), and the 6-stem model downloads in the background afterwards.

Questions

Does my audio leave my computer?

No. Separation, analysis, and rendering all run locally on your Mac. StemForge goes online only to check your license and to download its audio models.

The panel says offline. What do I do?

The desktop app is not running. Open StemForge from Applications and check that your license is activated. The troubleshooting section covers the common causes.

Can I match the result to my edit's tempo?

Yes. Set a target BPM or key and render a time-stretched or pitch-shifted version, then import it the same way.

Does it work in DaVinci Resolve?

Yes, in DaVinci Resolve Studio 19 or newer. See how to separate stems in DaVinci Resolve Studio.

More detail on the feature itself is on the stem separation for Premiere Pro page.