Stick Figure

Stick Figure was founded in 2006 as a one-man band by multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer Scott Woodruff. Woodruff, originally from Duxbury, Massachusetts, began playing instruments at the age of 17, and was primarily drawn to reggae.[1] His style of layering tracks to create songs was particularly inspired by Keller Williams who utilized a looping method to create music.

Woodruff began writing and producing music in 2006, which incorporated roots reggae with dub, a subgenre of reggae.[2][4] As a freshman in college, Woodruff began submitting instrumental tracks to the Sublime Archive website and consequently adopted the moniker "Stick Figure", which was a take on his high school nickname.[4]

On December 11, 2007, Woodruff released his first album The Sound of My Addiction under Ruffwood Records.[5] Founded by Scott Woodruff, Ruffwood Records released all of Woodruff’s albums to date. The Sound of My Addiction established Stick Figure’s style of self-production. Woodruff created this album by "recording instruments individually, [and] layering tracks on top of one another in unison", a style he used to create subsequent albums.[2]

On January 16, 2008 Woodruff released his sophomore album, Burnin’ Ocean under Ruffwood Records.[5] This album was one of the Top 10 Best Reggae Albums in 2008 on the Apple iTunes charts; notable tracks include "Burnin' Ocean", "So Good" and "We Get High".[2][6][7]

In the summer of 2009, Woodruff moved[2] to the San Diego area and shortly after released his subsequent album, Smoke Stack. This album followed the same recording style of the previous two albums where he individually recorded and layered each track to create a song. Notable songs include "Livin' It", "Hawaii Song" and "Vibes Alive".[8][9]

Smoke Stack was well-received and peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart and No. 17 on the Heatseekers Album Chart.[10]

He released The Reprise Sessions on August 3, 2010 under Ruffwood Records.[11][2] Notable tracks include "Your Way" and "Dead End Street".[7]

On June 12, 2012, two years after releasing Reprise Sessions [12] Woodruff released the fifth Stick Figure album, Burial Ground.[11]

All 14 tracks were written and produced by Woodruff, one of which features vocal by reggae singer Half Pint and one of which features vocals from Woodruff's close friend, T.J. O'Neill.[11] Woodruff co-wrote five of the tracks with O'Neill;[13] the two had spent time traveling abroad together in Indonesia, Australia, Fiji, Thailand, and New Zealand starting in 2010, finding mutual inspiration for songwriting.[11]

The album reached no. 1 on the iTunes and Billboard Reggae charts,[2][14] and reached No. 17 on the Heatseekers Albums chart in the United States.[10]

Burial Ground met with a positive critical response, with a number of critics noting the mixing of upbeat reggae and dub. According to The Reggae Review, "Original, bass-heavy, one drop beats are consistent throughout the album, as are the subtle nuances...and sometimes not so subtle nuances....of dub. Stick Figure's digits remain firmly on the pulse of roots reggae/dub music."[13] The Pier stated "the album represents a new milestone in Stick Figure's musical growth and innovative abilities, with more layering, instrumental transcendence, and lyrical complexity [than their previous albums]."[11]

Stick Figure's original live lineup.

After the release of Burial Ground in 2012, Woodruff organized a live band which then went on tour with reggae band The Green starting in September 2012. This tour included eighteen stops along the East Coast of the United States.[2]

In Spring 2013, Stick Figure embarked on their first headlining tour with stops in major cities including Boston, Austin, Denver and Chicago with multiple sold-out shows.[15][16] That year they also went on three national tours alongside reggae bands Passafire, John Brown's Body, and Tribal Seeds.[17]

In 2014, they headlined their first national tour, with numerous sold-out shows including a performance at West Hollywood's renowned Roxy Theater that sold out two weeks before the show date.[18][19][20]

Within two years of forming a live band, Stick Figure toured with other major acts including Rebelution, Slightly Stoopid, Collie Buddz, Passafire, Tribal Seeds and The Expendables.[2][21] They performed at various internationally recognized festivals including Reggae on the River, Cali Roots Festival, Life is Beautiful, Closer to the Sun, Levitate, and Bonnaroo, amongst others.[22]

In 2020, Stick Figure announced their first ever headline amphitheater tour. The tour features support from Collie Buddz, Iya Terra, and The Movement, and visits 19 cities nationwide. [23]

In 2015, Scott Woodruff relocated from San Diego to a home in the woods in the outskirts of Santa Cruz. Immediately after relocating to his new home, Woodruff built Ruffwood Studios where he recorded the subsequent Stick Figure album, Set in Stone. Woodruff found much inspiration for this album from the redwood forest just outside of his studio.[24][25]

On November 13, 2015, the group released their sixth studio album, Set in Stone. Set In Stone peaked at No.1 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart, and spent 78 weeks on the chart. It appeared on six Billboard charts overall,[10][26] including No. 101 on the Billboard 200, No. 24 on Digital Albums, No. 1 on Heatseekers Albums, No. 7 on Independent Albums, and No. 65 on the Top Album Sales chart.[10]

Woodruff produced this album in the same way he produced the five previous albums.[27][24] The 14-track album includes collaborations with Eric Rachmany of Rebelution, Slightly Stoopid, KBong, and Collie Buddz.[5]

External video
"Fire on the Horizon" - Stick Figure (Official Music Video) - Nov 10, 2015

Following the album's release,[28] in January 2016, the live band embarked on a U.S. tour with the Southern California reggae band Fortunate Youth.[29] Johnny Cosmic, a multi-instrumentalist, made his debut appearance as a member of the Stick Figure live band on this tour playing keyboards, singing backup vocals and playing guitar.[28]

On August 30, 2019, Stick Figure released their seventh studio album, World on Fire. Like previous projects, the album was written, recorded, and produced by Scott Woodruff, playing every instrument and recording each vocal himself. This time, however, the album was created at Stick Figure-owned Great Stone Studios in Oakland, California, former home of punk band Green Day. [30] With assistance from associate producer Johnny Cosmic (Stick Figure live guitarist, keys, and back up vocals), the 15 track project included guest appearances from Slightly Stoopid, Citizen Cope, and longtime Stick Figure collaborator TJ O'Neill. [31]

The album debuted on a number of Billboard charts, including No. 34 on the top 200 chart, No. 1 Billboard Reggae, No. 4 Digital Albums, No. 5 New Albums, No. 6 Current Albums, and No. 2 Independent Albums. The highest selling debut week album of the year, World on Fire sold more copies in week one (over 10,000) than the previous year's winner, Sting and Shaggy's 44/876. [31] The album remained at No. 1 on the Billboard Reggae chart for four consecutive weeks. [32]

The album has garnered considerable radio play, including on SiriusXM's The Joint, SiriusXM's No Shoes Radio, and SiriusXM's Margaritaville. [33] Stick Figure was also the first artist to be named the face of Cali Reggae Countdown on Pandora Radio. [34]