Michael Stipe

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    Michael Stipe 'Thrilled' by Challenges of Composing Own Music for Solo Album

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    WENN/Derrick Salters

    Although he cannot play any instrument and really does not know what he was doing, the former R.E.M. frontman insists on writing his 18 pieces of music himself for the first time.

    Dec 21, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Rocker Michael Stipe is really challenging himself for his upcoming solo album by insisting on writing all of the music himself for the first time – even though he “can’t play an instrument”.
    The former R.E.M. frontman previously relied on his bandmates to add the melodies and soundscapes to his lyrics, but he doesn’t want to lean on other musicians for his solo endeavour, so he’s tackling the whole process from scratch.
    He told Uncut magazine: “What I have at the moment are 18 pieces of music that I’m working on. Some of them are much more complete than others – some have lyrics, others don’t.”
    “I threw a bunch of barricades in my path by deciding to challenge myself with a lot of this music. I’ve never written music before, which means I’m coming from a completely different vantage point than I ever did with R.E.M.”

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    “I’m writing for things that I’ve never had any experience with whatsoever. But that’s where I get excited.”
    “I can’t play an instrument, so that makes composing for me that much more thrilling, because I really don’t know what I’m doing and I’m not afraid of stupid sounds. So banging around on synthesisers is, for me, an easy way to create.”
    And the “Losing My Religion” hitmaker isn’t concerned about what others will think of his music.
    He said: “I want something that’s gonna make me feel like I’m really living in the moment. At the age of 60, I don’t really want to do things that are easy. I can do whatever the f**k I want, in essence. I’m at that point in my life where I don’t really have to please anyone but myself.”

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      Michael Stipe Pledges to Donate Proceeds From Solo Singles to Charity

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      The R.E.M. frontman will not be pocketing any money from the singles he releases as a solo artist as he vows to donate the proceeds to non-profit organization.
      Sep 18, 2020
      AceShowbiz – Former R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe has pledged to give the money he makes from singles to charity to help organisations he believes in.
      The “Losing My Religion” singer has revealed he won’t be pocketing any money he makes from the first year of his releases, because he made enough as R.E.M.’s leader.
      “Because of R.E.M. and because of all the fans across the years, I’m able to take all the money I’ve made for the first year of the release of every single that I’m putting out as a solo artist, and donate it or dedicate it to organisations and movements that I feel very strongly about,” he tells U.S. late night host Seth Meyers.
      Some of that cash will go to groups in Athens, Georgia, where Stipe formed R.E.M., to help coronavirus crisis management.
      “(Athens-Clarke county), the smallest county in a very large state, now has the highest two-week total of new cases for any of Georgia’s 159 counties, and one of the highest per capita in the nation, and it has seen the number of deaths due to Covid-19 more than double in just the past six weeks,” he wrote in a recent piece for The Guardian.
      Stipe laid the blame at the feet of college students at the University of Georgia, who are defying common sense and partying without face coverings and ignoring social distancing guidelines.
      “As has been widely noted, young people do not live in a bubble, and so they serve as a danger to their older and more vulnerable teachers, the custodians who clean their classrooms, kitchen workers who cook their meals – and that is just on campus,” he added. “Their impact off campus, in the town of Athens, is alarming.”
      “In addition, the 14,000 primary and secondary schoolchildren in Athens will have to stay away from their needed academic and social supports because of the reckless environment that our state has enabled for the university community.”
      The singer also attacked Georgia’s Governor, Brian Kemp, accusing him of being “slow to order safety measures and quick to lift them.”

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