Michael Stipe music - Listen Free on Jango || Pictures, Videos, Albums, Bio, Fans Biography Read More John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film p... Biography from Wikipedia Michael Stipe - Zimbio Michael Stipe By BangShowbiz on REM frontman Michael Stipe has enjoyed relationships with both men and women in the past, but he says it wasn’t until meeting his current boyfriend that he realized he preferred men.He said: “On a sliding scale of sexuality I’d place myself around 80-20, but I definitely prefer men to women.

I had sex with, and enjoyed sex with, women until I met someone that I fell in love with, and who is now my boyfriend.”The 51-year-old singer admits his sexuality led to him feeling as if he didn’t fit in... Read Full Story Overview John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe is well-known for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album... more John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe is well-known for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos.

Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures. Find Michael Stipe news, videos, and pictures here. Featured Stories Michael Stipe News | Photos | Quotes | Wiki - UPI.com Michael Stipe News Next Wiki John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960) is an American singer and the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry: he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures. Stipe was born in Decatur, Georgia on January 4, 1960. Stipe was a military brat; his father was a serviceman in the United States Army whose career resulted in frequent relocations for his family.

Stipe and his family moved to various locales during his childhood, including Germany, Texas, Illinois, Alabama and Georgia. Stipe graduated from high school in Collinsville, Illinois in 1978. His senior photo is pictured in the album art work of Eponymous. Stipe also worked at the local Waffle House. Stipe later enrolled at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, as an art major, studying photography and painting. While attending college in Athens, Stipe frequented the Wuxtry record shop where he met store clerk Peter Buck in 1980. "He was a striking-looking guy and he also bought weird records, which not everyone in the store did", Buck recalled. The two became friends and eventually decided to form a band. Buck and Stipe started writing music together; at the time Stipe also spent time in a local group named Gangster. The pair were soon joined by Bill Berry and Mike Mills and named themselves R.E.M., a name Stipe selected at random from a dictionary. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License .

It uses material from the Wikipedia article " Michael Stipe ." Quotes Michael Stipe | Michael Stipe Submitted by Willi Paul on Sat, 01/24/2009 - 21:02 in (refs) ... is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures. UTube Video 2: Early life Stipe was born in Decatur, Georgia on January 4, 1960. Stipe was a military brat; his father was a serviceman in the United States Army whose career resulted in frequent relocations for his family. Stipe and his family moved to various locales during his childhood, including Germany, Texas, Illinois, Alabama and Georgia.

Stipe graduated from Collinsville (Illinois) High School in 1978, and enrolled at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, as an art major, studying photography and painting. [edit]Formation of R.E.M. While attending college in Athens, Stipe frequented the Wuxtry record shop where he met store clerk Peter Buck in 1980. "He was a striking-looking guy and he also bought weird records, which not everyone in the store did", Buck recalled. The two became friends and eventually decided to form a band.[1] Buck and Stipe started writing music together;[2] at the time Stipe also spent time in a local group named Gangster.[3] The pair were soon joined by Bill Berry and Mike Mills and named themselves R.E.M., a name Stipe selected at random from a dictionary.[4] All four members of R.E.M. dropped out of school in 1980 to focus on the band.[5] Stipe was the last to drop out. The band issued its debut single, "Radio Free Europe", on Hib-Tone. The song was a college radio success and the band signed to I.R.S.

Records for the release of the Chronic Town EP one year later. R.E.M. released its debut album Murmur in 1983, which was widely acclaimed by critics. Stipe's vocals and lyrics received particular attention from listeners.[6] The band's second album, Reckoning, followed in 1984. Murmur went on to win the Rolling Stone Critics Poll Album of the Year over Michael Jackson's Thriller. R.E.M. traveled to England to record its third album Fables of the Reconstruction (1985). The band members found the sessions unexpectedly difficult, and were miserable due to the cold winter weather and poor food.[7] Even after the album was released, relationships were tense within the band. Stipe said of the period, "I was well on my way to losing my mind." Stipe gained weight and his behavior became more eccentric; he shaved his hair into a monk's tonsure. Mainstream popularity With the success of the albums Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992), R.E.M. became mainstream music stars. Around 1992, rumors that Stipe had contracted HIV began to circulate.

According to Stipe, he did not start the rumor and he does not know who did. “Not that I can tell. I wore a hat that said 'White House Stop AIDS'. I’m skinny. I’ve always been skinny, except in 1985 when I looked like Marlon Brando, the last time I shaved my head. I was really sick then. Eating potatoes. I think AIDS hysteria would obviously and naturally extend to people who are media figures and anybody of indecipherable or unpronounced sexuality. Anybody who looks gaunt, for whatever reason. Anybody who is associated, for whatever reason – whether it's a hat, or the way I carry myself – as being queer-friendly.” In 1994, Stipe officially came forward about his sexuality, describing himself as "an equal opportunity lech"[8] and said he doesn't define himself as gay, straight, or bisexual, but that he was attracted to and had relationships with both men and women. In 1995 Stipe was on the cover of Out Magazine.

Stipe described himself as a "queer artist" in Time Magazine in 2001 and revealed that he had been in a relationship with "an amazing man" for three years at that point.[8] Stipe was also featured on the cover of BUTT Magazine in 2003. Stipe had planned a collaboration with Nirvana's Kurt Cobain in 1994, but did not manage to compose or record anything before Cobain's death. Stipe was chosen as the godfather of Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love's daughter, Frances Bean Cobain.[9] Stipe was once very close to fellow singer Natalie Merchant and has recorded a few songs with her, including one entitled "Photograph" which appeared on a pro-choice benefit album entitled Born to Choose and they have appeared live with Peter Gabriel singing Gabriel's single "Red Rain". Recent years Stipe at Glastonbury with his "Goblin" make up In 1998, Stipe published a collection called Two Times Intro: On the Road with Patti Smith and worked on Single Cell Pictures, a film production company which released several arthouse/indie movies.

In 2006, Stipe released an EP that comprised six different cover versions of Joseph Arthur's "In The Sun" for the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief fund. One version, recorded in a collaboration with Coldplay's Chris Martin, reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart.[10] "In The Sun" also included versions of the song with Justin Timberlake, Will.I.Am and Joseph Arthur. Stipe's versions of "In The Sun" raised over $200,000 for Mercy Corps. Also in 2006, Stipe appeared on the song "Broken Promise" on the Placebo release Meds. Continuing his non-R.E.M. work in 2006, Stipe sang the song "L'Hôtel" on the tribute album to Serge Gainsbourg entitled Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited and appeared on the song "Dancing on the Lip of a Volcano" on the New York Dolls album One Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This. In 2008, Stipe collaborated with Lacoste to release his own "holiday collector edition" brand of polo shirt.

The design depicts the view of a concert audience from the view of the performer on stage.[11] Musical style Stipe's role in the songwriting process for R.E.M. is to write lyrics and devise melodies.[12] While each member is given an equal vote in the songwriting process, Peter Buck has conceded that Stipe, as the band's lyricist, can rarely be persuaded to follow an idea he does not favor.[13] Stipe sings in "wailing, keening, arching vocal figures" that R.E.M. biographer David Buckley compared to Celtic folk artists and Muslim mujahideen.[6] Stipe often harmonizes with Mills in songs; in the chorus for "Stand," Mills and Stipe alternate singing lyrics, creating a dialogue.[14] Early articles about the band focused on Stipe's singing style (described as "mumbling" by The Washington Post), which often rendered his lyrics indecipherable.[15] Stipe commented in 1984, "It's just the way I sing. If I tried to control it, it would be pretty false."[16] "That voice.

It's an extraordinary voice," said U2's Bono in 2003.[17] "I often tell him I think he's a crooner, and he doesn't like that very much. But it is sort of one part some sort of Bing Crosby '50s laid-back crooner, and one part Dolly Parton," he added, laughing. Stipe insisted that many of his early lyrics were "nonsense", saying in a 1994 online chat, "You all know there aren't words, per se, to a lot of the early stuff. I can't even remember them." In truth, many early R.E.M.

songs had definite lyrics that Stipe wrote with care.[18] Stipe explained in 1984 that when he started writing lyrics they were like "simple pictures", but after a year he grew tired of the approach and "started experimenting with lyrics that didn't make exact linear sense, and it's just gone from there."[16] In the mid-1980s, as Stipe's pronunciation while singing became clearer, the band decided that its lyrics should convey ideas on a more literal level.[19] Mills explained, "After you've made three records and you've written several songs and they've gotten better and better lyrically the next step would be to have somebody question you and say, are you saying anything? And Michael had the confidence at that point to say yes . . ." After what Stipe has referred to as "The Dark Ages of American Politics [The Reagan/Bush Years]", R.E.M. incorporated more politically-oriented concerns into his lyrics on Document and Green. "Our political activism and the content of the songs was just a reaction to where we were, and what we were surrounded by, which was just abject horror," Stipe said later.

"In 1987 and '88 there was nothing to do but be active." While Stipe continued to write songs with political subject matter like "Ignoreland" and "Final Straw", later albums have focused on other topics. Automatic for the People dealt with "mortality and dying. Pretty turgid stuff", according to Stipe, while Monster critiqued love and mass culture. Film and television work In early 1987 Stipe co-founded C00 Films with Jim Mckay, a mixed-media company that was "designed to channel its founder's creative talents towards the creation and promotion of alternative film works."[20] Stipe and his producing partner, Sandy Stern, have served as executive producers on films including Being John Malkovich, Velvet Goldmine, and Man on the Moon.[21] He was also credited as a producer of the 2004 film Saved!.[22] Stipe has made a number of acting appearances on film and on television. Stipe appeared in an episode of The Adventures of Pete & Pete as an ice cream man named Captain Scrummy. Stipe has appeared as himself with R.E.M.

on Sesame Street playing a reworked version of "Shiny Happy People" called "Furry Happy Monsters", and appeared in an episode of The Simpsons titled "Homer the Moe", where R.E.M. was tricked into playing a show in Homer Simpson's garage. Stipe also voiced a reindeer named Schnitzel in the Christmas cartoon special Olive, the Other Reindeer. Login to post comments Where In The World Is Michael Stipe??? John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures.

Discography MICHAEL STIPE Biography - Musicians MICHAEL STIPE Biography - Musicians Birth name: John Michael Stipe Born: 4 January 1960 Decatur, Georgia, U.S.A. Genre: Alternative rock Occupation(s): Singer, songwriter, record producer, movie producer, TV producer, executive producer Instrument(s): Vocals, acoustic guitar, harmonica John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960 in Decatur, Georgia) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M.. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics , as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures. Michael Stipe - The Full Wiki The Full Wiki More info on Michael Stipe Wikis Note: Many of our articles have direct quotes from sources you can cite, within the Wikipedia article!

This article doesn't yet, but we're working on it! See more info or our list of citable articles . Related top topics More interesting facts on Michael Stipe Include this on your site/blog: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Michael Stipe Michael Stipe performing at South by Southwest in 2008 Background information Automatic Baby Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism . Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures. Contents Biography Early life Stipe was born John Michael Stipe in Decatur, Georgia on January 4, 1960. Stipe was a military brat ; his father was a serviceman in the United States Army whose career resulted in frequent relocations for his family.

Stipe and his family moved to various locales during his childhood, including Germany , Texas , Illinois, Alabama and Georgia. Stipe graduated from high school in Collinsville, Illinois in 1978, and enrolled at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia , as an art major, studying photography and painting . Formation of R.E.M. Main article: R.E.M. While attending college in Athens, Stipe frequented the Wuxtry record shop where he met store clerk Peter Buck in 1980. "He was a striking-looking guy and he also bought weird records, which not everyone in the store did", Buck recalled. The two became friends and eventually decided to form a band. [1] Buck and Stipe started writing music together; [2] at the time Stipe also spent time in a local group named Gangster. [3] The pair were soon joined by Bill Berry and Mike Mills and named themselves R.E.M., a name Stipe selected at random from a dictionary. [4] All four members of R.E.M. dropped out of school in 1980 to focus on the band. [5] Stipe was the last to drop out.

The band issued its debut single, " Radio Free Europe ", on Hib-Tone . The song was a college radio success and the band signed to I.R.S. Records for the release of the Chronic Town EP one year later. R.E.M. released its debut album Murmur in 1983, which was widely acclaimed by critics. Stipe's vocals and lyrics received particular attention from listeners. [6] Murmur went on to win the Rolling Stone Critics Poll Album of the Year over Michael Jackson 's Thriller . The band's second album, Reckoning , followed in 1984. R.E.M. traveled to England to record its third album Fables of the Reconstruction (1985). The band members found the sessions unexpectedly difficult, and were miserable due to the cold winter weather and poor food. [7] The difficult situation brought the band to the verge of break-up. [8] Even after the album was released, relationships were tense within the band. Stipe said of the period, "I was well on my way to losing my mind". [9] Stipe gained weight and his behavior became more eccentric; he shaved his hair into a monk's tonsure .

Personal life With the success of the albums Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992), R.E.M. became mainstream music stars. Around 1992, rumors that Stipe had contracted HIV began to circulate. According to Stipe, he did not start the rumor and he does not know who did. “ Not that I can tell. I wore a hat that said 'White House Stop AIDS'. I’m skinny. I’ve always been skinny, except in 1985 when I looked like Marlon Brando , the last time I shaved my head. I was really sick then. Eating potatoes. I think AIDS hysteria would obviously and naturally extend to people who are media figures and anybody of indecipherable or unpronounced sexuality. Anybody who looks gaunt, for whatever reason. Anybody who is associated, for whatever reason – whether it's a hat, or the way I carry myself – as being queer-friendly.

” —Michael Stipe [10] In 1994, with questions still swirling about his sexuality, Stipe described himself as "an equal opportunity lech," and said he did not define himself as gay, straight, or bisexual, but that he was attracted to and had relationships with both men and women. In 1995 he appeared on the cover of Out magazine . Stipe described himself as a "queer artist" in Time in 2001 and revealed that he had been in a relationship with "an amazing man" for three years at that point. [11] . Stipe reiterated this in a 2004 interview with Butt magazine . When asked if he ever declares himself as gay, Stipe stated, "I don’t. I think there’s a line drawn between gay and queer, and for me, queer describes something that’s more inclusive of the grey areas." [12] In 1999, author Douglas A.

Martin published a novel, Outline of My Lover, in which the narrator has a six-year romantic relationship with the unnamed lead singer of a successful Athens, Georgia-based rock band; the book was widely speculated, and later confirmed by its author, to have been a roman à clef based on a real relationship between Martin and Stipe. [13] [14] The two had previously collaborated on two books, both in 1998: The Haiku Year (for which the two had both contributed haikus ) [15] and Martin's book of poetry Servicing the Salamander (for which Stipe took the cover photograph). Stipe was a vegetarian from 1980 to 2000. Stipe at Glastonbury with his "Goblin" make up Projects Stipe had planned a collaboration with Nirvana 's Kurt Cobain in 1994, partly in an attempt to lure Cobain away from his home and his drug addiction, but did not manage to compose or record anything before Cobain's death . Stipe was chosen as the godfather of Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love 's daughter, Frances Bean Cobain.

Stipe was once very close to fellow singer Natalie Merchant and has recorded a few songs with her, including one entitled "Photograph" which appeared on a pro-choice benefit album entitled Born to Choose and they have appeared live with Peter Gabriel singing Gabriel's single " Red Rain ." In 1998, Stipe published a collection called Two Times Intro: On the Road with Patti Smith. In 2006, Stipe released an EP that comprised six different cover versions of Joseph Arthur 's " In The Sun " for the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief fund. One version, recorded in a collaboration with Coldplay 's Chris Martin , reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart. [16] Also in 2006, Stipe appeared on the song "Broken Promise" on the Placebo release Meds . Continuing his non-R.E.M. work in 2006, Stipe sang the song "L'Hôtel" on the tribute album to Serge Gainsbourg entitled Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited and appeared on the song "Dancing on the Lip of a Volcano" on the New York Dolls album One Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This .

In 2008, Stipe collaborated with Lacoste to release his own "holiday collector edition" brand of polo shirt . The design depicts the view of a concert audience from the view of the performer on stage. [17] Musical style Stipe in 2008 Stipe's role in the songwriting process for R.E.M. is to write lyrics and devise melodies. [18] While each member is given an equal vote in the songwriting process, Peter Buck has conceded that Stipe, as the band's lyricist, can rarely be persuaded to follow an idea he does not favor. [19] Stipe sings in "wailing, keening, arching vocal figures" that R.E.M. biographer David Buckley compared to Celtic folk artists and Muslim muezzin . [6] Stipe often harmonizes with Mills in songs; in the chorus for "Stand," Mills and Stipe alternate singing lyrics, creating a dialogue. [20] Early articles about the band focused on Stipe's singing style (described as "mumbling" by The Washington Post ), which often rendered his lyrics indecipherable.

[21] Stipe commented in 1984, "It's just the way I sing. If I tried to control it, it would be pretty false." [22] "That voice. It's an extraordinary voice," said U2 's Bono in 2003. [23] "I often tell him I think he's a crooner , and he doesn't like that very much. But it is sort of one part some sort of Bing Crosby '50s laid-back crooner, and one part Dolly Parton ," he added, laughing. Stipe insisted that many of his early lyrics were "nonsense", saying in a 1994 online chat, "You all know there aren't words, per se, to a lot of the early stuff. I can't even remember them." In truth, many early R.E.M. songs had definite lyrics that Stipe wrote with care.

[24] Stipe explained in 1984 that when he started writing lyrics they were like "simple pictures", but after a year he grew tired of the approach and "started experimenting with lyrics that didn't make exact linear sense, and it's just gone from there." [22] In the mid-1980s, as Stipe's pronunciation while singing became clearer, the band decided that its lyrics should convey ideas on a more literal level. [25] Mills explained, "After you've made three records and you've written several songs and they've gotten better and better lyrically the next step would be to have somebody question you and say, are you saying anything? And Michael had the confidence at that point to say yes . . ." [26] After what Stipe has referred to as "The Dark Ages of American Politics [The Reagan/Bush Years]", R.E.M. incorporated more politically-oriented concerns into his lyrics on Document and Green. "Our political activism and the content of the songs was just a reaction to where we were, and what we were surrounded by, which was just abject horror," Stipe said later.

"In 1987 and '88 there was nothing to do but be active." [27] While Stipe continued to write songs with political subject matter like "Ignoreland" and "Final Straw", later albums have focused on other topics. Automatic for the People dealt with "mortality and dying. Pretty turgid stuff", according to Stipe, [10] while Monster critiqued love and mass culture. [27] Film and television work In early 1987 Stipe co-founded C00 Films with Jim McKay, a mixed-media company that was "designed to channel its founder's creative talents towards the creation and promotion of alternative film works." [28] Stipe and his producing partner, Sandy Stern , have served as executive producers on films including Being John Malkovich , Velvet Goldmine , and Man on the Moon . [29] He was also credited as a producer of the 2004 film Saved! . [30] In 1998 he worked on Single Cell Pictures, a film production company which released several arthouse / indie movies. Stipe has made a number of acting appearances on film and on television.

Stipe appeared in an episode of The Adventures of Pete & Pete as an ice cream man named Captain Scrummy. Stipe has appeared as himself with R.E.M. on Sesame Street playing a reworked version of " Shiny Happy People " called "Furry Happy Monsters", and appeared in an episode of The Simpsons titled " Homer the Moe ", where R.E.M. was tricked into playing a show in Homer Simpson 's garage. Discography For releases with R.E.M., see R.E.M. discography . Albums With The Golden Palominos : "Boy (Go)", "Omaha", and "Clustering Train" on Visions of Excess (1985); "Alive and Living Now" on Drunk With Passion (1991) Rock Through the Ages: Michael Stipe 1960- Rock Through the Ages: Michael Stipe 1960- "With the exception of U2, there's no one who has stayed together and stayed relevant for as long as we have. We can't possibly compete with Limp Bizkit and Britney Spears, and I have no real desire to.

But as long as people are excited about our work, we're going to expend the energy to do it." Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Michael Stipe was born in Decatur, Georgia, on January 4th, 1960. He was raised by nonmusical parents in a military family that moved constantly. Stipe was an an introverted child who spent much of his time hanging out with sisters Lynda and Cyndy. In 1975 he had begun reading articles about Patti Smith and the burgeoning New York punk scene and eventually bought three albums that would change his life: Smith's Horses, Television's Marquee Moon, and Wire's Pink Flag. In 1978 Stipe enrolled in the art department at the University of Georgia at Athens, where he majored in painting and photography and developed an interest in surrealism and medieval manuscripts. While at college he met Mike Mills, Peter Buck and Bill Berry.

They dropped out of college to form the band R.E.M,(named for the dream state "rapid eye movement") in April of 1980 with Michael Stipe on vocals, Bill Berry on Drums, Peter Buck on guitar and Mike Mills on Bass. Buck and Stipe started writing music together. Stipe's role in the songwriting process for R.E.M. is to write lyrics and devise melodies. While each member is given an equal vote in the songwriting process, Peter Buck has conceded that Stipe, as the band's lyricist, can rarely be persuaded to follow an idea he does not favor. The band has sold over 40 million records and rivals Irish band U2 in being one of the most popular bands on the late 20th century. Throughout most of the eighties R.E.M remained mostly outside of the mainstream in music. Michael Stipe's sometimes dark and mysterious lyrics did attract a cult following though and the group became steadily more popular. Honing an atmospheric, jangly pop sound often reminiscent of the Byrds, R.E.M. toured relentlessly.

In 1981 they recorded a demo tape of original music at Mitch Easter's Drive-In Studio in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Two songs from those sessions, "Radio Free Europe" and "Sitting Still," were released as a seven-inch single in July on the homegrown Hib-Tone label. The record's success on college radio attracted the attention of IRS Records, which released the band's Chronic Town EP a year later. R.E.M. released its debut album Murmur in 1983, which was widely acclaimed by critics. It was an instant classic, containing everything its supporters had hoped for: layers of ringing guitar, passionately vague vocals, atmospheric melodies, and seductive pop hooks. Murmur, which reached number 36 in 1983, cemented their reputation and made Michael Stipe an underground icon. Michael Stipe's cryptic, often unintelligible lyrics were analyzed with Talmudic fervor, and his thrift-store image was copied by countless acolytes. Murmur went on to win the Rolling Stone Critics Poll Album of the Year over Michael Jackson's Thriller. The band's second album, Reckoning, followed in 1984.

Despite little mainstream airplay, it reached the Top 30 and with the darkly beautiful follow-up Fables of the Reconstruction, the band earned increasing MTV visibility for the videos "Can't Get There From Here" and "Driver 8." Michael Stipe himself directed the video for "Fall on Me," the lead single from R.E.M.'s fourth LP, 1986's Lifes Rich Pageant. Michael Stipe's vocals resonated with newfound clarity, revealing a growing awareness with sociopolitical concerns, such as environmental issues and American foreign policy. 1987's Document was R.E.M.'s commercial breakthrough, buoyed by the top ten hit "The One I Love". "It was a song of betrayal that was almost universally misinterpreted as a love song. The album Green was the the band's debut under the Warner Bros label. Michael Stipe alluded to the ambiguous nature of his lyrics in "World Leader Pretend," acknowledging, "It's high time I razed the walls that I've constructed." It was the first lyrics he allowed to be reprinted on the jacket sleeve. Released on Election Day 1988, the album was R.E.M.'s most pointedly polemic to date.

R.E.M. went on a touring hiatus following Green. It took three years for the band to return with the highly anticipated Out of Time, which rocketed to #1, went quadruple platinum, and included "Losing My Religion" and "Shiny Happy People" . Michael Stipe is a keen photographer and often contributes his pictures to the artwork of REM's albums, (notably the covers of the albums 'New Adventures In Hi-Fi' and 'Reveal').One of Michael's closest friends was the actor River Phoenix. When River died, aged just 23 in late October 1993, Michael called his young friend's sudden passing "the most shattering experience of my life." He dedicated REM's 1994 album 'Monster' to River. The dedication ("For River") can be seen in the album's fold out sleeve. Michael Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, not only selecting album artwork but directing many of the band's music videos. Radiohead is one of Michael's favorite bands and he is friends with all the band's members.

In early 1987 Stipe co-founded C-00 Films with Jim Mckay, a mixed-media company that was designed to channel its founder's creative talents towards the creation and promotion of alternative film works. In the early 1990s, Michael Stipe and Oliver Stone tried for over two years to get a movie financed, but never succeeded. Stipe and his producing partner, Sandy Stern, have served as executive producers on films including Being John Malkovich, Velvet Goldmine, and Man on the Moon. Michael Stipe was also credited as a producer of the 2004 film Saved! Michael Stipe has made a number of acting appearances on film and on television. Stipe appeared in an episode of The Adventures of Pete & Pete as an ice cream man named Captain Scrummy. Stipe has appeared as himself with R.E.M. on Sesame Street playing a reworked version of "Shiny Happy People" called " Furry Happy Monsters ", and appeared in an episode of The Simpsons titled "Homer the Moe", where R.E.M. was tricked into playing a show in Homer Simpson's garage.

Michael Stipe also voiced a reindeer named Schnitzel in the Christmas cartoon special Olive, the Other Reindeer. In 1998 Michael Stipe published the photo collection "Two Times Intro: On the Road With Patti Smith.". Michael Stipe went on the "Vote for Change Tour" that toured 9 states and 28 cities in the USA with fellow performers that included Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen , R.E.M., Dave Matthews Band, Dixie Chicks, James Taylor, Ben Harper, John Mellencamp and Tracy Chapman. The Vote for Change tour was a politically-motivated American popular music concert tour that took place in October 2004. The tour was presented by MoveOn.org to benefit America Coming Together. The Vote for Change Tour declaration states that it is "a loose coalition of musicians brought together by a single idea.. the need to make a change in the direction of our country. We share a belief that this is the most important election of our lifetime. We are fighting for a government that is open, rational, just, and progressive...." The tour was held in swing states and was designed to encourage people to register and vote.

Though the tour and the organization were officially non-partisan, many of the performers urged people to vote against George W. Bush and for John Kerry in the 2004 Presidential election campaign. Michael Stipe had this to say about the tour in an interview with the Australian Andrew Denton: "We wanted George W Bush the fuck out of the White House and we wanted John Kerry in. And it didn't work." In 2006,Stipe released an EP that comprised six different cover versions of Joseph Arthur's "In the Sun." for the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief fund. One version, recorded in a collaboration with Coldplay's Chris Martin, reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart. "In The Sun" also included versions of the song with Justin Timberlake, Will.I.Am and Joseph Arthur. Michael Stipe's versions of "In The Sun" raised over $200,000 for Mercy Corps. Also in 2006, Michael Stipe appeared on the song "Broken Promise" on the Placebo release Meds. Continuing his non-R.E.M.

work in 2006, Stipe sang the song "L'Hï¿½tel" on the tribute album to Serge Gainsbourg entitled Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited and appeared on the song "Dancing on the Lip of a Volcano" on the New York Dolls album One Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This. R.E.M since retired as a band. At Michael Arnold Art we offer a complete online art experience © Michael Arnold Art . All rights reserved Michael Stipe Style & Fashion / Coolspotters freshmelk added a new photo related to Michael Stipe 5 years ago About John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960 in Decatur, Georgia) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his... Read More John Michael Stipe (born January 4, 1960 in Decatur, Georgia) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M.

Stipe has become well-known (and occasionally parodied) for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, as well as his social and political activism. Stipe is in charge of the band's visual image, often selecting album artwork and directing many of the band's music videos. Stipe's work extends outside of the music industry, and he runs his own film production companies, C-00 and Single Cell Pictures. See Less

Question: Who is the lead vocalist for the alternative rock band R.E.M. who has become well-known for the "mumbling" style of his early career and for his complex, surreal lyrics, and his social and political activism?
Answer: Michael Stipe