Michael Stipe: Celebs Rumors

Michael Stipe has revealed that he is still working on his debut album, despite a number of delays in his creative process over the past 12 months. In a new interview with New York Times, the former R.E.M. frontman reassured fans that his previously announced solo album is still in the works, but that personal circumstances including family emergencies, house moves and a bout of Covid have slowed the process.

Frances Bean Cobain, the daughter of the late grunge icon Kurt Cobain, has shared a moving post on the 30th anniversary of the musician’s death.She took to her Instagram page earlier today (April 5) to share a series of images of her father, and write a lengthy caption about how his death has impacted her throughout her life.The musician rose to prominence at the end of the ‘80s as the frontman and guitarist of Nirvana – alongside Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic – and went on to become one of the most iconic figures in rock, particularly in the ‘90s grunge scene. He died by suicide on April 5, 1994, when his daughter, whom he had with Courtney Love, was only one year old.Now, exactly three decades since his tragic death, Frances Bean – now aged 31 – has shared an emotive tribute to her late parent, and discussed how she wishes she “could have known” him.“30 years ago my dad’s life ended,” she wrote, sharing an image of the musician’s hands, taken by R.E.M frontman (and her godfather) Michael Stipe, followed by a couple of photos of them together.

Sinéad O’Connor‘s estate has called out Donald Trump for using her music during his political rallies.A joint statement was created between the Irish music legend’s estate and record label Chrysalis, demanding Trump to stop using her music immediately. The estate shared that O’Connor would have been “disgusted, hurt, and insulted” over the use of ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ being used during the former US president’s rallies.“Throughout her life, it is well known that Sinéad O’Connor lived by a fierce moral code defined by honesty, kindness, fairness, and decency towards her fellow human beings,” read the statement (per The Guardian).“It was with outrage therefore that we learned that Donald Trump has been using her iconic performance of ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ at his political rallies,” it continued.

R.E.M. surprised fans last night by reuniting during a tribute gig celebrating their classic debut album ‘Murmur’ – see footage and images below.All four members of the band – Michael Stipe, Bill Berry, Peter Buck and Mike Mills – made an unexpected return at the 40 Watt Club venue in their home city of Athens, Georgia yesterday (February 8).The 460-capacity space was hosting the latest show of actor Michael Shannon and musician Jason Narducy’s current tour – which sees the pair play 1983’s ‘Murmur’ in full along with a handful of their favourite R.E.M.

R.E.M., Steely Dan, Timbaland and more have been announced as inductees into the 2024 class of Songwriters Hall Of Fame.Yesterday morning (January 17), the Songwriters Hall Of Fame announced five new inductees through CBS‘ Mornings programme. Leading the charge are Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, Peter Buck and Bill Berry, who formed R.E.M.

Shane MacGowan and Sinéad O’Connor this March.The tribute concert, dubbed ‘Sinéad & Shane at Carnegie Hall’, will take place on March 20, with limited VIP packages already on sale via its website – general admission passes go on sale January 22. The Carnegie Hall concert will see some of MacGowan’s and O’Connor’s musical friends pay homage to their legacy with covers of their songs.A post shared by DROPKICK MURPHYS (@dropkickmurphys)Billed to perform so far are Dropkick Murphys, Cat Power, David Gray, Amanda Palmer, Glen Hansard, Eugene Hütz, Gordon Gano, The Mountain Goats, Bettye Lavette, Julia Cumming, Kat Edmonson and the Resistance Revival Chorus.

Mike Mills has revealed that R.E.M has “plenty of vault songs” yet to be released from the band’s catalogue.Mills recently appeared as a guest on LPM’s podcast Kyle Meredith With... to discuss the 25th-anniversary edition of ‘Up’, the band’s first LP following drummer Bill Berry’s departure.While on the show, the former bassist revealed that R.E.M have many vault songs waiting to be released and said: “There’s a reason you haven’t heard most of it”.

Dua Lipa has officially announced details of her new single ‘Houdini’.The singer has been teasing new music ever since she wiped her Instagram and changed her profile picture last month. After Lipa teased the title of her track yesterday (October 31), she took to Instagram today to confirm the new song will be called ‘Houdini’.

Drake and Jennifer Lopez are some of the latest artists to sign an open letter calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Palestine conflict.Adam Lambert has also joined the pair in adding his signature to the Artists4Ceasefire letter, which asks US President Joe Biden and Congress to push for the decision that would bring “an end to the bombing of Gaza”, with the aim of securing “the safe release of hostages”.The letter was signed originally by Dua Lipa, R.E.M.‘s Michael Stipe, Caroline Polachek, Killer Mike, Vic Mensa, Miguel, Kaytranada, Macklemore, as well as actors Cate Blanchett, Joaquin Phoenix, John Cusack, Lena Waithe and others.Part of the letter, which was published last week, reads: “We urge your administration, and all world leaders, to honour all of the lives in the Holy Land and call for and facilitate a ceasefire without delay – an end to the bombing of Gaza, and the safe release of hostages.“More than 5,000 people have been killed in the last week and a half – a number any person of conscience knows is catastrophic. We believe all life is sacred, no matter faith or ethnicity and we condemn the killing of Palestinian and Israeli civilians.”The letter continued: “Half of Gaza’s two million residents are children, and more than two thirds are refugees and their descendants being forced to flee their homes.

Dua Lipa, Michael Stipe and Cate Blanchett have signed an open letter, urging President Joe Biden to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.The letter calls for “an end to the bombing of Gaza and the safe release of hostages,” as well as a safe route to be established into Palestine to deliver humanitarian aid. So far, it has been signed by dozens of high-profile names from across the entertainment world.Many of those supporting the ceasefire are musicians, such as pop star Lipa, R.E.M’s Michael Stipe, Killer Mike and Caroline Polachek.

Kurt Cobain’s daughter has found her prince charming!

Frances Bean Cobain and Riley Hawk have tied the knot in an intimate ceremony. The 31-year-old daughter of musicians Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, and the 30-year-old son of legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk got married earlier this month in Los Angeles, after being romantically linked since January 2021.The pair had their special day on October 7 after receiving their marriage license in September in San Diego County.

Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and Hole frontwoman Courtney Love – and Hawk – the son of skateboarding legend Tony Hawk – reportedly applied for a marriage license last month in San Diego county.Though very little is known about the ceremony, marriage documents obtained by TMZ, revealed that the ceremony reportedly took place on October 7 and was officiated by R.E.M frontman and Cobain’s godfather, Michael Stipe.This marks the second time Cobain has been married. Back in 2014, she married Isaiah Silva of The Eeries.

Frances Bean Cobain and Riley Hawk are married!

Frances Bean Cobain, the daughter of Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, has tied the knot with Riley Hawk, son of skateboarder Tony Hawk. Francess is the daughter of Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain - who tragically died in April 1994 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Frances and Riley got hitched on October 7 in Los Angeles after getting their marriage license in September in San Diego County.

R.E.M. have announced a 25th anniversary reissue of their 11th studio album ‘Up’ – find all the details below.The Michael Stipe-fronted band released the original version of the record back in 1998, marking their first project since the amicable departure of their founding drummer Bill Berry.Co-produced by R.E.M.

The Monkees’ Micky Dolenz has announced he will be releasing an EP of R.E.M covers, including a version of ‘Shiny Happy People’.Dolenz, the sole surviving member of The Monkees, shared that the four-track EP will be titled ‘Dolenz Sings R.E.M’. Alongside ‘Shiny Happy People’, the other three songs will be ‘Radio Free Europe’, ‘Man on the Moon’ and ‘Leaving New York’.According to an interview with Rolling Stone, the project came about as a result of a conversation Dolenz had with 7A Records co-owner Glenn Gretlund. “I was talking to Glenn about what to do next.

William Earl The National have long been one of indie rock’s most revered bands, and like many of their past albums, the songs from their recently released ninth outing, “First Two Pages of Frankenstein,” take on a life of their own onstage. The band — frontman Matt Berninger, guitarist brothers Aaron and Bryce Dessner, and bassist Scott Devendorf and drummer Bryan Devendorf, also brothers — are known for their intense live shows and are currently in the middle of a North American tour, and of course have received a wave of new fans thanks to their recent collaborations with Taylor Swift.

Sinéad O’Connor‘s music rose by 2,885 per cent following her death.The musician and activist died at her home in London last month (July 26) at the age of 56.Many figures from the music industry have since paid tribute, including Garbage, Billy Corgan, Michael Stipe, Fall Out Boy, Ice-T and Tori Amos.According to Billboard, streams of her music went up by 7.9million in the US during the week of July 21-27.O’Connor’s music was streamed 243,000 times from July 24-25, before that number rose to 7.3million from July 26-27 in the wake of her death.Her cover of Prince‘s ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ alone amassed 3.2million streams in the week news of her death broke. The single was also downloaded 10,000 times.Streaming figures for her music in the UK are yet to be released.The latest figures come after a 2021 interview with People resurfaced earlier this week in which O’Connor explained that she’d thought about the importance of protecting her finances and art, and had instructed her children on what to do when she died.“See, when the artists are dead, they’re much more valuable than when they’re alive,” the singer said at the time.

Phoebe Bridgers has revealed that she shaved her head in high school after being inspired by the “revolutionary” Sinéad O’Connor.Musician and activist O’Connor died at her home in London last Wednesday (July 26). She was 56 years old.

Sinéad O’Connor had told her children to contact her accountant before the emergency services in the event of her death.The musician and activist passed away at her home in London last Wednesday (July 26). She was 56 years old.

Lily Allen has said that she is “incensed” by the “spineless” tributes coming in for Sinéad O’Connor after the singer’s death, suggesting that the same people would not have stood up for her while she was alive.The musician and activist died at the age of 56 last week (July 26), after being found unresponsive in her London home, prompting a wave of tributes from fans and artists including Garbage, Billy Corgan, Michael Stipe and Ice-T.Best known for her rendition of ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’, O’Connor was outspoken in her political and religious views, most infamously protesting sexual abuse in the Catholic Church live on SNL by tearing up a photo of the pope in 1992.Allen, however, has since expressed frustration with the apparent hypocrisy of positive tributes shared for the singer.It’s hard not to feel incensed when there are so many people posting about Sinead and how fearless she was, people who would never in a million years align themselves with with anybody who stood for something or had anything remotely controversial to say. It’s so spineless.

Sinéad O’Connor fans gathered in Dublin this weekend and sang her song ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ in memory of the late singer.The iconic Irish singer and activist died at the age of 56 last week, after being found unresponsive in her London home. She was pronounced dead at the scene.The news of her passing came a year after her 17-year-old son Shane took his own life in January 2022.Tributes quickly poured in from across the music industry from Garbage, Billy Corgan, Michael Stipe, Ice-T and many more.On Sunday afternoon (July 30), around 100 people gathered at Dublin’s City Hall to pay tribute to O’Connor, organised by socialist feminist group Rosa (via PA Media).Dozens of people gathered at City Hall in Dublin on Sunday afternoon to celebrate the life, work and activism of Sinead O'Connor and an event which culminated with an emotion-packed singing of Nothing Compares 2 U.

Foo Fighters and Alanis Morissette paid tribute to Sinéad O’Connor last night (July 29) with a cover of ‘Mandinka’.The collaborative performance came during Dave Grohl‘s band’s set at Japan’s Fuji Rock Festival. You can view it below.Introducing the cover, which appeared O’Connor’s 1987 debut album ‘The Lion And The Cobra’, the frontman said: “We’re singing this song for a reason tonight,” before Morissette added: “For a beautiful women with high intelligence and deep empathy, way ahead of her time, who is no longer with us.

R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe has revisited his cover of Sinéad O’Connor‘s ‘The Last Day Of Our Acquaintance’ in tribute to the late star.The acclaimed Irish singer and activist died this week (July 26) at the age of 56, her family announced.

Sinead O’Connor‘s final social media post revealed the devastating impact of her son’s death last year.The singer’s 17-year-old son Shane died by suicide in January 2022 after going missing from Newbridge, County Kildare. She subsequently cancelled all shows that year for “her own heath and well being”.Writing on social media at the time, Sinéad said: “My beautiful son, Nevi’im Nesta Ali Shane O’Connor, the very light of my life, decided to end his earthly struggle today and is now with God. May he rest in peace and may no one follow his example.

Sinéad O’Connor‘s death have been confirmed.The Irish singer’s family confirmed yesterday (July 26) that she had passed away at the age of 56. “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad.

R.E.M have put together a playlist of their top 40 songs in their discography to celebrate their “resurgence” in FX series The Bear. Check it out exclusively on NME below.The reflection on their 15-album legacy comes following the release of the second season of the award-winning drama The Bear, which features a number of the band’s tracks – including multiple iterations of ‘Monster’ album classic ‘Strange Currencies’.Now, in an NME exclusive, frontman Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry have hand-selected their top 40 songs from their past for a playlist of their personal favourites.Of the 40-track playlist, each member of R.E.M chose their top 10 tracks, with Stipe choosing the first quarter of the playlist – which kicks off with ‘World Leader Pretend’, a track from their 1988 album ‘Green’.From there, tracks 11-20 are hand-picked by Buck, and include songs ‘All The Way To Reno’ and deep-cut ‘You’re In The Air’, while tracks 21-30 are chosen by Mills and feature fan-favourites ‘It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)’ , ‘Orange Crush’ and ‘What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?’.The final 10 songs on the playlist are the favourites of drummer Bill Berry and includes the lesser-known song ‘Rotary Ten’ – from their 1986 album ‘Lifes Rich Pageant’ – as well as hit 1992 track ‘Find The River’.

Billy Bragg has shared an old video of R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe covering The Only Ones’ ‘Another Girl Another Planet’ – check it out below.Uploading the video to his YouTube channel, Bragg wrote: “Love this clip of Michael Stipe, Natalie Merchant, Wiggy and myself playing ‘Another Girl Another Planet’ backed by Sid Griffin and the Cole Porters.”The musician went on to say the performance happened during a show in June 1990 at Olomouc’s summer cinema. The musicians were touring Czechoslovakia around the country’s first free elections in decades following the Velvet Revolution.On Twitter, Bragg then shared an article about how he and Stipe ended up touring Czechoslovakia.“It was very un-rock’n’roll,” said Bragg.

CHVRCHES, Coldplay, Michael Stipe, Bring Me The Horizon and Do Nothing.The record was released to celebrate yesterday’s Earth Day (April 22) and is available to download via Bandcamp for £25, though tracks are also available to purchase individually. A vinyl version is also available to pre-order.All proceeds from the sale will go to EarthPercent Grant, which gives funding support to organisations working on the frontlines of climate action.Founded in 2021 by Brian Eno, EarthPercent aims “to offer simple and innovative ways for businesses and artists to donate to the most impactful organisations addressing the climate emergency”.Included in the compilation are an acoustic version of Bring Me The Horizon’s ‘Strangers’, a live version of CHVRCHES’ collab with The Cure’s Robert Smith recorded at Brixton Academy and a live take of Coldplay and H.E.R.

Courtney Love has remembered her husband and Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain on the 29th anniversary of his death.Cobain died by suicide on April 5, 1994, and Love shared a photograph of him to mark the anniversary earlier this week.The photo, of Cobain’s hands, was taken by R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, as Love revealed.“I love beautiful hands, it’s the first thing I look at in another,” she wrote. “I love that the only photograph of Kurt that [Stipe] took, despite being a lover of all sorts of beauty, kudzu, @helenachristensen , river pheonix; dozens if not 100s of gorgeous photos of people he finds and sees their ‘Shen’ (a Chinese word of what’s in the eyes – loosely translated as ‘mojo’ but more about the ‘twinkle’)“But Micheal saw these hands.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor The iconic music video for R.E.M.’s 1991 hit “Losing My Religion” has surpassed 1 billion views on YouTube — one of only a few songs from the decade to hit the milestone. The alternative band’s official video for “Losing My Religion” has averaged more than 300,000 views globally per day across YouTube so far this year, according to the video platform. It was first uploaded to YouTube in July 2011. Other videos from the ’90s in the YouTube Billion Views Club are Guns N’ Roses’ “November Rain” (1992); Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (1991); and The Cranberries’ “Zombie” (1994).

Michael Stipe has released track ‘Future If Future’ – his debut solo track, which originally arrived in 2018 – on the world’s first commercially available bioplastic 12″ vinyl.Produced by Brian Eno, the split single also features ‘Oh My Heart’ by Beatie Wolfe. Proceeds from the single go towards Eno’s EarthPercent.

Michael Stipe has announced a special split single with Beatie Wolfe in aid of climate emergency charity EarthPercent.Founded by Brian Eno in 2021, EarthPercent aims “to offer simple and innovative ways for businesses and artists to donate to the most impactful organisations addressing the climate emergency”.The organisation marked EarthDay this April by releasing numerous exclusive tracks that had been donated by such artists as Stipe, Coldplay, Eno, Anna Calvi and Jarvis Cocker‘s JARV IS… via Bandcamp.Proceeds from sales of those songs went towards funding EarthPercent’s five core areas of work: “greening music, energy transition, climate justice, legal and policy change, and protecting nature”.Today (August 31), it’s been confirmed that the former R.E.M. frontman will release ‘Future, If Future’ – his debut solo track, which originally arrived in 2018 – on the world’s first commercially available bioplastic 12″ vinyl.The record also features ‘Oh My Heart’ by Beatie Wolfe, and will be available to pre-order here from this Friday (September 2).

R.E.M. are set to reissue their 1982 debut EP ‘Chronic Town’ in August to celebrate its 40th anniversary.The band’s first EP featured five songs – ‘Wolves, Lower’, ‘Gardening At Night’, ‘Carnival Of Sorts (Boxcars)’, ‘1,000,000’ and ‘Stumble’ – and was originally released on August 24, 1982 as the follow-up to their 1981 debut single ‘Radio Free Europe’.R.E.M.

Micheal Stipe has opened up about a lyric change from R.E.M’s hit song, ‘Losing My Region’.He was talking to Rick Rubin on the Broken Record podcast when he revealed a key change in the lyrics to the classic song from 1991.Rubin asked Stipe if he knew the song was special when writing it, something he denied. “We released it as a first single thinking it was going to set up the next song,” he said.