Michael Stipe

3 Pages 661 Words

Michael Stipe, lead singer for R.E.M., is thought to be one of America’s most emotionally powerful songwriters in the music scene. John Michael Stipe was born January 4th, 1960 in Decatur, Georgia. The lead singer has become well known for his mumbling style, exploiting strange and scrambled lyrics.
Stipe grew up as the son of a military officer, moving from place to place as a kid. Although he usually kept to himself, he developed an alter side while growing up that contradicts his shyness. While studying photography and painting at the University of Georgia, Stipe met Peter Buck, Bill Berry, and Mike Mills. They created R.E.M. that year and issued their debut single, Radio Free Europe, and in 1983 they came out with their debut album, Murmur. This album differed from the rest of the mainstream pop music being played at the time (StarIQ 261). The music was kind of haunting, and hard to understand, but still carried power and emotion in the lyrics. The album’s central theme was the tones and images that bothered Michael Stipe. R.E.M. got exceptional ranking in the early 80’s but it was not until their hit The One I Love, from their album Document in 1987, that they achieved the vast commercial recognition they needed.
At this point Stipe was put under the spotlight along with severe pressure that made him define his music and himself. Questions arose concerning his sexual identity that he chose to avoid. But when the pressure became too great, he rose above his need for solitude and began to openly discuss his sexuality (Brainyencyclopedia 417). This made a great influence on his music. The themes and ideas became more social than political as seen in earlier songs. His fan base grew and Stipe became a recognized star.
Stipe’s lyrics started as an opinion on society from a social point and developed into a signature of strong feeling about love and sexuality. In 1990 R.E.M. wrote a hit song called Losing My Religion, referr...