Michael Stipe

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Must Be the End of the World as We Know It: REM Reunites

Band from Athens, Georgia, performs for the first time together since 2007 at SHOF induction

(Newser) - Earlier this week, Mike Mills, onetime bassist for alt-rock band REM, said it would take "a comet" to bring him together with his former bandmates to perform one more time for adoring fans. The BBC notes that the comet must've hit—because Mills, lead singer Michael Stipe, guitarist...

Kurt Cobain's Daughter Marries Another Celeb's Kid

The lucky man: Riley Hawk, son of fellow skateboarder Tony Hawk

(Newser) - Frances Bean Cobain has tied the knot again, this time opting to partner with a skateboarder rather than a rock star. The 31-year-old daughter of late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and Hole frontwoman Courtney Love married 30-year-old Riley Hawk, the oldest of legendary professional skateboarder Tony Hawk's three sons,...

Michael Stipe: 'It's the End of the World as We Know It'

REM frontman releases coronavirus PSA, Bono releases song

(Newser) - Michael Stipe is the latest celebrity to jump on the " coronavirus PSA " bandwagon, and his video includes possibly the most fitting song for our current moment in time: "It's the End of the World as We Know It." The REM frontman then launches into a...

REM Upset That 'Sad Little Men' Used Its Song

Band doesn't want Trump using their song

(Newser) - A Washington, DC, rally against the Iran nuclear deal brought together GOP hopefuls and conservative stars, including Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Sarah Palin, and Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty—and infuriated REM in the process. Trump took the stage at the Tea Party rally to "It's the End...

Elton John, Michael Stipe Team Up for Transgender Rights

They call for better treatment for transgender inmates

(Newser) - On Friday, the DoJ backed Ashley Diamond, a transgender woman housed in a male prison, by deeming it "cruel and unusual punishment" for Georgia to deny hormone therapy for gender dysphoria. Now she has more high-profile supporters: Elton John and Michael Stipe have put out a joint statement applauding...

Inside REM's Final Days
 Inside REM's 
 Final Days 
Apr 8, 2013 10:30 AM CDT

Inside REM's Final Days

Michael Stipe's words at last gig: 'Hooray, we're done'

(Newser) - After completing his final performance with REM, a teary-eyed Michael Stipe quietly mouthed, "Hooray, we're done." Working on their last album, the band had chosen Berlin's legendary Hansa TonStudio for the final recording session. Since there was to be no tour for the album, a camera...

Stars Rock '12-12-12,' Raise $30M for Sandy

Springsteen, McCartney, Bon Jovi come together for storm relief

(Newser) - Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, Paul McCartney, and Kanye West were just a few of the music and screen legends who raised millions for Sandy relief last night. Appearing on TV, radio, the Web, and in movie theaters, the 12-12-12 concert had a potential audience of some 2 billion, USA ...

R.E.M. to Fox: Stop Playing Our Music

Michael Stipe doesn't appear to be a fan of the network

(Newser) - Today's entry in the don't-mix-my-music-with-your-politics meme: R.E.M. sent a cease-and-desist letter to Fox News after the network used "Losing My Religion" in its coverage of the Democratic convention, notes the Hollywood Reporter . At least Michael Stipe was more colorful than most: "We have little...

Stipe: REM Breakup 3 Years in the Making
 Stipe: REM Breakup 
 3 Years in the Making 
interview
Nov 14, 2011 11:51 AM CST

Stipe: REM Breakup 3 Years in the Making

He explains to Salon why the band didn't do a farewell tour

(Newser) - REM’s break-up, announced in September , wasn’t a snap decision. The band had been talking about it during its 2008 tour, Michael Stipe tells Salon in a lengthy sit-down. “The decision came about quite organically, like most things in REM,” he says. By the end of that...

REM: Behind the Breakup
 REM: Behind 
 the Breakup 
Sep 26, 2011 12:09 PM CDT

REM: Behind the Breakup

'We're doing this for good reasons'

(Newser) - After 31 years, what makes a band decide to go separate ways ? For REM, it’s pretty simple. “We're happy. But we're done,” bassist Mike Mills tells Rolling Stone . Or, as singer Michael Stipe put it: “A wise man once said, ‘The skill...

REM Splitting Up Amicably After 31 Years
 REM Breaking Up 
Sep 21, 2011 2:03 PM CDT

REM Breaking Up

In what they insist is an amicable split

(Newser) - REM is calling it quits after 31 years of performing together, the band announced today, in what members insisted was an entirely amicable breakup. “We feel kind of like pioneers in this,” bassist Mike Mills wrote on REM’s website . “There’s no disharmony here, no falling-outs,...

Singer-Songwriter Vic Chesnutt Dies at 45
Singer-Songwriter
Vic Chesnutt Dies at 45
OBITUARY
Dec 25, 2009 6:36 PM CST

Singer-Songwriter Vic Chesnutt Dies at 45

Quadriplegic had been in coma after overdose

(Newser) - Vic Chesnutt, who blossomed as a singer-songwriter after a car wreck at 18 left him confined to a wheelchair, died today at 45 after several days in a coma following a drug overdose. His record label announced his death, but not the cause, and some reports say the overdose of...

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