Michael Stipe announces debut solo album, shares who he thinks should play him in biopic

It’s been 16 years since the release of the 15th and final R.E.M. album, Collapse into Now. In the time since, Stipe has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and advocated for gun control, housing equity, and Palestinian rights. Most recently, he wrote and recorded an album of “synth-infused” solo material at Electric Lady Studios with his longtime collaborator Andy LeMaster. 

During his interview with Colbert, Stipe described one of the songs off his forthcoming solo debut as “the sound of a tree hearing itself for the first time” and likened it to Daft Punk. The now-unnamed album also includes a sea shanty, Stipe reported. When asked by Colbert who Stipe would want to play him in an R.E.M. biopic, the singer first responded, “Someone really hot.” After a moment of consideration, Stipe offered up Billie Eilish as his choice to play a younger version of himself. He also mentioned that the “LUNCH” singer held the door open for him once at a Manhattan restaurant. We can only hope that Eilish is already rehearsing her cover of “Radio Free Europe.”