Although he cannot play any instrument and really does not know what he was doing, the former R.E.M. frontman insists on writing his 18 pieces of music himself for the first time.

• Dec 21, 2020

AceShowbiz - Rocker Michael Stipe is really challenging himself for his upcoming solo album by insisting on writing all of the music himself for the first time - even though he "can't play an instrument".

The former R.E.M. frontman previously relied on his bandmates to add the melodies and soundscapes to his lyrics, but he doesn't want to lean on other musicians for his solo endeavour, so he's tackling the whole process from scratch.

He told Uncut magazine: "What I have at the moment are 18 pieces of music that I'm working on. Some of them are much more complete than others - some have lyrics, others don't."

"I threw a bunch of barricades in my path by deciding to challenge myself with a lot of this music. I've never written music before, which means I'm coming from a completely different vantage point than I ever did with R.E.M."

"I'm writing for things that I've never had any experience with whatsoever. But that's where I get excited."

"I can't play an instrument, so that makes composing for me that much more thrilling, because I really don't know what I'm doing and I'm not afraid of stupid sounds. So banging around on synthesisers is, for me, an easy way to create."

And the "Losing My Religion" hitmaker isn't concerned about what others will think of his music.

He said: "I want something that's gonna make me feel like I'm really living in the moment. At the age of 60, I don't really want to do things that are easy. I can do whatever the f**k I want, in essence. I'm at that point in my life where I don't really have to please anyone but myself."