R.E.M. Frontman Michael Stipe Clears Up Confusion Around Iconic Hit “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)”

With R.E.M. releasing their last album in 2011 with Collapse into Now, the band seemed to end its career that started during the early 1980s. And during the decades in between, the group produced hits like “Losing My Religion”, “Everybody Hurts”, and “The One I Love.” But among all their songs, nothing compared to the cult following of “It’s the End of the World as We Know It ( And I Feel Fine).” Although peaking at No. 16 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks, the song continued to intrigue fans who debated the lyrics. With each person appearing to hear something entirely different, frontman Michael Stipe decided to set the record straight with a little help from The Simpsons. 

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While some fans claimed to hear lyrics that included “World severs its own needs” and “Slash and burn, return, listen to yourself churn”, many were left in the dark as to what Stipe and the rest of R.E.M. were trying to convey. That was until Stipe shared an image of Homer Simpson admitting he could sing all the lyrics to the iconic song.

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Michael Stipe Calls Lyrics A “Collection Of Streams Of Consciousness”

Well, the voice behind the song, Stipe, admitted he could. And only a few days after posting the meme, he decided to post the lyrics, revealing, “It’s ‘Left of west and coming in a hurry with the Furies breathing down your neck.’” He continued, “It’s ‘Team by team reporters, baffled, trumped, tethered, cropped, Look at that low playing, fine, then’.“

Since releasing the music video for the song 16 years ago, it has brought in over 44 million views. Although the lyrics focused on the end of the world, the video surrounded a young boy sifting through his house after a hurricane destroyed it. According to one person, “This song isn’t depressing and isn’t about the end of the world. It’s about change.”

During the early 1990s, Stipe revealed the inspiration for the lyrics, telling Q, “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine). The words come from everywhere. I’m extremely aware of everything around me, whether I am in a sleeping state, awake, dream-state or just in day-to-day life, so that ended up in the song along with a lot of stuff I’d seen when I was flipping TV channels. It’s a collection of streams of consciousness.”

Decades later, Stipe’s clarification proves that even in chaos, R.E.M.’s music continues to spark curiosity, laughter, and connection.

(Photo by Gie Knaeps/Getty Images)