Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevensis an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He first came to wider recognition with the 2000 album, A Sun Came, which was released on the Asthmatic Kitty label he co-founded with his stepfather. He is perhaps best known for his 2005 album, Illinois, which hit number one on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, and for the single "Chicago" from that album...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionMusician
Date of Birth1 July 1975
CountryUnited States of America
Oh the glory when he took our place / But he took my shoulders and he shook my face / And he takes and he takes and he takes,
Everyone seems really concerned for me now about the prospect. They use this word 'daunting' all the time.
I think the implausibility in some ways redeems me from having to complete it.
I think you should be suspicious when there's a lot of interest in what you're doing,
I think it just helps us to feel kind of unified,
I was working on several states simultaneously. The tone of the music for Illinois seemed much more exciting and challenging to me. The music itself seemed to evoke a very big character.
The spiritual ambiguity growing up made me really latch onto a faith - Protestantism - that was somewhat conventional. Everyone else was rebelling against traditions and institutions, whereas I was rebelling against the upheaval and uncertainty in my family.
The best fiction is geared towards conflict. We learn most about our characters through tension, when they are put up against insurmountable obstacles. This is true in real life.
In third grade, I had to an oral report on the state of Oregon. I brought up Big Foot sightings, and I remember there was an argument about whether or not Big Foot was valid history. Ever since then I've been thinking about how subjective history is.
I was sort of born into a Subud cult that has ties to Islam and Indonesia and Middle Eastern spiritualism. My parents were kind of trial-and-error when it came to religion.
I wouldn't mind being popular in other ways, but not with music.
I love anything by Tchaikovsky. He was the real pop star of his day.
I find in music there's a space and a language I can use to express things in ways I can't describe conversationally.
I always hated 'O Holy Night.' It's so operatic and overwrought.