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REM tried to step out of the spotlight. ‘Losing My Religion’ pulled them further into it
REM’s members found the attention that came with success tiring, and Michael Stipe sometimes skipped press duties because he felt he had run out of things to say. Yet the band’s attempts to step back from the spotlight coincided with their greatest creative and commercial success, driven in part by “Losing My Religion”.
Stipe said the song’s success went far beyond what the band could have predicted and brought attention regardless of how they responded. Drummer Bill Berry left the band during the making of 1998’s *Up*, later retiring from public life to become a farmer near Athens, Georgia. Stipe recalled the period as enjoyable despite the scrutiny.
In short
- REM struggled with the scrutiny that came with fame.
- “Losing My Religion” brought success the band could not predict.
- Michael Stipe said the period was enjoyable despite the attention.