More than 1,000 people packed the Koger Center for the Arts on March 19 to hear Michael Stipe, the longtime lead singer of R.E.M., reflect on what it means to make art in the South.
The Institute for Southern Studies welcomed the 2025 McNair Honoree for this year’s McNair Conversation on the American South. The event drew the largest audience in the series' history and featured a lively, deeply personal conversation between Stipe and Dr. Mark Smith, Carolina Distinguished Professor of History.
Stipe led R.E.M. for 31 years, selling more than 100 million records and touring the globe. Over the past decade, he transitioned to cross-medium work in video, soundscape, sculpture and photographic and digital imagery. He published four photography books through Damiani (Bologna, Italy) and held his first institutional exhibition at ICA Milan in December 2023. At the time of the event, he was completing his first solo album, scheduled for release in 2025.
The evening's conversation explored identity, legacy and the evolving South—topics Stipe embraced with trademark wit and candor.
“I intend to allow the South to be a part of me well into the future,” Stipe said, reflecting on his family roots across Mississippi, Georgia and the Carolinas. Though his career has taken him around the world, he spoke movingly about his deep connection to the region.
He also addressed the perception of the South in the broader cultural landscape. “Being from the South isn’t always easy,” he said. “People have an idea of what the South is. My job has been to say: yes, that exists—and it sucks—but I am not that. I represent something different.”
Stipe recalled arriving in Athens, Georgia, in 1978, a move he resisted at first. “It seemed like the most vanilla, hummus, hippie cow town,” he joked. “But I ran out of money.” That unexpected twist led to a creative awakening and, eventually, the formation of R.E.M.
As the conversation shifted to his work beyond music, Stipe spoke about the importance of artistic vulnerability. “You need to walk unafraid,” he said, sharing advice once given to him by Patti Smith. That phrase became both a song title and a guiding principle. “Artists respond to the moment. You try to push everyone through it toward something that’s easier and better and greater.”
The 2025 McNair Conversation was recorded live and will be aired at a later date on the Take on the South podcast. A video of the event and a gallery of images from the evening will also be available on Flickr.
About the McNair Conversation
Hosted annually by the Institute for Southern Studies in the College of Arts & Sciences, the McNair Conversation on the American South honors individuals who have made a lasting impact on the region. The series is made possible by the late South Carolina Governor Robert Evander McNair and is shared as part of the Institute’s acclaimed Take on the South podcast.