Ex-R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe releasing new solo single, “Drive to the Ocean,” on his 60th birthday Saturday

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Courtesy of Michael StipeFormer R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe celebrates his 60th birthday this Saturday, January 4, and coinciding with the milestone, he will release his second solo single, “Drive to the Ocean.”

Like Stipe’s first solo single, “Your Capricious Soul,” which came out in October 2019, the new tune will be available as a digital download exclusively at his official website, MichaelStipe.com.

All earnings from the track during its first year of release will be donated to Pathway to Paris, a nonprofit organization co-founded by Jesse Paris SmithPatti Smith‘s daughter — and Canadian cellist Rebecca Foon that aims to raise awareness and encourage action to combat climate change.

“I am so happy to collaborate with Pathway to Paris for this year 2020,” Stipe says with regard to his new single. “The work that they are doing is vital and foundational — it is essential for a future that we can and will claim as our own.”

The song will be accompanied by a video that Michael directed. The track will cost 77 cents, although you can pay a larger amount to benefit the charity if you choose.

The download of “Drive to the Ocean” will include a high-res version of the track, the video, a lyric video, exclusive wallpapers and a digital copy of as Stipe’s original lyric document.

Michael also has made a downloadable teaser clip from the video and title loop available at his website.

Your Capricious Soul” was released on October 5, 2019, and Stipe is donating the proceeds from that song to the Extinction Rebellion movement, which organizes non-violent gatherings protesting government inaction with regard to the global climate emergency.

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