Who is Sufjan Stevens?

Well, well, well, what have we here. I’m back from the dead haha. I think I finally figure out what to do with this blog. I’ve been doing it all along, but now I think I’ve figured out the meaning behind the chaos or something like that. My writing style is just naturally personal — almost diary like. I did and didn’t want to do a personal blog here; I want to talk about different things and not focus on me all the time. So…I’m going to do a little of both. This is a blog where I can unabashedly talk about whatever I’m into, wandering down “that hidden street” to explore something I just discovered. Could be old news, but it’s new to me. So let’s dive right in. What did I discover lately?

If anyone caught the 90th Oscar a few days ago, perhaps you saw a little performance midway for the song “Mystery of Love” from the movie Call Me By Your Name. No? You didn’t even watch the Oscar? I usually don’t watch award shows either, but I was curious how some of the nominated movies will fare. You have Get Out, a horror film (a genre normally ignored by the Oscar) that not so secretly talk about racism in America. And then you also have Call Me By Your Name. A first-love and coming of age story between two men. Aside from topics and genres, this Oscar also seems the most diverse. Besides all these high points, my absolutely favorite thing about the Oscar this year was hearing “Mystery of Love” and thereby discovering my new favorite artist: Sufjan Stevens.

What an unusual name, am I right? I thought he must be European or something. Nope, born in Detroit and raised in Northern Michigan. But it is an Armenian name that means “comes with the sword.” He has such a softspoken way of singing that everything sounds eerily pleasant, until you listen to some of the lyrics. I’ve been checking out some of of his works on Spotify and there are definitely some lines that made me go, “Wait, what?” According to this interview with Pigeons and Planes, he is just getting started with his musical style and prowess. Prone to experimentation, he’s released a few interesting projects that might not have sold well but certainly useful to his artistry and growth as an artist. His album Carrie & Lowell is one of my favorites. There are some lovely songs on there melodically, but there is also this melancholy and sadness. Makes sense since it’s about his mother, Carrie, who is bipolar and schizophrenic and left him when he was only one. Lowell is his step-father.

Check him out during the Carrie & Lowell tour below if I’ve peaked your interest. Definitely, someone I will be following for some time.