--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But we're very much an American band and…" description: "\"But we're very much an American band and that's that. I think that's part of the appeal outside of this country and it might be part of the reason peop..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfe/michael-stipe-6714_american_but-we-re-very-much-an-american-band-and_568472.png" --- # But we're very much an American band and that's that. I… ![“But we're very much an American band and that's that. I think that's part of the appeal outside of this country and it might be part of the reason people turned away from us within this country, because familiarity breeds contempt.” quote by Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfe/michael-stipe-6714_american_but-we-re-very-much-an-american-band-and_568472.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfe/michael-stipe-6714_american_but-we-re-very-much-an-american-band-and_568472.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfe/michael-stipe-6714_american_but-we-re-very-much-an-american-band-and_568472.png) > “But we're very much an American band and that's that. I think that's part of the appeal outside of this country and it might be part of the reason people turned away from us within this country, because familiarity breeds contempt.” [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. An American band's foreign appeal stems from cultural familiarity, while domestic audiences may reject it due to overexposure and contempt. **In simple terms:** American band is loved abroad, ignored at home. Key Takeaway Cultivate authenticity that resonates globally, not just locally. Themes culture music identity Mood reflective critical Type musical social commentary When to use this quote - touring - marketing - fan engagement Key Concepts globalization nationalism Questions to Reflect On - Why do audiences sometimes reject what they know? - How can artists bridge domestic and international appeal? A Different Perspective Domestic markets may resist familiar sounds. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contempt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contempt/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) ## Related quotes > [Too much familiarity breeds contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/too-much-familiarity-breeds-contempt/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Like any friendship or marriage, familiarity breeds more contempt, and love, and everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/like-any-friendship-or-marriage-familiarity-breeds-more-contempt-and/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Familiarity breeds contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop/familiarity-breeds-contempt/) [Aesop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop/) > [We're absolutely American and distinctly so, I think. That's part of what people respond to outside of this country, part of the reason that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-re-absolutely-american-and-distinctly-so-i-think-that-s-part-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Canada has one of the highest rates of insanity in any civilized country and one reason might be that life in many places is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/canada-has-one-of-the-highest-rates-of-insanity-in-any-civilized/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [Nothing genuinely historical was ever lost in this country. For this reason we have two ruling parties: villains and fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/nothing-genuinely-historical-was-ever-lost-in-this-country-for-this/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [“Men's willingness to die for his country, is the reason he has to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-s-willingness-to-die-for-his-country-is-the-reason-he-has-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We got a chance to go and play in some places that the usual European tour by an American band didn't go to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-irons/we-got-a-chance-to-go-and-play-in-some-places-that-the-usual-european/) [Jack Irons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-irons/) > [We're an American band. We liked the Grammys, we liked the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We weren't a political band, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marky-ramone/we-re-an-american-band-we-liked-the-grammys-we-liked-the-rock-and/) [Marky Ramone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marky-ramone/) > [Kiss is the number-one American band in gold-record sales. In the world, only the Beatles and the Stones are ahead of us. Every other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-simmons/kiss-is-the-number-one-american-band-in-gold-record-sales-in-the/) [Gene Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-simmons/) > [We're not an American band, or a European band. We're a Brazilian band.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-cavalera/we-re-not-an-american-band-or-a-european-band-we-re-a-brazilian-band/) [Max Cavalera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-cavalera/) > [We were an American band and no one cared about us in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alana-haim/we-were-an-american-band-and-no-one-cared-about-us-in-america/) [Alana Haim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alana-haim/) > [It's so much fun to have vocal groups out on the road because we get to see them do their thing, and at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-demarcus/it-s-so-much-fun-to-have-vocal-groups-out-on-the-road-because-we-get/) [Jay DeMarcus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-demarcus/) > [When I first heard Kraftwerk, I thought they were an American band singing in German.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-michel-jarre/when-i-first-heard-kraftwerk-i-thought-they-were-an-american-band/) [Jean-Michel Jarre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-michel-jarre/) > [Familiarity breeds contempt only when it breeds inattention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/familiarity-breeds-contempt-only-when-it-breeds-inattention/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) ## More by Michael Stipe > [We don't get groupies.We get teenagers who want to read us their poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-don-t-get-groupies-we-get-teenagers-who-want-to-read-us-their/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ At the \[teenage\] time, I did have an inkling of my sexuality. And I had an inkling that I was different from other people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/at-the-teenage-time-i-did-have-an-inkling-of-my-sexuality-and-i-had/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I don't find R.E.M. to be nihilistic. There is a constant undertone of joyous optimism. I'm not going to kill myself to Patti Smith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-don-t-find-r-e-m-to-be-nihilistic-there-is-a-constant-undertone-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ I simply constructed a project to try to snap Kurt \[Cobain\] out of a frame of mind. I sent him a plane ticket and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-simply-constructed-a-project-to-try-to-snap-kurt-cobain-out-of-a/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I was vulnerable every day. Every night that I stepped on stage I was laying myself open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-was-vulnerable-every-day-every-night-that-i-stepped-on-stage-i-was/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [We're absolutely American and distinctly so, I think. That's part of what people respond to outside of this country, part of the reason that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-re-absolutely-american-and-distinctly-so-i-think-that-s-part-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ \[Columbia House\] magazines were how I found out about the punk world going on in New York. Because of what I read, at the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/columbia-house-magazines-were-how-i-found-out-about-the-punk-world/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I'm tired of being this solemn poet of the masses, the enigma shrouded in a mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-m-tired-of-being-this-solemn-poet-of-the-masses-the-enigma-shrouded/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Frankly I'm not great with heroin addicts. I tried heroin, but it was by accident. I'm not great with that level of substance abuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/frankly-i-m-not-great-with-heroin-addicts-i-tried-heroin-but-it-was/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [The whole punk ethic was do-it-yourself, and I've always been very literal, especially as a kid. When they said that anybody can do this,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/the-whole-punk-ethic-was-do-it-yourself-and-i-ve-always-been-very/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [They spoke truth and a lot of people listened… that voice, Kurt we miss you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/they-spoke-truth-and-a-lot-of-people-listened-that-voice-kurt-we-miss/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [A wise man once said-'the skill in attending a party is knowing when it's time to leave,'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/a-wise-man-once-said-the-skill-in-attending-a-party-is-knowing-when/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [They always want me to play myself and that's a big snooze.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/they-always-want-me-to-play-myself-and-that-s-a-big-snooze/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Anything you do as a group is fraught with compromise... But everyone 's got to do that, right? It's part of being a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/anything-you-do-as-a-group-is-fraught-with-compromise-but-everyone-s/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [To be called an elder statesman is so unbelievably insulting. Brad Pitt is exactly three years younger than me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/to-be-called-an-elder-statesman-is-so-unbelievably-insulting-brad/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) [Explore all 98 Michael Stipe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) ## More American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) Browse all 7,717 American quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "But we're very much an American band and that's that. 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