MICHAEL STIPE & ANDREW WYATT'S, “I PLAYED THE FOOL" FROM THE HBO ORIGINAL SERIES “ROOSTER” IS OUT NOW

WaterTower Music releases “I Played The Fool (Main Title Theme)”, the official main title theme for the new HBO Original series Rooster, created by Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses. This track, performed by Michael Stipe & Andrew Watt, is available now on all major digital streaming platforms.

“I Played The Fool (Main Title Theme)” marks a collaboration between two Grammy Award-winning artists, uniting the highly acclaimed producer and collaborator Andrew Watt with Michael Stipe, the iconic former frontman of R.E.M.

This release is Stipe’s first new song in three years, heralding a much-anticipated return for the renowned artist. The track features Stipe’s distinctive voice alongside Watt’s contemporary production, offering a compelling introduction to the series.

Produced and co-performed by Watt, the track also includes contributions from Travis Barker (Blink-182) on drums and Josh Klinghoffer on guitar and piano. With Barker’s dynamic percussion and Klinghoffer’s atmospheric instrumentation, the song provides a striking and cinematic opening to Rooster, setting the tone for the HBO series with a blend of raw emotion, modern rock energy, and timeless songwriting.

Michael Stipe on the project:

“I’m thrilled to lend my voice to Rooster - as a giant fan of everyone involved, it’s a real honor to be included with ‘I Played The Fool’.

Andrew Watt on working with Stipe:

“Michael Stipe is a hero of mine. A chance to write a song with him was that of a dream...He is one of the true great songwriters of this lifetime and he did what only he could do on this song. He sets “Rooster” off to the moon by making you laugh and cry at the same time with the best clapping tv theme song since Friends.”

Rooster co-creater, Matt Tarses shared his emotional reaction to hearing the song:

“Our plan had always been to use music from our own time in college in the 80s. No band was more important to me then than REM. When Andrew Watt told us he thought he could get Michael Stipe to write and record a new song for us, we said, “Cool, good luck with that.” We knew this would never happen. But a few months later, Andrew sent an early demo of “I Played the Fool.” And when I listened to it on my phone, I cried. I really did. Saying we are excited to have this great song and this iconic voice on our main title is a huge understatement.”

From co-showrunners Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses, Rooster, is a comedy set on a college campus, which revolves around an author’s (Steve Carell) complex relationship with his daughter (Charly Clive).

The series features Steve Carell, Charly Clive, Danielle Deadwyler, Phil Dunster, John C. McGinley, and Lauren Tsai.

The HBO Original comedy series ROOSTER debuted on Sunday, March 8 on HBO and is available for streaming on HBO Max. New episodes of the 10-episode season, produced by Warner Bros. Television, will premiere weekly through Sunday, May 10.

Stream "I Played the Fool" here: https://lnk.to/RoosterHBOPR