ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did you come into the Daniels' world?
Was it viaSon Lux, the post-rock trio who penned the score?
DAVID BYRNE:It was.
Credit: Shervin Lainez
I knew Son Lux and their manager, Michael, through an artist called Sufjan Stevens.
Do you want to do a duet with Mitski?"
And I said yes immediately.
Stephanie Hsu in ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’.Allyson Riggs/A24
I just thought, ‘Oh my God, this is really insane.
It’s wonderful."
Do you still have distinct memories of that ceremony?
David Byrne in ‘Stop Making Sense’.Everett Collection
Even for an established rock star, it must have been pretty wild.
Oh yes, I’d never been to anything like that before.
[Laughs]So that was another world for me.
But it was a lot of fun.
It could be; you never know.
I was kind of surprised aboutLast Emperor.
I thought, “Well, people really like it, but look at this competition.
Look at the other movies that are out there!
Is it really gonna take all that?”
And in a way, I feel the same [now].
Look at these other songs that have been nominated.
It seems like an outside chance, but who knows?
And I thought, “Okay, this is not a world that she’s comfortable dealing with.”
But Stephanie and I had a little vocal rehearsal just sitting in a room singing this song yesterday.
So that’s going to be fun.
I’m picturing something closer to what you did withAmerican Utopia, but with a Daniels twist.
In a certain way, yes.
We do realize it’s very, very different than a concert or just a regular performance.
Have you done your due diligence in terms of watching the other nominated films this year?
I’ve been trying!
I haven’t seen them all.
The world is opening up.
I know you’veguested onThe Simpsonsand done some other TV work.
But in a perfect world, how would you like to get your Emmy?
I think it’s a really long shot.
But I am pitching a couple of television shows, so who knows?
Well, either way, no one can take away that EGOT O from you.
Where does your 1988 Oscar live now?
Is that anOscar?"
We’ve got an empty theater."
You’veturned a building into an instrumentand collaborated withcolor guardsandTwyla Tharp.
I don’t know.
I haven’t figured it out yet.
That’s coming back as well!
A24 is taking it up; they’re going to rerelease it theatrically.
And A24 is very good at merchandising, that should be interesting.
I’m wondering what [they’ll do].
Something to add to your Oscar-and-sandwich-spread shrine.
[Laughs]Exactly.
