December 10, 2017

Sufjan Stevens Says ‘I, Tonya’ Didn’t Want His Tonya Harding Song, but You Can Listen to It Anyway

Sufjan Stevens contributed two highly acclaimed tunes to the “Call Me by Your Name” soundtrack, with both “Mystery of Love” and “Visions of Gideon” considered likely nominees for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. To hear the indie-rock icon tell it, he almost had another in the mix this fall: “Tonya Harding,” which, despite his efforts, bears no relation to “I, Tonya.”

Margot Robbie stars as the disgraced figure skater in Craig Gillespie’s biopic, which has earned strong reviews since premiering in Toronto and opens later this month. Stevens writes on his website that he’s “been trying to write a Tonya Harding song since I was 15” and that the final product is “not at all related to the new biopic” because he “sent it to the music supervisors but they couldn’t find a way to use it.”

Here are his full liner notes, which evince a deep love of Harding:

“I wrote a song for Tonya Harding. It’s not at all related to the new biopic (I sent it to the music supervisors but they couldn’t find a way to use it). This song has been years in the making. I’ve been trying to write a Tonya Harding song since I was 15. I wrote a short piece about it here. There are two versions of the song and we are releasing them on tape cassette (available now) and on 7-inch (available soonish). All digital versions are available now:

“http://smarturl.it/tonya-harding

“Please enjoy. If you don’t know who Tonya Harding is, go see the movie, or read her Wikipedia page. She’s amazing. My prayer is peace on earth. Lord help us.

“I love you Tonya.”

Listen to the song below:

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Source: IndieWire film