*Sigh. He is not going to stop talking about this until we all believe he's dead serious about becoming a singer.

Joaquin Phoenix says doing the movie Walk the Line was what actually motivated him to pursue music.

"I've always loved music and never really played
anything, and, after Walk The Line, I kind of learned to play guitar
and having that sense of performing, that certainly opened the door for
me for music. I think now I would just like the music to speak for itself. I don't
think we'll ever get to the reason, 'Oh, that's why he quit and
this is why he's doing this.' I don't fully understand it myself.
I've always followed my heart and felt what was true at the time and
that's what I'm doing now."

Well, he sounds honest. And he's not in it to make a commercial success and get rich quick, if that's what you're thinking.

"I'm not out to sell records. I'm experiencing something and it's
what I feel. I feel like everything in my life is leading up to this
and suddenly acting doesn't seem like that's a big part of what was
important in my life.
I imagine, when I look back on my life, acting will be just a very
small portion of something that I did, and I think music will be the
dominant theme in my life." 

And when all was said and done, Joaquin was actually surprised by the fuss it caused when he quit acting!

"I didn't know that
anyone was gonna care. I felt that it was an obligation to tell my fans
what I was doing, moving in another direction."