David Byrne raising funds for his nonprofit magazine with holiday song “The Fat Man’s Comin’”

Former Talking Heads mastermind David Byrne has a new Christmas song out, and if you purchase it, you’ll be giving him a nice holiday gift.

Byrne is releasing the track “The Fat Man’s Comin'” exclusively through Bandcamp. The song, which is about Santa Claus, dates back to 2013, but was never released. It also comes with a video comprised of the hand-drawn storyboards Byrne created for a more elaborate video that was never produced. The song is available as a pay-what-you-can download, with a minimum contribution of one dollar.

All proceeds from the song will go to Reasons To Be Cheerful, the nonprofit online magazine founded by Byrne in 2019. The magazine focuses on positive stories detailing “proven, evidence-based responses to the world’s most pressing problems.” For example, one recent story is about a supermarket in the United Kingdom that’s offering interest-free microloans to help shoppers buy groceries.

In a statement announcing the song, Byrne says that “The Fat Man’s Comin'” dates back to when he was collaborating with rocker St. Vincent aka Annie Clarke a few years ago. “It wasn’t right for Annie and me – the story of a fat man in rather odd attire who breaks into people’s homes and leaves mysterious packages,” he notes, adding that he wanted it to sound “sort of old-school creepy.”

Byrne concludes that supporting another year of Reasons To Be Cheerful is “a good reason to resurrect this song,” adding, “Enjoy and thanks for listening/watching.”