Watch Joaquin Phoenix Rap (VIDEO)

After announcing his retirement from acting in October, Joaquin Phoenix made his first public foray into the music world Friday, saying he was ready to put his real self out there and not hide behind movie characters.

"This is me saying this is who I am. This is my story," the actor-turned-aspiring rapper told PEOPLE before taking the stage at Las Vegas club LAVO.

For the skeptics, Phoenix says he's serious about his new line of work. Music, he told PEOPLE, is his real love.

"After all the years of reading scripts and reading lines, this is my chance to do something straight from the heart and put it out there," he said. And why hip-hop? "When I was young I liked punk rock music but then I discovered rap. I love the storytelling aspect of hip-hop."

KEEP READING PEOPLE'S INTERVIEW

-OR-

WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE PERFORMANCE:

Comments

[BlackDemfromNH]

12:04 AM on 02/16/2009

WTF???? I pray that this is just a joke. Please, let him be kidding.

[pthesmith]

11:32 AM on 02/15/2009

I'm somewhere between:

"maybe people will figure out rapping is not as easy as it's made to look"

and

"anyone who wants to express themselves and their ideas should have an opportunit­y."

[markand]

12:10 AM on 02/15/2009

BSMFC.

[elevando]

09:08 PM on 02/13/2009

Joaquin's music is going to be huge. His beats are tight. His lyrics are intelligen­t, as they seen to call all of us to think about your existance, and our time here on earth. If anything Joaquin has moved the theories of existentia­lism from the history books to the stage, and that should be applauded. Haters be damned, you wouldn't know art if it fell on your head.

Go Joaquin!

[fregan]

12:38 PM on 02/14/2009

What puerile bull---t! You know nothing about "existenti­alism" or "tight beats". Joaquin is tooling guys like you who are so absorbed with your own time on the earth as if it were a condition peculiar to yourself. This is strictly commerce on his part. Watch him playing the camera, yo.

[WasteNJ]

03:00 PM on 02/13/2009

We don't need anymore Karaoke rappers. Rick Rubin is still alive, so please take off the Rick Rubin look-alike costume.

[doomsday]

02:36 PM on 02/13/2009

I just can't help thinking of Andy Kaufman every time I see him now. For his sake, I truly hope that he is having a laugh that no one else gets.
Fame can make some people literally crazy. Unfortunat­ely some of the most gifted actors are, by nature, some of the most mentally sensitive. It seems like this guys entire life has been extreme in one way or another.
I hope that he can find harmony with his life.

[Brian Ross]

01:35 PM on 02/13/2009

I'd like to thank Joaquin Phoenix for rehabilita­ting my viewpoint of Cat Stevens. There is obviously someone crazier out there. Pencil him into the record book.

[Candace Mandracia]

10:52 PM on 02/12/2009

I think its shameful that he's being made fun of - I think he needs help , he's obviously on drugs, and everyone is laughing at him. Unreal

[biffula]

05:16 PM on 02/12/2009

Bwahahahah­aha! Is this guy serious!?!­?! I love the crowd laughing and talking throughout­. Good luck with your new 'career'!

[SabrinaFair]

10:21 AM on 02/12/2009

It's like, Ernest T. Bass raps.

Simply awful and he should be submitted for counseling immediatel­y.

[Alice215]

01:34 PM on 02/04/2009

Mental Health Care... he can afford it. Joining the long list of celebritie­s that have gone over the edge. Sad

[garyoke]

01:49 PM on 01/28/2009

Let me get this straight - he left film because he likes the "straight from the heart" "story telling" aspect of rap?

I couldn't hear the story, but I did hear the F-Bomb a few times.

Pity.

River is crying up in heaven, saying don't throw it all away dude.

[Marianna79]

12:40 PM on 01/29/2009

Omg!I was crying when I watched the video,lmfa­o!!

[HamboneandFlippy]

01:03 PM on 01/23/2009

Fail.

[Chris-Duncan-Clothing]

03:14 AM on 01/22/2009

His raps are kinda like Chris Duncan Clothing search able on youtube

[D Right One]

08:38 AM on 01/21/2009

You ever have a friend ask you to honestly critique him on a career changing idea and you just couldn't bring yourself to tell him that the idea sucked???!­!! For one, you know he won't believe you anyway and as an adult he just has to figure out for himself that the idea sucked. Maybe Phoenix will figure it out. Usually takes about a year.