Cibo Matto and Into The Sun
In 1997 Lennon (along with fellow IMA member
Timo Ellis) joined New York-based
Japanese duo
Cibo Matto (
Miho Hatori &
Yuka Honda) for their second EP,
Super Relax. Through his association with Cibo Matto, he was approached by the
Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch, who expressed an interest in his music. Lennon's debut solo album,
Into the Sun, was released in 1998 on the Beastie Boys' record label,
Grand Royal Records. Regarding Grand Royal, Sean has said,
"I think I found the only label on the planet who doesn't care who my parents are and what my name is. It's a good feeling to know that I wouldn't have gotten the offer if they wouldn't have liked my songs. That's pretty rare in the music business!".
Into the Sun was produced by fellow Cibo Matto member and then girlfriend,
Yuka Honda, who Sean claimed was his inspiration for the album. A
music video for "Home", a single from the album, was directed by
Spike Jonze and enjoyed extended airplay on
MTV. Cibo Matto played as Sean's backing band on
Into The Sun and joined him during the closing scene in the "Home" music video.
In 1999, Sean's
EP Half Horse, Half Musician was released featuring new tracks such as "Heart & Lung" and "Happiness" as well as remixes of songs from
Into The Sun. Later in the year,
Cibo Matto released their second album
Stereo Type A. To the dismay of many Cibo Matto fans
Stereo Type A was to be their final album and the group has since disbanded. The Millennium saw Sean briefly stepping into the world of Hip Hop, contributing vocals to
Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Jurassic 5 and
Handsome Boy Modeling School (in which he performed a duet on "Sunshine" with musician
Josh Haden). In 2001, Sean performed "This Boy" and "Across The Universe" live with
Rufus Wainwright and
Moby for
Come Together: A Night for John Lennon's Words and Music. In the following years Sean stayed out of the spotlight (aside from gaining minor media attention when he dated
Elizabeth Jagger). However he collaborated with various bands and artists either as a
session musician or as a producer.