Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of acclaimed band Nirvana, died 30 years ago as of April 5, and fans today from around the globe are still remembering his music, life and legacy.
The blond-haired, guitar-smashing grunge phenom had notably been recognized for his authentic ragged voice and abstract concerts during his short-lived career as lead singer of 90s band Nirvana. And while the public was quite aware of Cobain’s rumored heroin abuse, it shocked the world when on April 5, 1994, news broke that the beloved rock-star had died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to an article from The New York Times .
Kurt Cobain was born on Feb. 20, 1967, in the small town of Aberdeen, Washington to Wendy Cobain, a waitress, and Donald Cobain, an auto mechanic. Cobain had a younger sister named Kimberly, a younger half-sister named Brianne and a younger half-brother, Chad, all of whom are still alive today.
Cobain’s love for music started back when he was just 2 years old.
“By his second Christmas, Kurt was already showing an interest in music,” Charles R. Cross wrote in his biography on Cobain, “Heavier Than Heaven .” “His aunts and uncles recorded him singing the Beatles’ ‘Hey Jude,’ Arlo Guthrie’s ‘Motorcycle Song’ and the theme to ‘The Monkees’ television show.”
This passion for music would spark the short-lived and widely-acknowledged band Nirvana, composed of Cobain, Krist Novoselic and a succession of drummers, most notably Dave Ghrol.
Formulated in 1987, the band was coined Nirvana after Cobain found inspiration in the Buddhist definition which refers to a state of happiness in an ideal place , according to the English Oxford Dictionary .
Nirvana would go on to produce three studio albums: “Bleach” in 1989, “Nevermind” in 1991 and “In Utero” in 1993.
“Cobain came to be hailed as the voice of his generation, a title that he was never comfortable with,” according to an article from Britannica .
The artist’s battles with fame did not restrict him from becoming recognized as a vocal activist.
“He got up and played a truly transcendent show , one of those times when you felt like your feet weren’t touching the ground,” Michael Azerrad, the author of “Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana,” wrote .
In one 1993 concert, Nirvana headed a benifit concert, which put money towards the aid for the Bosnian rape victims.
Cobain made multiple efforts towards activism of human rights.
“If you in any way hate homosexuals, people of different color or women, please do this one favor for us … don’t come to our shows and don’t buy our records,” Cobain said at one concert, according to an article from The Washington Post .
The band’s final concert took place in Munich, Germany on March 1, 1994. Just over 30 years later, Cobain’s voice still echoes.
A bench located in Veretta park next to the land plot of Cobain’s former house in Seattle has since been transformed into a memorial for the late-singer. The landmark is unofficial as fans have decorated the bench in memory of the singer throughout the years with graffiti.
On April 5, fans from all over the country traveled to visit the landmark.
“Cobai n’s music is like a letter from a total stranger telling you that everything was going to be alright,” Nirvana fan Johnny Arnoux said, according to an article from the Seattle Times .
On the same day, Cobain’s daughter Frances Bean Cobain remembered Kurt in an emotional Instagram post from her account, @thespacewitch .
“I wish I could’ve known my Dad,” Frances Bean Cobain wrote. “I wish I knew the cadence of his voice, how he liked his coffee or the way it felt to be tucked in after a bedtime story … He gifted me a lesson in death that can only come through the LIVED experience of losing someone.”