Kurt Cobain’s life is one of the most documented in rock and roll history. His angsty music and persona have attracted a generation of followers.
Kurt Cobain was born in 1967 in Aberdeen, Washington, to Wendy and Donald Cobain. He struggled with depression from an early age, became a truant, and dropped out of high school at 17.
In 1985, Cobain formed the band Nirvana with bassist Krist Novoselic. The group released their first album ‘Bleach’ in 1989 and followed it up with ‘Nevermind’ in 1991, which would later be considered one of the best albums ever made, selling more than 25 million copies worldwide. His talent for writing lyrics has often been compared to John Lennon’s during his iconic guitar. His legacy continues to influence people today.
Here are the 85 best Kurt Cobain quotes on life, love & music that you must read
“Practice makes perfect, but nobody’s perfect, so why practice?”
“Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them.”
“Life is one long struggle in the dark.”
“If it’s illegal to rock and roll, then throw my ass in jail.”
“Friends are nothing but a known enemy.”
“I’d rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not.”
“Drugs are a waste of time. They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with your self esteem.”
“Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.”
“Throughout my life, I’ve always been really close with girls and made friends with girls. And I’ve always been a really sickly, feminine person anyhow, so I thought I was gay for a while because I didn’t find any of the girls in my high school attractive at all. ”
“Just because it’s all you want, doesn’t mean it’s all you need.”
“To be positive at all times is to ignore all that is important, sacred and valuable. To be negative at all times is to be threatened by ridiculousness and instant discreditably.”
“I never wanted to sing. I just wanted to play rhythm guitar – hide in the back and just play.”
“Before I die many will die with me and they’ll deserve it. See you in Hell.”
“There are a lot of things I wish I would have done, instead of just sitting around and complaining about having a boring life.”
“I started being really proud of the fact that I was gay even though I wasn’t.”
“If my eyes could show my soul, everyone would cry when they saw me smile.”
“I don’t care what you think unless it is about me.”
“I mean I like to be passionate and sincere but I also like to have fun and act like a dork. Geeks unite.”
“They laugh at me because I’m different; I laugh at them because they’re all the same.”
“No one is afraid of heights, they’re afraid of falling down. No one is afraid of saying I love you, they’re afraid of the answer.”
“You can’t buy happiness”
“I don’t blame the average seventeen-year-old punk-rock kid for calling me a sellout. I understand that. And maybe when they grow up a little bit, they’ll realize there’s more things to life than living out your rock & roll identity so righteously.”
“If you’re really a mean person you’re going to come back as a fly and eat poop.”
“Before I die many will die with me and they’ll deserve it. See you in Hell.”
“I’m disgusted with my own apathy, for being spineless and not always standing up against racism, sexism and all those others isms.”
“I would like to get rid of the homophobes, sexists, and racists in our audience. I know they’re out there and it really bothers me.”
“I’d rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not.”
“I really miss being able to blend in with people.”
“The sun is gone, but I have a light.”
“Dreaming of the person you want to be is wasting the person you already are.”
“I was tired of pretending that I was someone else just to get along with people, just for the sake of having friendships.”
“Wanting to be someone else is a waste of who you are.”
“Birds scream at the top of their lungs in horrified hellish rage every morning at daybreak to warn us all of the truth, but sadly we don’t speak bird.”
“The finest day i ever had was when tomorrow never cam.”
“I’m so happy because today I found my friends – they’re in my head.”
“Rather be dead then cool.”
“If you’re really a mean person you’re going to come back as a fly and eat poop.”
“Do your own thing. Others own their own thing. If you copy too much, you’ll find yourself in late night cocktail lounge cover band limbo.”
“Because there is nothing in the world I like more than pure underground music.”
“Holding my baby is the best drug in the world.”
“No matter what you do or say, there’s nothing that you can do to make people understand you.”
“I didn’t know how to deal with success. If there was a Rock Star 101, I would have liked to take it. It might have helped me.”
“A friend is nothing but a known enemy.”
“Music is energy. A mood, atmosphere. Feeling.”
“I’m not well-read, but when I read, I read well.”
“The finest day I ever had was when tomorrow never came.”
“I’m left-handed, and it’s not very easy to find reasonably priced, high-quality left-handed guitars. But out of all the guitars in the whole world, the Fender Mustang is my favorite. I’ve only owned two of them.”
“I started to be really proud of the fact I was gay even though I wasn’t.”
“Come as you are. As you were. As I want you to be.”
“I’ve never been a very prolific person, so when creativity flows, it flows. I find myself scribbling on little notepads and pieces of loose paper, which results in a very small portion of my writings to ever show up in true form.”
“You can’t buy happiness.”
“It’s better to burn out than to fade away.”
“I like to have strong opinions with nothing to back them up with besides my primal sincerity. I like sincerity. I lack sincerity.”
“We’re so trendy we can’t even escape ourselves.”
“Drugs are a waste of time. They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with with your self-esteem. They’re no good at all.”
“I use bits and pieces of others personalities to form my own.”
“If my eyes could show my soul,everyone would cry when they saw me smile.”
“I really haven’t had that exciting of a life. There are a lot of things I wish I would have done, instead of just sitting around and complaining about having a boring life. So I pretty much like to make it up. I’d rather tell a story about somebody else.”
“The worst crime is faking it.”
“Once you fall in love, It’s different. ”
“I like to make people feel happy and superior in their reaction towards my appearance.”
“I don’t blame the average seventeen-year-old punk-rock kid for calling me a sell-out. I understand that. And maybe when they grow up a little bit, they’ll realize there’s more things to life than living out your rock & roll identity so righteously.”
“If you read, you’ll judge.”
“They laugh at me because I’m different; I laugh at them because they’re all the same.”
“If you die you’re completely happy and your soul somewhere lives on. I’m not afraid of dying. Total peace after death, becoming someone else is the best hope I’ve got.”
“It’s better to burn out than fade away.”
“I’ve never been a very prolific person, so when creativity flows, it flows. I find myself scribbling on little notepads and pieces of loose paper, which results in a very small portion of my writings to ever show up in true form.”
“I had a really good childhood up until I was nine, then a classic case of divorce really affected me.”
“Life isn’t nearly as sacred as the appreciation of passion.”
“There are a lot of things I wish I would have done, instead of just sitting around and complaining about having a boring life.”
“I’m a spokesman for myself. It just so happens that there’s a bunch of people that are concerned with what I have to say. I find that frightening at times because I’m just as confused as most people. I don’t have the answers for anything.”
“The duty of youth is to challenge corruption.”
“I have to admit I’ve found myself doing the same things that a lot of other rock stars do or are forced to do. Which is not being able to respond to mail, not being able to keep up on current music, and I’m pretty much locked away a lot. The outside world is pretty foreign to me. ”
“We have no right to express an opinion until we know all of the answers.”
“If you ever need anything please don’t hesitate to ask someone else first.”
“My mother encouraged me to be artistic. It was written in a contract at an early age that I would be an artist.”
“If you ever need anything please don’t hesitate to ask someone else first.”
“I would like to get rid of the homophobes, sexists, and racists in our audience. I know they’re out there and it really bothers me.”
“I don’t care what you think unless it is about me.”
“Words suck. I mean, everything has been said. Words aren’t as important as the energy derived from music, especially live.”
“I am not gay, although I wish I were, just to piss off homophobes.”
“I’m so happy. Cause today I found my friends. They’re in my head.”
“Forever in debt to your priceless advice.”
“Thank you for the tragedy. I need it for my art.” “I like to complain and do nothing to make things better.”
