Kurt Cobain Quotes About Music, Drugs On His 51st Birthday

Tuesday marks the 51st birthday of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, who died at the age of 27 after shooting himself in the head. The singer struggled with heroin addiction and depression, and since his death on April 5, 1994, several conspiracy theories about his suicide continue to do the rounds.

There have been speculations about Cobain's wife Courtney Love being involved in some way; Tom Grant, a private investigator, claimed Love and Michael Dewitt, her live-in nanny, conspired to kill Cobain. However, none of the theories were confirmed.

Below is a list of 13 quotes by the Nirvana singer on music, drugs and life, courtesy BrainyQuote and other interviews.

1. “I’d rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not.”

2. “All drugs are a waste of your time. They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with your self-esteem. They make you feel good for a little while, and then they destroy you. They’re no good at all. But I’m not going to go around preaching against it. It’s your choice, but in my experience, I’ve found they’re a waste of time.” — Rolling Stone interview (April 1992)

3. “It was so fast and explosive. I didn’t know how to deal with it. If there was a Rock Star 101 course, I would have liked to take it. It might have helped me.” — Rolling Stone interview (January 1994)

4. “Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.”

5. “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.”

6. “If I wouldn’t have found Courtney, I probably would have carried on with a bisexual lifestyle."

7. "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."

8. “I like to have strong opinions with nothing to back them up with besides my primal sincerity. I like sincerity. I lack sincerity.”

9. "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."

10. “Rap music is the only vital form of music introduced since punk rock.”

11. “I wanted to have the adoration of John Lennon, but have the anonymity of Ringo Starr. I didn’t want to be a frontman.”

12. “When I listen to ‘Nevermind,’ I hate the production, but there’s something about it that almost makes me cry at times.”

13. “I bought a gun and chose drugs instead.”