Photo: WENN
Michael Stipe gave an emotional tribute to his late friend Kurt Cobain when inducting Nirvana into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame last night (Thursday 10 April, 2014).
Former REM frontman Stipe was a hero and close friend of Kurt Cobain, as well as the godfather of his daughter with Courtney Love, Frances Bean Cobain - making him a fitting choice to introduce Nirvana and present the band with their induction.
"Nirvana were artists in every sense of the word," Stipe told the audience at Brooklyn's Barcalys Centre, reports Rolling Stone. "Nirvana tapped into a voice that was yearning to be heard. Nirvana were kicking against the mainstream. They spoke truth and a lot of people listened."
Stipe continued: ""They were singular and loud and melodic and deeply original," Stipe continued. "And that voice. That voice. Kurt, we miss you. I miss you. This is not just pop music. This is something much greater than that."
Not only were they close friends, but Stipe famously invited Cobain to Georgia to collaborate and record together in the weeks leading up to his death in attempt to pull him from his downward spiral.
REM later recorded the song 'Let Me In' in memory of Cobain, listen below.
Kiss, Peter Gabriel, Hall and Oates, Cat Stevens, Linda Ronstadt, Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and more were also inducted, but the evening served as a general celebration for Nirvana in general. Not only were the surviving members joined on stage for a performance by the likes of Lorde, Joan Jett and St Vincent, but they then played a special and intimate show to just 200 fans afterwards.
Below: RIP Kurt Cobain - 13 bands we wouldn't have without Nirvana
