10 Tragic Deaths That Rocked The Music Industry

There are only a handful of musicians in the world of rock and roll that can really be considered the voice of a generation. Back in the '60s, we had someone like Bob Dylan leading the charge, and even in the '70s you had everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Led Zeppelin vying for that position. If you grew up in the '90s though, no one captured the feeling of internal angst and anger quite like Kurt Cobain.

The minute that Smells Like Teen Spirit came over MTV for the first time, Cobain became the spokesman for the alternative scene, with almost everyone from Seattle following his lead into stardom from Soundgarden to Pearl Jam. Kurt didn't want to be famous though, and he managed to test his audience's integrity by releasing In Utero, which was meant to be as unpolished as possible.

When they eventually went on tour though, Kurt found himself more and more depressed, finding refuge in drugs and accidentally overdosing in Rome. By the time everyone decided to take a break, Kurt was found dead in his home, having shot himself with a shotgun. Once the news broke, it felt like the entire alternative revolution was over, as everyone dealt with it like the loss of a friend. Sometimes when you leave like this though, it's not hard to find your way into rock and roll legend.