LGBTQ+ Band Members For Pride Month

Patty Schemel began her career playing drums in multiple punk rock bands in Seattle. She played alongside grunge legends Nirvana and developed a close friendship with Kurt Cobain, who even considered her for the role of Nirvana's drummer before settling on Dave Grohl.

Naturally, when Courtney Love's band Hole were looking for a new drummer Cobain suggested Schemel and she took her seat at the drum kit of one of the most infamous bands of the 1990's.

Coming out officially in a 1995 interview with Rolling Stone, Schemel said that "it's important" and "it's good for other people who live somewhere in a small town who feel freaky about being gay to know that there's other people who are and that it's okay".

Being at the centre of the grunge world in the 1990's, Schemel went through a lot of hardships, from the death of her friend Cobain and band mate Kristen Pfaff as well as drug problems of her own. Thankfully though, Schemel was able to overcome her addictions and went on to marry her (now ex) wife and start a family.

Schemel's openness about her sexuality paved the way for other queer female rockers and for many she was the first female drummer they ever saw, inspiring young girls to pick up their sticks.