Nirvana

Nirvana was a grunge band from Aberdeen, Washington, United States.

It was formed by its vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic. Its songs are characterized by cynical and "heavy" lyrics. A series of drummers passed through the band, with the longest-serving being Dave Grohl, who joined Nirvana in 1990.

With their leading single "Smells Like Teen Spirit" from the album Nevermind (1991), Nirvana entered a musical wave, considered a substyle of alternative rock, called grunge.

Other Seattle grunge bands such as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden also achieved popularity, and as a result, alternative rock became the dominant style played on radio and music television in the US for the first half of the 1990s. Frontman Kurt Cobain was perceived as the spokesperson for an entire generation – Generation X. Cobain did not feel particularly comfortable with the attention focused on him and challenged the audience with the band's third studio album – In Utero.

Nirvana's existence ended with Kurt Cobain's death in April 1994, but the band's popularity continued in the following years. More than eight years later, "You Know You're Right," a song from the last unfinished studio session, topped all radio charts. Since their debut in 1987, the band has sold 50 million album copies worldwide. Nirvana continues to have its presence on radio stations worldwide.