Courtney Love has reacted to Billy Corgan bidding on handwritten lyrics of her band Hole‘s 1994 hit single ‘Violet’.
- READ MORE: Courtney Love: “I feel like the luckiest motherfucker in the history of rock’n’roll”
Last week (November 18), Corgan revealed via an Instagram clip that he had purchased three tickets for the auction of Love’s handwritten lyrics for ‘Violet’, which appeared in the band’s breakthrough 1994 album ‘Live Through This’. The track has long been thought to have been penned about the Smashing Pumpkins frontman.
The auction is part of a fundraiser by the wildlife sanctuary Ellis Park, which is running until December 15. All proceeds will go to the charity, which is dedicated to caring for rescued animals in Sumatra and was founded by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds’ Warren Ellis.
In an interview with The Standard, published yesterday (November 26), Love responded to Corgan’s announcement with praise: “I think it’s wonderful that he’s highlighting such an excellent cause,” she said. Notably, the interview features details of the album she is currently working on, which would be her first solo record since 2004’s ‘America’s Sweetheart’.
“I love Corgan; he’s welcome to win!” she continued. “I love that guy, even when we beefed in public, I never didn’t love him.”
Love also highlighted Corgan’s visibility as “a huge animal lover” – for instance, in 2021 Corgan joined Cameo to help raise funds for an animal shelter in his hometown – and that his Instagram post led to coverage by major US outlets.
Earlier this month, Love shared with NME on how ‘Violet’ is “not just about Billy Corgan, as many might assume”.
“It’s about sitting on the fire escape of his flat, sipping cheap wine and taking a Vicodin (oh, to be young!) while the Chicago sun sets, leaving behind a bejewelled amethyst sky,” she explained.
In the Standard interview, Love also shared her hesitance with fans analyzing her lyrics, with even academic papers studying her work, which she called “free wacky therapy” reading them.
She’s reminded of a similar position Taylor Swift is currently in: “Frankly, I don’t understand why people do this with Swift either – who cares if she dates high-profile people?”
“Like any woman writing about relationships –dating and breaking up – it happens all the time! All musicians write about broken hearts: Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan (though sideways), Bowie… While I may not love Swift musically, her lyrics when she’s angry resonate with me – I find it middlebrow and boring to overanalyse them. Those academic papers I’ve read are hilarious!”
Love shared about her other favourite lyricists of hers: Lana Del Rey (“You can’t beat “My pussy tastes like Pepsi Cola” as an opening line!”, referring to the singer’s 2012 track ‘Cola’), Kendrick Lamar (“Kendrick – if you’re reading this – did you listen to Leonard Cohen or Bowie growing up? Because it sounds like it!”), and David Bowie (“‘Diamond Dogs’ is wall-to-wall brilliance!”), among others.
Elsewhere in the interview, Love also expressed her interest in collaborating with Del Rey, among other artists. However, the list does not include PJ Harvey, whom she called “fucking rude” for not responding to her request to appear on her upcoming as-yet-titled solo album.
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