Long before she became famous, her life could have turned out much darker. Born in San Francisco in 1964 to a psychotherapist mother and a father tied to the Grateful Dead, she grew up in chaos. Her mother recalled that “her imagination was fabulous — she was always making up plays and stories,” and she later said, “I was actually doing a lot of children’s radio… I wanted to be an actress — I also wanted to be a rock musician.”

But her creativity couldn’t shield her from trauma. She claimed, “I was given drugs at an early age… my father gave me LSD at the age of four,” while her mother said, “Her childhood was horrible… It was tragic.” She began therapy at three, was noted for autistic traits at nine, and explained, “I was diagnosed autistic… I would not speak.” Constant moves — including an unwanted stay in New Zealand — led to behavioral problems and eventually a juvenile correctional facility at 14. That was where she discovered the music that sparked her ambition.

Her teenage years brought more instability, foster homes, and finally legal emancipation. She traveled, worked odd jobs, even danced in Japan, and created a new identity with a new last name. By the late 1980s, she landed film roles and co-founded Hole in 1989.

Her life changed again when she married Kurt Cobain in 1992. “I really pursued him… Kurt was scared of me,” she admitted. After his death, she rebuilt her career, earning a Golden Globe nomination and releasing award-nominated music. In recent years, she revealed her admiration for Kendrick Lamar, calling him a “genius” and admitting, “I have a mad crush on him.”