Dave Grohl's ugly 14-year feud with Kurt Cobain's wife after he died

The death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain was followed by more than a decade of bitterness between his wife, Courtney Love, and Dave Grohl over the band’s unreleased music.

Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain and Hole singer Courtney Love became the It Couple of the grunge scene after their 1992 marriage. The intimate Hawaii affair was attended by only eight guests, one of whom was Cobain’s band member, Dave Grohl. Two years later, however, a legal battle between Love and Grohl soured their friendship.

Kurt Cobain’s death initiated Dave Grohl and Courtney Love feud

Marrying a rockstar? Count the fans in too. Despite the celebrity couple being grunge music stars and notable for their controversial reputation in the press, Courtney Love was vilified while her beloved musician husband was worshipped as a hero. Combined with Cobain’s untimely 1994 death, Love received the Yoko Ono treatment – and it didn’t help when she launched a legal battle against Grohl and bassist Krist Novoselic.

In 1997, Grohl, Novoselic, and Love created Nirvana LLC to handle the band’s business dealings post Cobain. But 2001 marked the start of the trio’s decade-long feud. It came after Love filed a lawsuit to dissolve the company in June, successfully delaying the release of With The Lights Out until 2004. The box set reportedly featured her husband’s final recorded track. The partnership meant all three parties would’ve consented to the distribution of unreleased Nirvana material, but Love’s efforts would’ve given her sole ownership of Nirvana’s music.

According to ABC News, Love stated in court documents the rock band “could never be a partnership because it was the living manifestation of the creative vision, personal will and life force of a single unique individual.” The papers allegedly accused Novoselic and Grohl of taking advantage of Love’s grief. It alleged they coerced her into signing the partnership, while Love reportedly claimed Cobain wanted to split the group months before his death.

Kurt Cobain was Nirvana

The Nirvana members responded in an open letter, branding Love as “irrational, mercurial, self-centred, unmanageable, inconsistent and unpredictable,” alongside a lawsuit seeking to oust her from Nirvana LLC.

Less than one week later, Courtney fired back, alleging his legacy and asserts should be devolved to his wife and child.

“Kurt Cobain was Nirvana,” she said. “He named the band, hired its members, played guitar, wrote the songs, fronted the band onstage and in interviews and took responsibility for the band’s business decisions.”

Both lawsuits were settled, but the public feud continued for another 10 years online.

Grohl accused of ‘hitting on’ Cobain’s teen daughter

Love accusing Grohl of stealing money from herself and her child with Cobain, Frances Bean.

One 2012 Twitter tirade saw the mother of one accuse the Food Fighters frontman of hitting on then 19-year-old Frances, which he firmly denied.

Love’s private tweets in screenshots published by Gawker allegedly read: “I hear from frannies roommate that @davegrohl hit on Frances, and that she was curious, I’m not mad at her, him I am about to shoot, dead.” The Twitter handle wasn’t the guitarist’s official account, but the message was clear.

“Unfortunately, Courtney is on another hateful Twitter rant,” Grohl said through his representative. “These new accusations are upsetting, offensive and absolutely untrue.”

The pair have seemingly patched up their feud as they reunited at Nirvana‘s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, during which Love called Grohl and “Brother Krist” her “family.