I was eight. My brother  who was a teenager was watching the music video to “Black Hole Sun” and I liked it because in my mind it looked like a cartoon to me.

I didn’t really listen to Chris’ music until I was in high school and Audioslave was at the height of its popularity. I was hooked. Here was this gorgeous man whose voice was like an angel, a warrior screaming in the middle of the night, life and death. He wrote like an Irish poet. He could capture the darkness in a way that was prophetic, elegant and so far beyond what I could process. That’s what made him great. That’s what made him sad.

I’m currently going through deep personal heartache and his music brings me a new wave of comfort and pain, in a way that it didn’t before. His death now adds a layer of I don’t know…something not of this world.

When I listen to my favorite song of Chris’ “I am the Highway” the beginning chords sound like what one’s spirit when it goes on from the physical life to the afterlife. I can’t put it into words, maybe it shouldn’t be put into words because its too powerful to articulate.

Thank you for your music Chris. It means so much to me.

Love you Chris and love to your family. XoXo

Jewel