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Eddie Vedder opens up about the death of Chris Cornell: “I still haven’t quite dealt with it”

“I’ve had to be somewhat in denial.”

Eddie Vedder and Chris Cornell onstage

Photo: Tim Mosenfelder / Getty Images

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The death of Chris Cornell continues to haunt Eddie Vedder, who recently said he hasn’t “quite dealt with” the tragic loss of his friend and fellow Seattleite.

The Pearl Jam frontman opened up about his grief for the Soundgarden vocalist, who took his own life back in 2017, during an interview segment on the Howard Stern Show.

“I’ve had to be somewhat in denial,” Vedder explained. “I don’t even feel like I had a choice. I was just terrified where I would go if I allowed myself to feel what I needed to feel or what I was instinctively wanting to feel or how dark I felt like I was gonna go.”

“And because I didn’t see him that often in the last 10 years – probably only, like, four or five times, and usually at a gig or something – I still haven’t quite dealt with it. I’ll get stronger as time goes.”

Both Vedder and Cornell are credited with fronting two of the most successful rock groups to burst out of the 90s Seattle music scene. However, the Pearl Jam man divulged that his friendship with Cornell extended well beyond the music.

“I would hang out with him outside of the band more than even the other band guys, and I didn’t know that many people in Seattle,” he said.

“We would go on crazy hiking adventures, or we would go mountain biking, or we would chase the dog in the rain while drinking shitty beer – and it was cool.”

He continued: “And it had nothing to do with anything like being around other music people or being around some kind of LA life. It was just cool. Like, wow, this is what a quote-unquote legit rock star [does] – he’s chasing a dog in the rain with his buddy on a Saturday night with a 12-pack of Schmidt?”

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