'MTV Unplugged in New York'
For Cobain, doing “something different” meant not wanting to treat the Unplugged performance like some sort of Nirvana victory tour but rather deciding to use it as an opportunity to create a very thoughtfully curated artistic expression. In addition to refusing to play the band’s inarguably most popular, chart-topping song “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Cobain decided not to play any of Nirvana’s radio hits besides “Come As You Are” and included six obscure covers (of songs by artists Kurt admired) in the band’s performance. Nirvana’s Unplugged episode was not an exercise in fan service, and Kurt made it clear with his set list that he was an artist, not a hit maker, nor a pop star.We'd seen the other Unpluggeds and didn't like many of them, because most bands would treat them like rock shows — play their hits like it was Madison Square Garden, except with acoustic guitars. We wanted to do something different. (Scaggs)
Yet, again, Kurt continued to please the corporate machine and pop audiences with his deliberate construction of his image at the Unplugged taping. Beyond just agreeing to tape an episode of a show for MTV – not only sharing Nirvana’s music with a popular audience but also actively participating in capitalist, commercial America via mainstream, syndicated media – Kurt put in extra effort in revamping his image in order to seem more palatable to an audience beyond the grunge, alternative scene. With an on-stage persona characterized by obviously unwashed, disheveled, greasy hair, tattered thrift shop clothing (or gender bending dresses and messy eyeliner), Cobain usually displayed a very alternative image. His appearance at Unplugged very clearly strays from his usual look: sporting hair that not only was his natural blonde but also appeared washed, healthy, and recently trimmed and wearing a conservatively casual jeans and cardigan ensemble, Kurt produced a clean-cut image that would appeal to a wider audience and attract more viewers, thereby conforming to the demands of American capitalism.
