View source for Rape Me

{{short description|1993 song by Nirvana}}
{{about|the Nirvana song|the French novel and film|Baise-moi}}
{{Infobox song
| name          = Rape Me
| cover         = AllApologiesNew.jpg
| alt           = 
| type          = single
| artist        = [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]]
| album         = [[In Utero]]
| A-side        = "[[All Apologies]]" (double A-side)
| B-side        = Moist Vagina
| released      = {{start date|1993|12|6}}
| recorded      = February 1993
| studio        = [[Pachyderm Studios|Pachyderm]] ([[Cannon Falls, Minnesota|Cannon Falls]], Minnesota)
| genre         = [[Grunge]]
| length        = 2:49
| label         = [[DGC Records|DGC]]
| writer        = [[Kurt Cobain]]
| producer      = [[Steve Albini]]
| prev_title    = [[Heart-Shaped Box]]
| prev_year     = 1993
| title         = [[All Apologies]]
| title2        = Rape Me
| next_title    = [[All Apologies#MTV Unplugged version|All Apologies (unplugged)]]
| next_year     = 1994
| misc          = {{Extra track listing
 | album  = [[In Utero]]
 | type   = studio
 | tracks = {{In Utero tracks}}
}}
{{Extra album cover
 | header  = German CD single
 | type    = single
 | cover   = Nirvana Rape Me German CD cover.jpg
 | border  =
 | alt     =
 | caption = The German CD single came with this large covering sticker on the box
}}
}}

"'''Rape Me'''" is a song by the American [[rock music|rock]] band [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]], written by vocalist and guitarist [[Kurt Cobain]]. It is the fourth song on the band's third and final studio album, ''[[In Utero]]'', released in September 1993.

Often interpreted as a commentary on fame, "Rape Me" was written shortly before the release of the band's breakthrough album ''[[Nevermind]]'', and was intended to be a lyrically literal anti-[[rape]] song.<ref name="auto1">Steinke, Darcey. "Smashing Their Heads On That Punk Rock". ''Spin''. October 1993.</ref> However, the song's bridge was written several months later, and does contain lyrics that reference the struggles Cobain and his wife, [[Courtney Love]], faced with the media following Nirvana's mainstream success.<ref name="Rough Guide">{{cite book |title=The Rough Guide to Nirvana |last=Gaar |first=Gillian G. |year=2009 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-1-4053-8119-2}}</ref> The song's title and lyrics led to [[MTV]] blocking Nirvana from performing it at the [[1992 MTV Video Music Awards]],<ref>{{cite book |last1=Azerrad |first1=Michael |title=Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana |date=1994 |publisher=Doubleday |isbn=0-385-47199-8 |page=277}}</ref> before it had been released, and also contributed to ''In Utero'' initially not being sold by American [[big-box stores]] [[Walmart]] and [[Kmart]].<ref name="ew.com">{{cite magazine |last1=Gordinier |first1=Jeff |title=Discount stores refuse to shelve Nirvana's latest |url=https://ew.com/article/1994/04/08/discount-stores-refuse-shelve-nirvanas-latest/ |access-date=10 February 2023 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=8 April 1994}}</ref>

"Rape Me" was released as the album's second single in December 1993, packaged as a double [[A-side and B-side|A-side]] with "[[All Apologies]]". It reached number 32 on the [[UK Singles Chart]] and also reached the [[Top 40]] in Belgium and Ireland. It was the band's final single before [[Suicide of Kurt Cobain|Cobain's suicide]] in April 1994.

==Early history==
"Rape Me" was written by Cobain on an acoustic guitar in [[Los Angeles]] in May 1991, around the time the band's second album, ''[[Nevermind]]'', was being mixed.<ref name="Come As You Are: The Story of Nirva">{{cite book |last1=Azerrad |first1=Michael |title=Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana |date=1994 |publisher=Doubleday |isbn=0-385-47199-8 |page=323}}</ref> It was first performed live on June 18, 1991, at [[The Catalyst (nightclub)|The Catalyst]] in [[Santa Cruz, California|Santa Cruz]]. The earliest live versions of the song featured a guitar solo instead of a bridge.<ref name="Gaar19">Gaar, p. 19</ref>

The song's lyrics led to controversy even before it had been officially released. The band had wanted to play it during their appearance at the [[1992 MTV Video Music Awards]], but according to Nirvana manager [[Danny Goldberg]] in his 2019 Cobain biography ''[[Serving the Servant]]'', MTV president [[Judy McGrath]] was worried that the song "would make it seem like MTV was normalizing rape."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Goldberg |first1=Danny |title=Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain |year=2019 |location=New York |publisher=Ecco Press |isbn=978-0062861504 |page=174 |edition=First}}</ref> Goldberg recalled reminding McGrath on the phone of Cobain's "commitment to [[feminism]]" and assured her that "Rape Me" was an anti-rape song, like "[[Polly (Nirvana song)|Polly]]" on ''Nevermind'', but said McGrath "wasn't having it" and wanted the band to play their latest single, "[[Lithium (Nirvana song)|Lithium]]," instead. The band eventually agreed, but Cobain still played a few seconds of "Rape Me" at the start of the performance, which resulted in the live broadcast almost going to commercial.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Azerrad |first1=Michael |title=Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana |date=1994 |publisher=Doubleday |isbn=0-385-47199-8 |pages=276–277}}</ref> In ''Serving the Servant'', Goldberg refuted common reports that the network threatened to fire Amy Finnerty, an MTV employee and friend of the band, or boycott other artists signed to Geffen Records, if Nirvana played "Rape Me", saying that "the MTV people were under a lot of pressure to get good ratings, but they weren't bullies, just noodges."<ref name="Ecco Press">{{cite book |last1=Goldberg |first1=Danny |title=Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain |year=2019 |location=New York |publisher=Ecco Press |isbn=978-0062861504 |page=174|edition=First}}</ref>

"Rape Me" was first recorded in the studio in October 1992, during a two-day demo session with [[Jack Endino]] at [[Reciprocal Recording|Word of Mouth]] in [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]]. Two takes of the song were recorded, one of which was instrumental, the other of which featured lead vocals by Cobain and backing vocals by drummer [[Dave Grohl]]. Cobain was holding his then-infant daughter [[Frances Bean Cobain]] on his lap when he recorded his vocals on the second take, and she can be heard crying on the recording.<ref>Gaar, p. 19–20.</ref> This version of the song was released on the Nirvana rarities box set, ''[[With the Lights Out]]'', in November 2004, and on the compilation album ''[[Sliver: The Best of the Box]]'' in November 2005.

==''In Utero''==
The final studio version of "Rape Me" was recorded in February 1993 by [[Steve Albini]] at [[Pachyderm Studio]] in [[Cannon Falls, Minnesota]], for the band's third and final studio album, ''[[In Utero]]''. The instruments for the song were recorded on February 15.<ref>Gaar, p. 56.</ref> The following day, Cobain completed his vocals for the album during a reported six-hour session.<ref>Gaar, p. 61.</ref>

According to Albini, Cobain's screaming during the song's ending was intentionally recorded so that it "just overwhelms the band and becomes this really uncomfortable presence."<ref>Gaar, p. 57.</ref> However, the album's more abrasive vocals in general were softened in the mastered version.<ref>Gaar, p. 76.</ref>

==Post-''In Utero''==
On September 25, 1993, the band performed the song, along with "[[Heart-Shaped Box]]," on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' at [[NBC Studios (New York City)|NBC Studios]] in [[New York City]]. It was the band's first show with second guitarist [[Pat Smear]]. The song was again performed on television on February 4, 1994 for the show ''Nulle Part Ailleurs'' in [[Paris, France]].

The final live performance of "Rape Me" was at Nirvana's last concert, at Terminal 1 of [[Munich-Riem Airport]] in [[Munich, Germany]] on March 1, 1994.

==Composition and lyrics==

===Music===

The song's instrumental opening bars, which feature Cobain using pick scratching while playing the verse chord progression, has led to frequent comparisons to the guitar riff of the band's 1991 breakthrough single, "[[Smells Like Teen Spirit]]".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hampton |first1=Howard |title=Nirvana: SPIN's Original Album Reviews, Collected |url=https://www.spin.com/2014/04/nirvana-kurt-cobain-spin-album-reviews/ |website=Spin |date=3 April 2014 |access-date=21 December 2020}}</ref> Will Bryant of ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' wrote that "the four-chord riff that drags the song through the motions is an almost direct inversion of the famous 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' riff",<ref>{{cite web|last1=Bryant|first1=Will|title=Nirvana – Nirvana|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/5810-nirvana/|website=Pitchforkmedia|access-date=21 December 2020}}</ref> while Cobain biographer [[Charles R. Cross]] described the song as having "the same catchy soft/loud dynamic as 'Teen Spirit{{' "}}, which "created a perfect Cobain aesthetic – beautiful, haunting and disturbing".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Cross |first1=Charles R. |title=Heavier Than Heaven |date=August 15, 2001 |publisher=Hyperion |location=United States |isbn=0-7868-6505-9}}</ref> "Rape Me" was written after "Smells Like Teen Spirit", but before ''Nevermind'' had been released.<ref name="Come As You Are: The Story of Nirva"/>

===Lyrics===

"Rape Me" is an anti-[[rape]] song, written from the point of view of the victim. As Cobain explained to ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin's]]'' [[Darcey Steinke]] in 1993, "It's like she's saying, 'Rape me, go ahead, rape me, beat me. You'll never kill me. I'll survive this and I'm gonna fucking rape you one of these days and you won't even know it.{{'"}}<ref name="auto1"/> Gillian G. Garr described the song's lyrics as "part submissive invitation, part defiant taunt, a mix that confused and disturbed many listeners", and led to Cobain frequently having to explain the song's meaning.<ref name="auto2">{{cite book |last1=Gaar |first1=Gillian G. |title=In Utero |date=2006 |publisher=Continium |location=United States |isbn=0-8264-1776-0 |page=57}}</ref>

In a 1993 ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' interview, Cobain addressed the song's controversy, saying that he had "gone back and forth between regretting it and trying to defend myself," and that he "was trying to write a song that supported women and dealt with the issue of rape." As he explained to interviewer [[David Fricke]]:

{{Blockquote|"It's not a pretty image. But a woman who is being raped, who is infuriated with the situation . . . it's like 'Go ahead, rape me, just go for it, because you're gonna get it.' I'm a firm believer in karma, and that motherfucker is going to get what he deserves, eventually. That man will be caught, he'll go to jail, and he'll be raped. 'So rape me, do it, get it over with. Because you're gonna get it worse.{{' "}}<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Fricke |first1=David |title=Kurt Cobain, The Rolling Stone Interview: Success Doesn't Suck |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kurt-cobain-the-rolling-stone-interview-success-doesnt-suck-97194/ |access-date=11 October 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=7 January 1994}}</ref>}}

When asked by [[Much (TV channel)|MUCH's]] [[Erica Ehm]] in an August 1993 interview how the band was helping to raise awareness about sexism, Cobain replied, "By writing songs as blunt as 'Rape Me'."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDgP4hN4OA4  |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211222/PDgP4hN4OA4 |archive-date=2021-12-22 |url-status=live|title=Much: Our Last Time w/ Kurt Cobain (1993) |website=[[YouTube]] |date=August 10, 1993 }}{{cbignore}}</ref> He stated that the lyrics were meant to be so direct that no one could misinterpret the song's meaning.<ref>Azerrad, p. 322–23.</ref>

American musician [[Tori Amos]] commented on the song in a 1994 interview with the ''[[NME]]'', saying that she "thought it was very clear what it was about....It's a defiant song. But the scariest thing to a rape victim are the words 'rape me'. When I first heard it I broke out in a cold sweat, but when you get over that you realize he's turning it back on people."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hess |first1=Amanda |title=Date Rape Anthem: Nirvana's "Rape Me" |url=https://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/columns/the-sexist/blog/13118768/date-rape-anthem-nirvanas-rape-me |access-date=30 October 2018 |publisher=Washington City PAper |date=12 March 2010}}</ref> In 1996, Jim Dillon, [[reverend]] of the hoaxical [[Church of Kurt Cobain]], stated that "in essence, the real message [of 'Rape Me'] is one of a Christian theme – treat me the way you want me to treat you".<ref name="Spokesman">{{cite news |date=May 26, 1996 |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1996/may/26/cobain-followers-form-their-own-church-fledgling/ |title=Cobain Followers Form Their Own Church Fledgling Group Hopes To Find Meaning In Late Musician's Tragic Life |work=[[The Spokesman-Review]] |access-date=December 17, 2021}}</ref>

The song has also been interpreted as an attack on the press for its perceived mistreatment of Courtney Love. While most of the song was written before ''Nevermind'' was released, the bridge, which was written later, contains lyrics that address his occasionally contentious relationship with the press.<ref name="Rough Guide"/> As Cobain explained to Nirvana biographer [[Michael Azerrad]], "It was actually about rape ... but now I could definitely use it as an example of my life for the past six months or year, easily."<ref name="Doubleday">{{cite book |last1=Azerrad |first1=Michael |title=Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana |date=October 1993 |publisher=Doubleday |location=U.S. |isbn=0-385-47199-8 |page=323}}</ref> In line with this interpretation, Azerrad suggested that the chorus lyric "I'm not the only one" was Cobain's way of saying that Love and their infant daughter, [[Frances Bean Cobain]], were being hurt along with him by the press and public attention.<ref name="Doubleday"/> According to Azerrad, the bridge lyric "My favorite inside source" was a reference to the manager of an unnamed Seattle band Cobain and Love suspected of being anonymously interviewed for a controversial ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'' profile of the couple published in September 1992.<ref name="Doubleday"/>

==Release==
"Rape Me" was released as a [[A-side and B-side#Double A-side|double A-side]] single with "All Apologies" on December 6, 1993 on CD, cassette, and 7" and 12" vinyl record formats.<ref name="goldmine">Gaar, Gillian G. "Verse Chorus Verse: The Recording History of Nirvana". ''Goldmine''. February 14, 1997.</ref> The single was not released commercially in the United States.<ref name="goldmine" />

The song was relabeled "Waif Me" on the censored [[Walmart]] and [[Kmart (United States)|Kmart]] version of ''In Utero'', released in March 1994. The chain stores had originally refused to carry the album because of the song's title, as well as the fetus collage on the back cover, which was also edited.<ref name="ew.com"/> Cobain had originally wanted to retitle the song "Sexually Assault Me," but decided on the meaningless title "Waif Me," knowing that another four-letter word was required in order to make a quick graphic change.<ref name="Ecco Press"/> The song's uncensored title was listed in the booklet, and the recording remained the same. Cobain defended the band's decision to release a censored version of the album by explaining, "One of the main reasons I signed to a major label was so people would be able to buy our records at Kmart. In some towns, that's the only place kids can buy records."<ref>{{cite book |last1=True |first1=Everett |title=Nirvana: The Biography |date=13 March 2007 |publisher=Da Capo Press |isbn=9781322438757 |page=488}}</ref>

In November 1993, "Rape Me" was voted the third "Most Wanted to be Heard" song by listeners of the [[Hawaii]] Free Radio.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://macpro.freeshell.org/rfh/rfh_chart128.html |title=The Hawaiian Island Music Report |date=November 21, 1993 |access-date=November 10, 2018}}</ref> In Israel, it was voted in at number 15 on the [[Israel Broadcasting Authority|IBA]]'s "Voice of Israel" singles chart.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1of9J-7k3EqEzvgH8mZXqGv5N-oAIC30d/edit?gid=497451199#gid=497451199 |title=Israeli Singles Chart archive |website=google.com |language=he |access-date=August 17, 2024}}</ref>

===Critical reception===

In his ''Rolling Stone'' review of ''In Utero'',  Fricke wrote that {{" '}}Rape Me' opens as a disquieting whisper, Cobain intoning the title verse in a battered croon, which sets you up beautifully to get blind-sided by the explosive hook line."<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Fricke |first1=David |title=In Utero |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/in-utero-248756/ |access-date=13 November 2018 |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=16 September 1993}}</ref> Phil Alexander of ''[[Kerrang!]]'' noted that "Kurt kickstarts Rape Me with a familiar and doubtlessly intended …Teen Spirit shuffle...[and] ripple[s] with Kurt's poignant observations, allowing fleeting glimpses at his anger and frustration without ever resorting to the trite and obvious."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Alexander |first1=Phil |title="This is the sound of absolution": Our original 1993 review of Nirvana's In Utero |url=https://www.kerrang.com/this-is-the-sound-of-absolution-nirvana-in-utero-original-kerrang-review-1993 |access-date=17 January 2023 |work=Kerrang! |date=September 1993}}</ref> David Browne of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' wrote that "the gripping 'Rape Me' opens with the chords of 'Teen Spirit'...and builds into a furious rant with lyrics as dumb as anything on a [[death metal|death-metal]] anthem ("My favorite inside source/I’ll kiss your open sores"). All of this is more articulate than any [[Soundgarden]] lyric, but too often, Cobain just comes off sounding petulant."<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=David |first1=Browne |title=In Utero |url=https://ew.com/article/1993/09/24/utero/ |access-date=10 January 2023 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=24 September 1993}}</ref>

===Criticism===

"Rape Me" has occasionally received criticism for its intentionally blunt handling of sensitive subject matter. John Mulvey of the ''NME'' wrote that "while you can't doubt Cobain's personal political correctness, there's a distinct moral dubiousness about welding the words 'RAPE ME!' to ''In Utero''{{'}}s best sing-along chorus."<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Mulvey |first1=John |title=Nirvana : In Utero |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/reviews-nirvana-7373 |access-date=6 November 2018 |magazine=NME |date=4 September 1993}}</ref> ''Pitchfork's'' Will Bryant wrote that the song, despite its victim-empowering intent, "comes off as a shallow and transparent attempt to court controversy."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Bryant|first1=Will|title=Nirvana – Nirvana|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/5810-nirvana/|website=Pitchforkmedia|access-date=6 November 2018}}</ref>

In 2019, [[Jenna Bush Hager]] revealed that her father, [[George W. Bush]], prior to becoming U.S. President, broke one of her Nirvana CDs due to the lyrics of "a really bad song", implied to be "Rape Me".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Drew Weisholtz |first1=Drew |title=MUSIC Jenna reveals why her father destroyed 1 of the first CDs she ever bought |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/jenna-bush-hager-s-father-president-george-w-bush-broke-t155056 |access-date=21 January 2020 |work=Today |date=May 29, 2019}}</ref>

===Legacy===

In 1999, "Rape Me" was voted number 90 in ''Kerrang!''{{'}}s ''100 Greatest Rock Tracks Ever!''.<ref>[[Kerrang!]] magazine, issue 746, April 17, 1999. (voted by readers).</ref> In 2015, ''Rolling Stone'' placed it at number 31 on their ranking of 102 Nirvana songs, with Julianne Escobedo Shepherd calling it "the closest to an actual [[Bikini Kill]] song that [Cobain] would ever write, using the lyrics as a woman-empowering taunt to show would-be rapists that their victims' spirits would not be tamped."<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Escobedo Shepherd |first1=Julianne |title=No Apologies: All 102 Nirvana Songs Ranked |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/no-apologies-all-102-nirvana-songs-ranked-175683/rape-me-37756/ |access-date=28 October 2018 |issue=8 April 2015 |magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref> In 2019, ''[[The Guardian]]'' ranked it at number 17 on their list of 'Nirvana's 20 greatest songs'.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Petridis |first1=Alexis |title=Nirvana's 20 greatest songs – ranked! |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jun/20/nirvanas-20-greatest-songs-ranked |access-date=25 June 2019 |work=The Guardian |date=20 June 2019}}</ref>

"Rape Me" was re-released on both of Nirvana's greatest hits albums, ''[[Nirvana (Nirvana album)|Nirvana]]'' (2002) and ''[[Icon (Nirvana album)|Icon]]'' (2010).

==Music video==

According to a 1993 ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' article by [[Jim DeRogatis]], Cobain was told that MTV were "squeamish" about a potential "Rape Me" music video, which played a role in the band's decision to release "Heart-Shaped Box" as ''In Utero's'' lead single instead. As DeRogatis wrote, "Rape Me" was "the catchiest [song] on the album; it isn't hard to imagine it becoming a hit – and a [[Madonna]]-size scandal."<ref>{{cite news |last1=DeRogatis |first1=Jim |title=Kurt Cobain at 45 |url=https://www.wbez.org/stories/kurt-cobain-at-45/76a261c9-5661-43a9-9102-720fd4933270 |access-date=22 January 2023 |work=WBEZ |issue=21 February 2012}}</ref>

Ultimately no music video was made for the song, although two treatments were published posthumously in Cobain's ''[[Journals (Cobain)|Journals]]'' in 2002.<ref name="MusicVideo">Gaar, Gillian G. (2006). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=u92Yi61DRpoC&dq=Nirvana+Rape+Me+Video+treatments&pg=PT59 Nirvana's In Utero]'' Bloomsbury Publishing USA. Retrieved August 8, 2016.</ref> They included scenes set in a prison, footage of flowers and seahorses as well as a man being prepared for a [[Gynaecology|gynecological]] exam.<ref name="MusicVideo"/> A 23-page "Rape Me" music video script, listing Jeffery Plansker as director, sold on eBay in January 2003 for $620.<ref>Gaar, p. 95.</ref>

In 1999, the ''Saturday Night Live'' version of "Rape Me" began being aired as a music video on [[MTV2]] to promote the album ''Saturday Night Live: The Musical Performances, Volume 2'', on which it appeared as the opening track.<ref name="SNL">{{cite book |date=October 23, 1999 |title=Billboard – The Clip List |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1999/1999-10-23-Billboard-Page-0092.pdf |publisher=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |page=94 |access-date=July 28, 2018}}</ref> Video of the performance was released on the DVD of the same name.

==Accolades==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:left;"
|-
! scope="col"| Year
! scope="col" style="width:6em;"| Publication
! scope="col" style="width:10em;"| Country
! scope="col"| Accolade
! scope="col"| Rank
|-
! scope="row"| 1998
| style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| ''[[Kerrang!]]''
| style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"| United Kingdom
| ''20 Great Nirvana Songs Picked by the Stars''<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://imgur.com/tT8jwLx |title=The Hit List: 20 Great Nirvana Songs Picked by the Stars |magazine=[[Kerrang!]] |date=July 25, 1998 |issue=709 |page=49 |access-date=July 21, 2019}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| 6
|-
! scope="row"| 1999
| ''100 Greatest Rock Tracks Ever''<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://imgur.com/otmieyK |title=100 Greatest Rock Tracks Ever |quote=As voted for by readers |magazine=[[Kerrang!]] |date=April 17, 1999 |issue=746 |page=25 |access-date=August 25, 2019}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"| 90
|}

==Track listings==
"Rape Me" was released as a [[A-side and B-side#Double A-side|double A-side]] with "[[All Apologies]]".

'''CD single and 12-inch vinyl'''
#A. "All Apologies" – 3:50
#A. "Rape Me" – 2:49
#B. "Moist Vagina" - 3:34 (Previously Unreleased)

'''Cassette and 7-inch vinyl'''
#A. "All Apologies" – 3:50
#A. "Rape Me" – 2:49

==Personnel==
* [[Kurt Cobain]] – vocals, guitar
* [[Krist Novoselic]] – bass guitar
* [[Dave Grohl]] – drums

==Charts==
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+1993–1994 weekly chart performance for "Rape Me"
!align="center"|Chart (1993–1994)
!align="center"|Peak<br>position
|-
{{single chart|Flanders|43|artist=Nirvana|song=All Apologies / Rape Me|rowheader=true}}
|-
!scope="row"| Belgium ([[Radio 2 (Belgium)#Charts|VRT Top 30]] Flanders)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://radio2.be/top-30/1994/02/05|title=Radio2 top 30: 5 February 1994|publisher=[[Radio 2 (Belgium)|Radio 2]]|access-date=March 5, 2023|language=nl|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321203628/http://www.radio2.be/top-30/1994/02/05|archive-date=March 21, 2016}}</ref>
|align="center"| 30
|-
!scope="row"| [[European Hot 100 Singles]] (''[[Music & Media]]'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=January 15, 1994 |title=Eurochart Hot 100 Singles |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Media-IDX/IDX/90s/94/MM-1994-01-15-OCR-Page-0020.pdf |magazine=[[Music & Media]] |page=15 |access-date=July 28, 2018}}</ref>
|align="center"| 77
|-
!scope="row"| Iberian Airplay (''[[Music & Media]]'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=December 11, 1993 |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Media-IDX/IDX/90s/93/MM-1993-12-11-OCR-Page-0035.pdf |title=Regional Airplay - Southwest (Iberia) |magazine=[[Music & Media]] |page=35 |access-date=March 19, 2023 |quote=Spain, Portugal}}</ref>
|align="center"| 15
|-
{{single chart|Ireland2|20|artist=Nirvana|song=All Apologies/Rape Me|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{single chart|UKsinglesbyname|32|artist=Nirvana|rowheader=true}}
|-
!scope="row"| [[UK Rock & Metal Singles and Albums Charts|UK Rock & Metal Singles]] ([[Chart Information Network|CIN]])<ref>{{cite news |date=February 5, 1994 |title=Heavy Rock Singles 20 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Hit-Music/1994/Hit-Music-1994-02-05.pdf |work=[[Hit Music]] |agency=[[Chart Information Network|CIN]], [[Gallup (company)|Gallup]] |page=18 |access-date=June 17, 2023 |quote=Previous chart weeks do not accredit "Rape Me" as the double a-side in this chart}}</ref>
|align="center"|14
|-
!scope="row"| US Rock Tracks National Airplay (''[[Radio & Records]]'')<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Rock Tracks National Airplay |url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-RandR-IDX/IDX/90s/94/RR-1994-06-10-OCR-Page-0066.pdf#search=%22nirvana%20rape%22 |magazine=[[Radio & Records]] |publisher=Radio & Records |date=June 10, 1994 |page=66 |access-date=February 20, 2019}}</ref>
|align="center"|57
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+1995–1996 weekly chart performance for "Rape Me"
!Chart (1995–1996)
!Peak<br />position
|-
!scope="row"|Denmark ([[Tracklisten]])<ref>{{cite magazine |date=January 20, 1996 |title=Top National Sellers|url=https://americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Media-IDX/IDX/90s/96/MM-1996-01-20-OCR-Page-0015.pdf#search=%22denmark%20nirvana%20single%20boxset%20january%201996%22|magazine=[[Music & Media]]| page=15 |access-date=June 2, 2019}}</ref><br /><small>''Charted on the singles chart as part of the [[Singles (Nirvana box set)|Singles]] box set''</small>
| style="text-align:center;"|5
|-
!scope="row"| [[European Hot 100 Singles]] ([[Music & Media]])<ref>{{cite magazine |date=December 9, 1995 |title=Eurochart Hot 100 Singles |url=https://americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Media-IDX/IDX/90s/95/MM-1995-12-09-OCR-Page-0012.pdf#search=%22eurochart%20hot%20100%20singles%20december%209%201995%22|magazine=[[Music & Media]]| page=12 |access-date=June 2, 2019}}</ref><br /><small>''Charted on the singles chart as part of the [[Singles (Nirvana box set)|Singles]] box set''</small>
| style="text-align:center;"| 55
|-
{{single chart|France|17|artist=Nirvana|song=Singles|rowheader=true|access-date=June 2, 2019|note=Charted on the singles chart as part of the [[Singles (Nirvana box set)|Singles]] box set}}
|}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "Rape Me"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=1993|certyear=2024|access-date=May 21, 2024}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=Nirvana|title=Rape Me|award=Gold|certyear=2023|relyear=1993|access-date=December 18, 2024|source=radioscope}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Nirvana|title=Rape Me|award=Silver|relyear=2004|certyear=2023|id=19364-602-1|access-date=October 13, 2023|note=Sales since 2004}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|award=Platinum|type=single|artist=Nirvana|title=Rape Me|certyear=2024|access-date=December 9, 2024}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|noshipments=true|streaming=true}}

==Other releases==

*An acoustic demo of the song, recorded on a boombox in 1991 and featuring Cobain on vocals and acoustic guitar, appeared on the Nirvana box set, ''[[With the Lights Out]]'', released in November 2004. The same version was re-released on the compilation album ''[[Sliver: The Best of the Box]]'' in November 2005.
*A live version, recorded at the [[Paramount Theatre (Seattle, Washington)|Paramount Theatre]] in Seattle on October 31, 1991, appeared on the live video ''[[Live at the Paramount (video)|Live at the Paramount]]'', released in September 2011. Cobain introduced the song as being about "hairy, sweaty, macho redneck men. Who rape."<ref>{{cite book |last=Gaar, Gillian G |year=2009 |title=The Rough Guide to Nirvana |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |isbn=978-1-85828-945-8}}</ref>
*A brief audio clip of the song's [[Outro (music)|outro]], from its performance at the  [[Seattle Center Coliseum]] in Seattle on September 11, 1992, featured in a collage of live footage in the live video, ''[[Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!]]'', released in November 1994.<ref>Nirvana - ''Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!'' - [[Geffen Records|Geffen]] and [[DGC Records|DGC]]: DGCV-39541: [[Closing credits]].</ref>
*A 2013 Albini remix of the studio version was released on the 20th anniversary "Deluxe" and "Super Deluxe" versions of ''In Utero'' in September 2013.
*A live version, from the band's MTV-recorded performance at [[Central Waterfront, Seattle|Pier 48]] in Seattle on December 13, 1993, appeared on the ''[[Live and Loud (Nirvana video album)|Live and Loud]]'' DVD, released in September 2013. "Rape Me" was among the songs on an edited version of the concert that first aired on MTV on December 31, 1993. The ''Live and Loud'' DVD also featured rehearsal footage of the song from the band's soundcheck.
*The version recorded for  ''Nulle Part Ailleurs'' in Paris on February 4, 1994 appeared as bonus material on the ''Live and Loud'' DVD.
*The 30th anniversary "Super Deluxe" reissue of ''In Utero'', released in October 2023, featured two additional live versions of the song, from the band's concerts the [[Great Western Forum]] in [[Inglewood, California]] on December 30, 1993, and at the [[Mercer Arena|Seattle Center Arena]] in Seattle on January 7, 1994.

==In popular culture==

"Rape Me" was parodied by American animated sitcom ''[[The Simpsons]]'' in the January 2008 episode, "[[That '90s Show (The Simpsons)|That '90s Show]]", which featured the song "Shave Me" being performed by Sadgasm, a grunge band fronted by lead character [[Homer Simpson]], in the early 1990s. It also featured "Shave Me" later being parodied by guest star [["Weird Al" Yankovic]] as "Brain Freeze".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceegjER8cgM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211222/ceegjER8cgM |archive-date=2021-12-22 |url-status=live|title=Sadgasm – "Shave Me" |publisher=[[YouTube]]|access-date=2018-09-12|work=Video fragment (19 seconds) from an Episode of "The Simpsons"|date=8 January 2015 }}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "[[Hummels & Heroin]]", [[Eric Cartman|Cartman]], [[Kenny McCormick|Kenny]], [[Kyle Broflovski|Kyle]], and [[Butters Stotch|Butters]] perform a [[Barbershop Quartet]] cover of "Rape Me" for a retirement home.<ref>{{cite news |title=Watch the 'South Park' Kids Sing Nirvana's 'Rape Me' + Green Day's 'When I Come Around' in New Episode Read More: Watch 'South Park' Kids Sing Nirvana's 'Rape Me' in New Episode |url= https://loudwire.com/south-park-nirvana-rape-me-green-day-when-i-come-around/ |work=Loudwire}}</ref>

In October 2021, the American drama ''[[Succession (TV series)|Succession]]'' used "Rape Me" in the episode "[[The Disruption (Succession)|The Disruption]]" when Kendall ordered his assistants to play the song on the speakers to counter Shiv addressing the sexual assault allegations towards Waystar Royco.<ref>{{cite news |last=Carter |first=Emily |date=November 2, 2021 |url=https://www.kerrang.com/the-news/nirvanas-rape-me-played-in-key-scene-in-latest-episode-of-succession/ |title=Nirvana's Rape Me played in key scene in latest episode of Succession |work=[[Kerrang!]] |access-date=November 4, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Aswad |first=Jem |date=November 3, 2021 |url=https://www.aol.com/entertainment/courtney-love-says-kurt-cobain-164820042.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9uZXdzLmdvb2dsZS5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAACqzS8o0JKYplJ4AcUA2JZWt_J4eoaXgB9Grx3WlgPYxBOzh7StvVycixf3qlqRUekz2Wqb_RUcxoSvgN2CM61X4Yjrsb9cdFZiwRtzZCWMWzBPf3tTTn8NJdTAe1FGlCYhGX-QPZiELwoH1Yq0SopNO9IqFp7AGOuOEpie6A8Lc |title=Courtney Love Says Kurt Cobain Would Be 'Proud' of How 'Succession' Used Nirvana's 'Rape Me' |work=[[AOL]] |access-date=November 4, 2021}}</ref> Love praised the show's use of the song in an [[Instagram]] post, saying that she had "never been so proud of approving one of Kurt's songs" and that it was "as if they truly understood" the song's meaning.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Deville |first1=Chris |title=Courtney Love Comments On Succession's Use Of Nirvana's "Rape Me" |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2166182/courtney-love-succession-nirvana-rape-me-scene/news/ |access-date=6 November 2021 |work=Stereogum |date=3 November 2021}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* Azerrad, Michael. ''Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana''. Doubleday, 1994. {{ISBN|0-385-47199-8}}.
* Cross, Charles. ''Heavier Than Heaven''. Hyperion, 2001. {{ISBN|0-7868-6505-9}}.
* Gaar, Gillian G. ''In Utero''. Continuum, 2006. {{ISBN|0-8264-1776-0}}.

==External links==
{{Wikiquote|In Utero (album)}}

{{Nirvana (band)}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1993 songs]]
[[Category:1993 singles]]
[[Category:Nirvana (band) songs]]
[[Category:Double A-side singles]]
[[Category:Songs written by Kurt Cobain]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Steve Albini]]
[[Category:Songs about sexual assault]]
[[Category:Obscenity controversies in music]]
[[Category:DGC Records singles]]

[[it:All Apologies/Rape Me#Rape Me]]