Janis Joplin

  1. Janis Joplin drove a famous Porsche painted with psychedelic art. Sadly, fans constantly stole the car because it was so recognizable, but she always got it back.
  2. Her final recording was a birthday song for John Lennon. She recorded “Happy Trails” for the Beatle just days before she passed away.
  3. She famously hit Jim Morrison over the head with a bottle. The Doors singer annoyed her at a party. Consequently, she knocked him out cold.
  4. The University of Texas voted her “Ugliest Man on Campus.” Cruelly, the fraternities bullied her with this title. This pain pushed her to leave Texas for California.
  5. Janis Joplin had a wrist tattoo before they were popular. She got a small florentine bracelet design on her left wrist. Thus, she became a trendsetter for women with ink.
  6. Southern Comfort gave her a fur coat as a thank you. She drank so much of their liquor in public that the company rewarded her for the free advertising.
  7. She left $2,500 in her will specifically for a funeral party. She wanted her friends to have a “blast” after she died. Therefore, they drank and celebrated her life.
  8. She died just sixteen days after Jimi Hendrix. Tragically, the music world lost two major icons within a single month in 1970.
  1. She recorded the song “Mercedes Benz” in one take. Remarkably, she beat out the rhythm on the studio counter and sang it acapella just three days before her death.
  2. Her ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean. Her family wanted to ensure that fans could not turn her grave into a shrine.
  3. Janis Joplin got engaged to a man she met in Brazil. However, he eventually ended the relationship because of her drug use and chaotic lifestyle.
  4. Leonard Cohen wrote “Chelsea Hotel No. 2” about her. He admitted years later that the song described a brief romantic encounter they shared in New York.
  5. She gained fame at the Monterey Pop Festival. Her performance filmed there left the audience stunned. Specifically, “Ball and Chain” became legendary overnight.
  6. She formed her own band called the Kozmic Blues Band. She left Big Brother and the Holding Company because she wanted more creative control over her sound.
  7. She saved her sister from a house fire when they were kids. Instinctively, she pulled her younger sibling to safety before the flames spread.

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