• Artist: Pearl Jam
• Album: Ten (1991)
• Released as a single: 1992
• Writers: Eddie Vedder (lyrics), Jeff Ament (music)
• Genre: Grunge / Alternative Rock
Inspiration and Real Story
• The song was inspired by a real event: in January 1991, a 15-year-old boy named Jeremy Delle shot himself in front of his classmates in Richardson, Texas.
• Eddie Vedder read about the tragedy in a newspaper and was deeply affected.
• He also drew on a personal memory of a boy he knew in school who had a similar sense of isolation and rage.
• The result is a fictionalized version of Jeremy's story, combining real events with Vedder’s own emotional experiences.
Themes and Lyric Meaning
• The song explores alienation, bullying, neglect, and emotional silence.
• "At home, drawing pictures" introduces Jeremy as a lonely, creative boy.
• "Daddy didn’t give affection" suggests an emotionally abusive or absent parent.
• The line "Seemed a harmless little fxck" shows how people often overlook or misunderstand troubled kids.
• "Jeremy spoke in class today" is a haunting metaphor for a final, violent act that forces others to pay attention.
Music Video
• Directed by Mark Pellington, the video visually amplifies the song’s themes of despair and violence.
• The original cut ends with Jeremy putting a gun in his mouth—this was censored by MTV, leading to confusion about the song’s meaning.
• The uncut version was officially re-released in 2020 to restore the intended message.
Cultural Impact
• “Jeremy” became one of the most talked-about songs of the 90s, raising awareness about teen suicide, school violence, and mental health.
• It won four MTV Video Music Awards in 1993.
• Eddie Vedder has since said that performing the song live is emotionally difficult due to the heavy subject matter.
• The song remains a powerful warning about ignoring emotional distress, especially in young people.