Courtney Love Gave Jay-Z Permission To Use Nirvana Lyrics

Kurt Cobain's widow Coutrney Love has given Jay-Z permission to use the former Nirvana frontman's lyrics in his upcoming Magna Carta album.

Love has owned the Nirvana catalogue since Cobain's death in 1994 and in a recent interview with Huffington Post she said she'd given the rapper to use lyrics from the iconic Smells Like Teen Spirit.

“I'm letting Jay-Z use lyrics,” she said, “[their daughter] Francis would freak [if she knew]. Jay-Z's huge and we're friends. I mean we're not besties or anything…”

She added, “They [used it] without asking, which is kind of nervy but the business side has been taken care of so it's fine.”

Jay-Z's Magna Carta will be released in July and mobile phone company Samsung has struck a deal with the rapper that will allow users to access to album for free as soon as its released. From next week Samsung Galaxy Smartphone users will be able to download an app which will release the album at 12.01am Thursday 4 July American time – three days before its official release.

The deal meant that essentially Samsung pre-purchased one million copies of the record and charts around the world have been debating whether the sales would count for the charts.

American chart Billboard have confirmed to Reuters that they will not count the 'sales' as the record is essentially being given away to users for free, which doesn't count under the charts rules. It is expected that Magna Carta will debut at number one regardless, with sales predicted to be in the range of 400,000 and 450,000 units.

The same is true for the UK, where a spokesperson for the UK Official Charts told NME, “Music which consumers receive free of charge, either as physical releases or downloads, have never counted towards the Official Charts and this release will be no different. Legitimate purchases of Jay-Z's album will count, however, as usual.”

It is believed that the same will be true for the Australian ARIA Charts.