“Pearls and swine bereft of me
Long and weary my road has been
I was lost in the cities, alone in the hills
No sorrow or pity for leaving, I feel, yeah”
Audioslave – I Am The Highway
We’re back, and sooner than expected. You know how it is, sometimes the ideas come in waves, and everything just works out. Other times, I’m not that lucky (pun not intended). So far March has been productive in terms of photography and writing. We’ll see how long it lasts. I was sitting here listening to my never-ending playlist on Spotify when Audioslave came on. Now, anyone who knows me knows that I love Chris Cornell (literally anything he’s done.) And the song? I Am The Highway.
There were a lot of ways I could have gone with the shot to fit with the song, but this one just felt right. CKEY Pose’s new Chase series pose set at this month’s round of The Men’s Dept gave me the perfect setup. I mean, come on, it comes with the motorcycle, and we’re all about PBR over here now. The idea of a biker stopping at a diner in the middle of the desert somewhere just worked. And, of course, I’ll take any excuse to tie into some Sons Of Anarchy vibes whenever possible. Yes, I know minimal SAMCRO vibes, but if you’ve seen the show before you understand what I mean.
Getting back to the song and image, I believe there’s a certain kind of person who doesn’t stay put. Not because they’re lost. Not because they’re running. But because they are the road. They don’t belong to anyone, they don’t settle, and they sure as hell don’t ask permission. Looking at this scene, I saw that kind of soul, leather, tattoos, a bike that’s seen more miles than most people will in a lifetime. The diner behind? Just a pit stop. The road? That’s home. If there’s one song that was written for people like this, it’s I Am The Highway.
This isn’t a song about escaping. It’s a song about refusing to be owned. “I am not your rolling wheels – I am the highway.” Chris Cornell didn’t just sing those words, he truly lived them. His voice, his music, his entire existence was about the ones who never quite fit in, the ones who felt too much, the ones who carried something inside them that the world would never fully understand. That’s the thing about some people, they leave, not because they don’t care, but because they can’t stay.
Chris Cornell wasn’t just another frontman. He was one of the greatest voices to ever grace rock music. His range was insane, his delivery was haunting, and everything he sang felt like it came from somewhere deep and painful. He wasn’t just making noise, he was ripping open old wounds and letting the world see what was inside. Beginning with Soundgarden, where he helped shape grunge alongside Nirvana and Pearl Jam, to Temple Of The Dog, to his solo albums, to Audioslave, where he reinvented himself yet again, Chris never stayed in one place. He was always pushing forward, always creating, always searching.
There was always something heavy in his voice. Like he was carrying the weight of every road he’d traveled, every person he’d lost, every dark thought he couldn’t outrun. If there was one person who understood that, it was Chester Bennington. Chris and Chester weren’t just two rock stars who crossed paths. They were kindred spirits, bonded by the kind of pain that never really goes away. Chester grew up idolizing Chris. He studied his voice, modeled his delivery after him, and eventually got the chance to share the stage with him. But when they met, it was more than just respect, it was an instant, unshakable friendship.
They toured together, sang together, and leaned on each other. When Audioslave wasn’t touring, you could find Cornell onstage with Linkin Park (as you can see above). When Chester sang Hunger Strike with Chris, it was like their voices were meant to be together, two souls who understood each other in ways most people never could. Then, suddenly, Chris was gone. May 18, 2017. Suicide. Chester was devastated. I think most people into music were. Even if you aren’t sure, you probably know a song Chris sang or a band he was a part of. Chester delivered a gut-wrenching performance of Hallelujah at Chris’s funeral, barely able to make it through the song. You can listen to that below, it’s a live recording so quality is what it is, but I felt it worthy of being included.
Two months later, on what would have been Chris’s birthday (July 20, 2017), Chester took his own life. Two voices, gone. Two friends, gone. Two men who carried the weight of the world, who tried to outrun the darkness, who couldn’t. 2017 was a rough year losing two larger-than-life voices of rock. I’ll never forget hearing the news about Chris, and then hearing it again when Chester died. Now I Am the Highway means something even deeper. Chris wrote it as a song about moving forward, about not being someone’s destination but being the journey itself. But now, it almost feels like a farewell. A song for the ones who leave too soon, the ones who were never meant to stay in one place, the ones who carry too much.
This photo isn’t just a guy taking a break outside a diner. This is someone who knows, who’s seen things, who’s lost people, who understands that the only thing that never lets him down is the road. The neon lights, the employees inside, the cars parked in the background, even that truck way off in the distance, it’s all temporary. The only thing that’s real is the next ride. The wind in your face. The hum of an engine underneath you. The feeling of going somewhere. Even if you don’t know where just yet. I’m not a biker so I can’t relate completely, but I do enjoy a destinationless drive with my favorite music and my thoughts.
Some people aren’t meant to stay. Chris wasn’t. Chester wasn’t. So many others as well, and I don’t just mean famous people. We’ve all lost. Some souls burn too bright, and the universe doesn’t know what to do with them. But their voices don’t die. They live on in the wind, in the night, in the spaces between notes. For the ones who keep moving, who refuse to be held down, who know that freedom isn’t a place but a feeling, this song will always be a jam. Because some people are the highway. Credits for everything can be found below as always.
“Friends and liars don’t wait for me
‘Cause I’ll get on all by myself
I put millions of miles under my heels
And still too close to you, I feel, yeah”
Audioslave – I Am The Highway
Credits:
Head: LeLUTKA.Head.NOA.4.0 ~ Jaden Nova
Head Applier: VELOUR: OMAR Skin for Evo X (TAN-NB) ~ Kiria Mama
Hair: Stealthic – Haunting ~ Stealthic Resident
Hairbase: LeLUTKA.EvoX.Hairbase.044 (BOM) ~ Jaden Nova (Comes with the LeLUTKA NOA Head)
Eyes: Avi-Glam. Prism Eyes – Pack 2 ~ Eye Daddy
Ears: ^^Swallow^^ Gauged S Ears ~ Luciayes Magic
Ear Tattoo: RichB. Ears Tattoo #08 ~ Salvy Hexem
Beard: [MAGNIFICENT] Ducky Skunk Beard & Stache – LeBarbier Alpha
Beard Layer: [MR] Jimmi Facial Hair for EvoX Heads Style 1 ~ Daniel Whiskers
Body: [LEGACY] Athletic Edition (1.7.1) ~ MeshBody Resident
Skin: VELOUR: PICASSO HOMME Skin for Legacy (FIT/TAN) Picasso Neck ~ Kiria Mama
Hand BOM: K.O.K.O.S SHOP – SEXI MAN HANDS-BOM ALL BODY. ~ Aleric Dallas
Nails: Pare.Cure Mesh Nails Both Hands [Short] – Legacy ~ Flazedo Resident
Tattoo: Boscato Vigor Upper Body Tattoo MEDIUM – Boston Blaisdale
Vest: AVEC TOI – Loki Vest ~ Klet Absinthe
Pants: TonkTastic – ‘Tomcat’ Blue Denim ~ Tonk Tomcat
Rings/Bracelets: *RE* Atreides Bracelet & Rings ~ Crashnoww Resident
Necklace: RAWR! Committed Necklace Legacy ~ Circe Boucher
Watch: [Deadwool] “Petite tuile” watch ~ Masa Plympton
Earrings: = DAE = SXD1 ~ Naomi Darkheart
Pose: CKEY Poses – Chase series ~ Clarisa Congrejo ~ NEW @ The Mens Dept (Mar 5-Mar 31)
Backdrop 1: MINIMAL – Red Rocks Scene ~ MINIMALgroup Resident
Backdrop 2: TROPIX // Motel Vacancy BackDrop 01 – Day ~ IgorAlmeida Blackbart
Burger Stop: DRD – Burger Pit Stop – Food stand ~ Deathrowdesigns Resident
Fuel Tank: [sau] Fuel tank ~ NiR McBride
Red Car: [SURPLUS MOTORS] Fidelis v7.0 II ~ Jules Catlyn
Yellow Car: [SURPLUS MOTORS] Bulldog v7.0 II ~ Jules Catlyn
Truck: [777] Hauler – White ~ jamesnguyen94 Resident
Wild Grass: Skye Wild Grass ~ Alex Bader
Cactus: FNY Designs – Wild Cactus ~ bg5 Slade