Post Malone’s all-Nirvana charity concert earns nearly $3 million, Krist Novoselic and Courtney Love's approval

When Post Malone announced that he’d be doing a live-streamed concert of all Nirvana songs this weekend, many skeptics understandably cried blasphemy, or at least doubted that the rap-rocker would be able to pull it off. Even Post, as he stood in front of his wet bar in his messy Utah home, admitted that this ambitious one-off event — supposedly his first-ever live performance sans Auto-Tune — was a major risk. "Everyone knows I can't sing for s***, but I'm trying to sing my heart out for y'all tonight,” he promised.

And that he did. The 80-minute, 15-song, surprisingly faithful all-Nirvana concert, which featured Blink-182’s Travis Barker on socially distanced drums, was a smashing success by all standards. It not only raised a whopping $2.8 million (and counting) for United Nations Foundation’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund in less than 24 hours, and was well-received by fans (as of this writing, it has racked up more than 4 million views), but it was actually cheered on by none other than Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, who enthusiastically live-tweeted throughout.

Watch the full concert below (contains some strong language):

"@PostMalone and crew are killing it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So proud of @PostMalone and crew. Everyone so good, so talented. I am moved!!!!! I don't think these fellows can play any better. They are on fire!!!!" Novoselic raved in a series of excited tweets.

Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain’s widow, Courtney Love, also approved. Earlier in the week, she’d written on Instagram, “Thank you mighty kc for writing these songs with your elegant and monkeyed hands that the kids still want to sing and play and hear and use to fight and hunt and cure and heal and eradicate this f***ing covid19 virus. I approve the usage. Good luck mr malone.”

After the live-stream, Love posted again, “GOOSEBUMPS! F*** YES. Go have a margarita @postmalone. Nothing but love from here. Congratulations.”

Love also added the cheeky hashtag “#stylingbyme,” a reference to Malone and his multi-instrumentalist bandmate Brian Lee’s baggy floral housedresses, which were similar to the frocks Cobain often rocked onstage in the ‘90s.

Post Malone, a longtime Nirvana fanatic, has a history of championing music from the ‘80s and ‘90s. Last year, he invited invited another one of favorite ‘90s bands, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, to perform with him at the Grammy Awards, and he also helped Ozzy Osbourne return to the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time in 30 years (a record for the longest top 10 hiatus), when the 71-year-old metal legend sang on his single “Take What You Want.” And of course, Post is always gushing about his adoration for ‘90s country superstar Shania Twain.

Malone recently told Yahoo Entertainment that he’d like to do a country album and also collaborate with Timbaland, Danger Mouse, CeeLo Green, and Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold. But viewers of Post Malone’s triumphant Nirvana tribute, during which he teased that he has a new album in the works, probably hope that he’ll go in a grunge direction — and maybe even collaborate with Novoselic.

Post Malone’s live-stream viewers were encouraged to give via YouTube's blue donation button to the UN’s Foundation's COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization, with Google matching all donations at a 2:1 rate up to $5 million.

Post’s full setlist of Nirvana "hits and fan favorites” — which did not include the obvious “Smells Like Teen Spirit” — was:

Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle

Drain You

Come As You Are

Lounge Act

School

Heart-Shaped Box

Something in the Way

About a Girl

Stay Away

Lithium

Breed

On a Plain

Very Ape

Territorial Pissings

In Bloom

Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:

• Nirvana manager Danny Goldberg recalls Kurt Cobain's final intervention: 'Is there something I could've done?’

• Post Malone talks Shania Twain crush, country music aspirations, and working with Ozzy

• Dave Grohl’s 13-year-old daughter Violet fills in for Kurt Cobain at Nirvana-reunion charity gig

• Blink-182’s Travis Barker talks ‘second chance at life,' health scares: 'As long as I'm not dead, I'm going to tour'

• Courtney Love and Hole's 'Live Through This,' 25 years later: 'Whatever happens, you made a great album'

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