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'Seattle son' Chris Cornell immortalized outside MoPOP

Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell will forever live outside of Seattle's music museum, MoPOP, as a life-size statue.

The new piece was unveiled Sunday by his children. The bronze-likeness was commissioned and donated to the museum by Cornell's wife, Vicky Cornell.

"As Seattle’s son, he paved the way for other artists and drew the eyes of the world to Seattle," Vicky Cornell said. "He was the voice of a generation and an artist that continues to draw us together forever.”

caption: Seattle-based musician Jesse James Kaine described Cornell as a mentor.
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Seattle-based musician Jesse James Kaine described Cornell as a mentor.
KUOW PHOTO/ Casey Martin

Members of Soundgarden were on hand for the unveiling as well as hundreds of fans.

Nick Lomangino came from New York just for the unveiling. "Well deserved and overdue. You know, next it needs to be something in the Hall of Fame for him. Because they created a genre of music that without them wouldn’t exist," he said.

The statue will now stand outside MoPOP’s south entrance facing Fifth Avenue North. 

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