Almost every rock star smokes, and you could easily notice it even when they’re interviewed. Paul McCartney and the other Beatles smoke. Kurt Cobain is commonly seen smoking during his interviews. You could frequently see Slash from Guns ‘n Roses holding a lit cigarette in his lips while performing in their videos and live concerts. Scott Weiland from Velvet Revolver/Stone Temple Pilots could easily be seen smoking wherever he wants. And all of them are seen as being ‘cool’ by a lot of their fans, most of which are youngsters.

I think there has been a common notion that if you are a rock star, you should be smoking a cigarette, and only then will fans look up to you being a cool celebrity that they’ idolize for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately, as you grow, seeing your idols smoking maybe a little disappointing at some point.

I never smoked just to look cool. I actually started smoking due to curiosity, which became an addiction, as with most smokers nowadays. However, some still associate cigarette smoking with being cool, like on among my friends, but luckily, he has the guts to resist smoking even though he constantly holds an unlit cigarette in his lips that he got from one of use when we’re hanging out.

For me, the really cool ones are the rock stars who have already stopped smoking and preferred using electronic cigarettes instead. There is one that I know of, although not personally, but I idolized him because he stopped his habit with the great help of his children, who also apparently strongly suggested that he use electronic cigarettes.

Until today, that famous celebrity still brings some small performances in different stages, large and small. But now, instead of smoking real cigarettes while singing with his distinctive voice and strumming his old school electric guitar, he’d use his electronic cigarette. One time, he was even offered a cigarette by a fan, but he refused and showed that he’s already using electronic cigarettes for a healthier living, which for me was way cooler than rocking vocalists and shredding guitarists that lit up cigarettes during a concert.

Also check out my other post (http://www.thoughts.com/aiyeenpark143/) on cigarettes.