Songs & Lyrics
Hurt
“Hurt” appears on The Downward Spiral (1994) and has remained in Nine Inch Nails setlists from the Further Down the Spiral tour to the present.
- Record type
- Lyrics available
- Classification
- Official NIN composition
- First record
- Halo 08 · The Downward Spiral
- Known versions
- 11
Song details
About This Song
Available on five Halo releases in 11 titled versions.
- Classification
- Official NIN composition
- First documented release
- Halo 08 · The Downward Spiral
- Release date
- March 8, 1994
- Track position
- 14
- Running time
- 6:13
- Tempo
- 80 BPM
- Known versions
- 11
Track Credits
- Production and Mix
- Trent Reznor
- Drums
- Chris Vrenna
Live History
- Performance span
- Further Down The Spiral Tour through present
- Live debut
- August 27, 1994 · Rochester, NY
Versions
- Hurt
- Hurt (Album Version) Clean
- Hurt (Radio Edit)
- Hurt (Instrumental)
- Hurt (Quiet)
- Hurt (Live)
- Hurt (with David Bowie)
- Hurt (And All That Could Have Been)
- Hurt (ReAct Now version)
- Hurt (Beside You In Time)
- Hurt (Bridge School Benefit)
Sources: NIN Wiki — Hurt (song), revision 68890 (reviewed September 28, 2026). NIN Wiki song record
Words
Lyrics
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything
What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
Goes away in the end
You could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
I wear this crown of shit
Upon my liar's chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair
Beneath the stains of time
The feeling disappears
You are someone else
I am still right here
What have I become?
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
Goes away in the end
You could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt
If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way
The feelings disappear
Lyrics reproduced with permission for non-profit educational use.
Where it appears