Kris Kristofferson (1936–2024) was a Rhodes Scholar, a Golden Gloves boxer, and a singer-songwriter whose gravel-voiced lyrics helped shape the soul of American country music. Born in Brownsville, Texas, he studied literature at Oxford before chasing songs through Nashville.

He famously flew helicopters by day and wrote music by night. His breakout hit, Me and Bobby McGee, immortalized by Janis Joplin, became an anthem of longing and freedom. Other hits—For The Good Times, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Help Me Make It Through The Night—earned him accolades and enduring reverence.

As an actor, he brought grit and honesty to over 40 films, from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore to A Star Is Born. Off-screen, his reflections were as poetic as his songs: “As soon as you learn to never give up, you have to learn the power and wisdom of unconditional surrender.”

In his later years, Kristofferson lived quietly in Maui, continuing to write music drawn from his heart. “That’s where the stuff you feel in your heart is expressed,” he said. “It’s the closest thing to your soul.”

He lived fully, laughed freely, and loved deeply. And in doing so, he reminded us what matters most in the end.