Starfuckers, Inc.
Nine Inch Nails song

"Starfuckers, Inc." (known as "Starsuckers, Inc." in its censored form) is a song by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails from their third studio album The Fragile. Although the song does not have an official halo (the numbering system used by Nine Inch Nails for each release), an edited single was distributed with exclusive radio edits and a video for the song was produced.
Background
Written by Trent Reznor and Charlie Clouser, "Starfuckers, Inc." is one of the heaviest songs on The Fragile. The chorus is built on heavy metal guitars and choruses shouted by a crowd. The verses feature breakbeats, deep bass hits, and glitchy vocals. The outro introduces more synthesizers, distortion, and sound effects.
"Starfuckers, Inc." deals with the self-involved vanity and shallow commercialization of fame. The song directly references "You're So Vain", Carly Simon's ode to a self-absorbed lover, by quoting the chorus:
You're so vainI bet you think this song is about youDon't you?
These lyrics were changed for the video version of "Starsuckers, Inc." to:
OverplayedAnd soon you'll make us forget about youWon't you?
The lyrics are speculated to be directed towards Marilyn Manson and Courtney Love.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Starfuckers, Inc.” is nine Inch Nails song. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Starfuckers, Nine and Inch, not as a finished interpretation.
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Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q788587. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Starfuckers, Inc.” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.