Wolfgang Van Halen has seen the highest highs and the lowest lows since the death of his father, but he's persevered with some help from his family... and from Barbie.
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00:00Wolfgang Van Halen has seen the highest highs and the lowest lows since the death of his
00:04father, but he's persevered with some help from his family, and from Barbie.
00:08When Eddie Van Halen passed away in 2020, tributes poured in from around the world,
00:12but nobody had more to say than his son, Wolfgang Van Halen.
00:15In 2021, Wolfgang opened up to People magazine about how he was affected by Eddie's death,
00:19referring to it as really tough.
00:21He said,
00:22"'What really helps me keep going is my dad.
00:24Because if I just gave up and stopped and crawled in a hole, which I feel like doing
00:27every day, I know he'd be really pissed off at me.
00:29He's the only thing that keeps me going.'"
00:31Being Eddie Van Halen's son hasn't always been easy, though.
00:33In 2023, Wolfgang told Classic Rock that even though he's proud to be a Van Halen, he's
00:38often seen as, quote, "'just an extension of the name.'"
00:40He also revealed that he has been dealing with anxiety and depression since the early
00:442000s, and that he's still dealing with trust issues from a number of traumatic experiences,
00:49including his father's drug addiction.
00:51Wolfgang revealed that he felt particularly anxious playing his first show with his solo
00:54band, Mammoth WVH, in 2021.
00:56"'I was sitting there in the little dressing room going, I don't know if I can do this.
01:00I've found that the time that I'm most unable to control my anxiety is the first time I'm
01:04doing something, and that was a really, really, really big first."
01:07"'My dad would be upset if I just kinda dug a hole and just kinda gave up.'"
01:13By the time of Eddie's death, Wolfgang had played with the band Van Halen for 13 years.
01:17He also helped out musical friends such as Clint Lowry and Tremonti in different ways
01:21during this period, so he had plenty of experience when it came time to go solo.
01:25Even before Eddie's passing, Wolfgang had started work on Mammoth WVH, writing all the
01:29songs and playing all the instruments on what ended up becoming his 2021 debut album.
01:34Speaking to Overdrive in December 2022, Wolfgang said that Eddie listened to a few of the tracks
01:39he was working on when he was still alive.
01:41Wolfgang even considered having his father make a guest appearance on the album, but
01:44it was always intended to be a solo project at heart.
01:47"'This is just something for me.
01:49It's a sacred experience for me.
01:50It's my project and an artistic outlet for me and my mental well-being.
01:54I'm so lucky that I have this incredible live band that just slays live so I get to
01:58bring this creation to life on stage."
02:00After launching Mammoth WVH, Wolfgang hit the road in support of the debut album in
02:052021.
02:06Part of the tour included a slot supporting Guns N' Roses.
02:08One would think an event like this wouldn't faze Wolfgang since he was used to playing
02:12with Van Halen for so many years, but he told Consequence that it was a way to test himself
02:16on a different level.
02:17"'It was a wonderful way to start because it's a trial by fire.
02:20You're being thrown to the lions every night because the Guns audiences are — at least
02:24when we were on there — they would tell us that they're notoriously not very receptive
02:28to openers.
02:29So when it started going really well, it was like, oh s**t, we're actually doing it.
02:33It was kind of a dream."
02:34In addition to opening for GNR, Axl Rose requested that Wolfgang play Paradise City with the band
02:39on the final two nights of the tour.
02:41Wolfgang agreed to it, though he admitted that the nerves kicked in.
02:44He spent every free moment he could learning the track inside and out to make sure he took
02:48everyone down to Paradise City when he stepped on stage.
02:51Here's a fun fact.
02:52Wolfgang is a huge fan of Friends.
02:54He explained to The New Yorker that in his school days, he used to watch episodes of
02:57the series with his mother, Valerie Bertinelli, who once turned down a chance to audition
03:01for a role on the show.
03:03In 2021, Wolfgang proved his fan credentials when he headed out on a private Friends experience
03:08tour in Gramercy Park, showing off his knowledge of the show's storylines at the different
03:12stops, declaring that, quote, "'Nobody can beat me at Friends trivia.'"
03:15He revealed that Matthew Perry's character, Chandler Bing, played a major part in shaping
03:20his own personality.
03:21After Perry died at the age of 54 in 2023, Wolfgang lashed out at TMZ on his ex account,
03:26slamming their coverage of Perry's death.
03:29Wolfgang drew comparisons to when his father, Eddie, died, and alleged that TMZ paid hospital
03:33staff to get private information before the family was even allowed time to mourn their
03:37loss.
03:38The launch of Mammoth WVH's debut album exceeded everyone's wildest expectations.
03:44The record peaked at the No. 12 position on the Billboard 200 and earned a Best Rocks
03:48on Grammy Award nomination for the track, Distance.
03:51For Wolfgang, the nomination proved to be an extra special moment because of the story
03:55behind the song.
03:56He told Variety that the inspiration for the track was born during a bad time in his father's
04:00illness, saying,
04:01"'He did bounce back for a little bit.
04:03It was one of those dark periods, and the song was based on those feelings of what it
04:06would be like without someone as important in my life as my father or mother.'"
04:10What was it like those last few months and then those last few days?"
04:13"'It was really rough.'"
04:15Wolfgang explained that he played a version of the song for Eddie around 2015, and that
04:19his father wept when he listened to it.
04:21It was a really special moment that I'll never forget.
04:24Ultimately, Distance didn't win the Grammy.
04:26That honor went to Foo Fighters for the track Waiting on a War, but Wolfgang found the experience
04:30of recording the song to be cathartic, especially after his father's death.
04:34The tragic death of Taylor Hawkins from the Foo Fighters caught everyone off guard in
04:38March 2022.
04:39A tribute concert was organized at Wembley Stadium in September of that year to honor
04:43Hawkins and his outstanding musical achievements, with a who's who of musical guest stars playing
04:48alongside the Foo Fighters, including Wolfgang.
04:51Wolfgang told Spin that he was nervous about playing the event, given there were 90,000
04:55in attendance and many more watching via the broadcast.
04:58In fact, he almost turned down the chance to perform, but not because of nerves.
05:02When Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl asked him to play some of Van Halen's songs, Wolfgang
05:06felt uncomfortable playing them without his father.
05:09After speaking to his inner circle, though, Wolfgang realized it would be a great way
05:12to pay tribute to both Hawkins and his father at the same time, so he did it, to the delight
05:17of fans everywhere.
05:19Eddie Van Halen is one of the most famous guitarists in history, and the custom guitar
05:23he used is equally legendary.
05:25Known as the Frankenstein, or Frankenstat, or Frankie for short, this cobbled-together
05:29masterpiece was originally purchased in 1977 by Eddie, who then extensively modified it
05:35over the decades to produce his signature sound.
05:37Among the guitar-playing community, the Frankenstein is known as the Holy Grail, something to be
05:41looked at and cherished but never to be touched by anyone except Eddie.
05:45One person who had the opportunity to handle the Frankenstein, though, was Wolfgang.
05:49He explained to podcaster Chris Shifflett that he used it to record the tracks Mammoth
05:53and Feel off Mammoth WVH's debut album.
05:56He told Guitar World,
05:57"...you can feel the history sort of emanating out of the Frankenstein.
06:00Picking up that guitar is almost a religious experience.
06:03Even if you're not a religious person, you just kinda hold it and feel the history right
06:07there in your hands."
06:08"...I thought it'd be really fun to have it played on my music and have it be there forever."
06:16The Barbie film ruled 2023, becoming the highest-grossing film of the year and providing a plethora of
06:22unforgettable moments.
06:23Topping the list?
06:24Ryan Gosling's Ken singing the brooding ballad, I'm Just Ken.
06:28The song crawled into everyone's ears like a perfect earworm and refused to ever leave,
06:32even hitting the Billboard Hot 100.
06:34And Wolfgang Van Halen deserved some of the credit.
06:37Soundtrack producer Mark Ronson worked with co-producer Andrew Wyatt to write the track.
06:41Then they enlisted the help of serious heavy hitters in the rock and roll genre to leave
06:44their stamp on it.
06:45Guns N' Roses lead guitarist Slash, Foo Fighters drummer Josh Friess, and Wolfgang contributed
06:50their musical prowess to I'm Just Ken.
06:53"...Right when Ryan Gosling whips out his abs, there's a guitar-tapping solo that happens
06:58and that's me."
06:59Speaking to Billboard in March 2024, Wolfgang explained how he met Ronson at the Taylor
07:03Hawkins tribute concert, and everything started from there.
07:06"...Mark Ronson and I hit it off, and he reached out and hit me up and it was just a really
07:10good time.
07:11I spent two days in his studio and we just played around with ideas and it was a really
07:15good time."
07:16Wolfgang later joined Gosling and Slash for a live performance at the Oscars, where I'm
07:20Just Ken was up for Best Original Song.
07:23October 15, 2023 was a special day for Wolfgang, as he married his longtime girlfriend, Andrea
07:28Alsop.
07:29The couple hosted their wedding in their Los Angeles home and invited 90 of their closest
07:33friends and family to share the monumental day with them.
07:36Wolfgang walked out alongside his mother to the Van Halen song 316, which his father Eddie
07:41had written for him.
07:42Bertinelli told People that Eddie would have been happy.
07:44Ed would have been absolutely beaming and so, so proud of the man Wolfie has become
07:49and is becoming, and so happy that he has found Andrea, someone who really understands
07:54Wolfie, who he is, and who he wants to be, and supports him wholeheartedly.
07:58In October 2024, Wolfgang posted a touching tribute to his wife on Instagram, writing,
08:03"'One year married, nine years together.
08:05Eternally lucky and grateful.
08:07Love you more than anything, Andrea.
08:09Here's to forever.'"
08:10Though it's been a few years now since the world lost Eddie Van Halen, Wolfgang often
08:14still talks about the hole left in his life after his father's death.
08:17In January 2024, he posted a picture of the pair on Instagram along with a heartfelt message
08:22to his father on what would have been his 69th birthday.
08:25He wrote,
08:26"'I miss hearing you laugh.
08:27I miss laughing with you.
08:28It's the little things.
08:29I'll do my best to keep a smile on my face and think of you today, but then again, that's
08:33not very different than any other day so far without you.
08:36I love and miss you more than you could ever possibly know.'"
08:39Fans rallied in the comments section, expressing their own birthday wishes to Eddie and letting
08:43Wolfgang know his father was loved and appreciated by many.
08:47Wolfgang's inclusion in Van Halen beginning in 2007 irked a number of fans who believed
08:51bassist Michael Anthony had been fired to make space for Eddie's son.
08:55People blamed him for Anthony's departure, claiming Wolfgang was just a nebo baby receiving
08:59handouts.
09:00Wolfgang was still just a teenager and received abuse from angry fans for years, but there's
09:04never been any tension between Anthony and Wolfgang.
09:06In 2023, Wolfgang shared an Instagram photo of him hugging Anthony at a show and referred
09:11to him as an old friend.
09:13He told Ultimate Classic Rock that he hadn't seen Anthony in 20 years and it was terrific
09:17to catch up with him after all this time.
09:19People try to make it seem like there's some animosity, hatred, or competition between
09:22us, but it's never been that way.
09:24I've literally always loved Mike.
09:26He's a wonderful person, wonderful guy, and a wonderful musician.
09:29Man, it was such a pleasure and joy to reconnect with him.
09:32It was like a family reunion, and for Wolfgang, it's obvious that family comes first.