Wolfgang Van Halen responded to criticism of this year’s Grammy ceremony after the Recording Academy’s tribute to his late father, Eddie Van Halen, fell short of the expectations of many fans.
At the ceremony, organized by Daily Show host Trevor Noah, a short clip of Eddie Van Halen’s performance Eruption was played while a spotlight shone on one of his familiar striped guitars.
The segment was greeted with consternation by many fans, with the broadcaster Eddie Trunk tweeting, “So on a three-hour show with five months to prepare, that’s all the Grammy could bring together for one of the most iconic and impactful artists in music history. They’ve reached new levels of shame and disrespect. I’m out of me. Fuck the Grammy. “
Now Wolfgang revealed that he was invited to perform at the event, post a message on social media say, “The Grammy invited me to play Eruption to the ‘In Memoriam’ section and I declined. I don’t think anyone could live up to what my dad did for music, except himself. “
However, Wolfgang went on to convey his own disappointment with the coverage, saying: “As I understand it, there would be an ‘In Memoriam’ section, where excerpts of songs would be played for legendary artists who had already passed away. I didn’t know they were going to show Pop for just 15 seconds in the middle of four full shows for other people that we had missed.
“What hurt the most was that he wasn’t even mentioned when talking about the artists we lost at the beginning of the show. I know that rock is not the most popular genre at the moment (and the academy seems a little old-fashioned), but I think it is impossible to ignore the legacy that my father left on the instrument, in the world of rock and music in general. There will never be another innovator like him. “
Wolfgang ended on a conciliatory note, saying, “I would love to have the opportunity to speak to The Recording Academy not just about my father’s legacy, but the legacy of the Rock genre in the future.”
In November, Wolfgang told the Howard Stern Show, “I am not my father. I am not going to replace him. I have spent my life making sure that I am not like him and that I am my own person.”
He went on to explain how Eddie would have encouraged him to go his own way instead of following in his father’s footsteps: “He would say, ‘What the fuck are you doing? Go do your own shit! ‘”
In the award itself, Body Count won the award for best metal performance, for Bum-Rush, while Best Rock Album went to The Strokes for The New Freak.