Being the son of Van Halen no doubt leaves some very big shoes to be filled, and Wolfgang Van Halen isn’t stoked on the pressure he’s put under to be as successful as his pa. The 30-year-old musician has slammed fans who have suggested he isn’t as successful as his dad, Eddie Van Halen, was at his age.
Speaking to Guitar World, Wolfgang spoke about how intimidating it is to have a very successful dad.
“Looking back on it now, obviously [it is intimidating]. People are always going to hold me to something that’s completely out of my control,” he said.
“I see Van Halen fans say, ‘The kid’s 30 now, and at his age, his dad was up to ‘Fair Warning’!’ I think it’s really unfair to hold me at the same level as my dad.”
Wolfgang insists that he isn’t interested in riding on his dad’s coattails and wants to make a name for himself off his own success.
“I’m just not milking off the legacy. I’m sure that’s up for debate for some people that hate me, but I’m being myself.
“I’m not sitting there doing covers of ‘Panama’ and going, ‘If you want Van Halen, come to me!’ If you want Van Halen, go over there.”
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With such a huge fan base for both himself and his father, Wolfgang says that he deals with her fair share of haters, too.
“Sometimes it’s too much, and sometimes you’re ready to take it on the chin and tell them to fuck off.
“You kind of go through ups and downs because it’s always a constant thing.
“Sometimes you just need to take a little break and ignore it for a while, but every now and then and some asshole lobs you a really big softball that you could just fuckin’ knock out of the park, and it’s really fun.”
Listen to ‘Mammoth WVH: Distance’ by Wolfgang Van Halen:
