Halestorm frontwoman Lzzy Hale has spoken out on her memories of first listening to Van Halen, following the death of legendary rocker Eddie Van Halen.

Speaking in a new interview on The Paltrocast (as transcribed by Ultimate Guitar), Lzzy revealed that she was first exposed to Van Halen by her parents, who “forced” her to listen to the iconic band throughout her childhood.

“As far as myself as a music fan and growing up listening to music – I’ve been talking a lot about this and I realised – I was a child of the ’90s as a teenager, and as I’m coming into my own… it was the ’90s, but I was obsessed with ’80s hard rock and metal…” Lzzy began.

“My parents’ song was ‘Panama’ by Van Halen – if that gives you any inkling of the kind of childhood that I grew up with. So I remember from an early age – in fact, I think my mum actually ended up sending me some pictures of me with headphones on.”

She continued, “And she’s like, ‘I’m pretty sure this was either ‘Women and Children First’ or ‘1980,’ but it was one of those that we were listening to’ – that they were forcing me to listen to.”

“But that ended up being from the time that I was a very young kid – this was my first introduction to music!”

Artists around the world have been paying tribute to Eddie Van Halen following the news of his death from cancer at the age of 65, which had first been announced by his son, Wolfgang Van Halen.

Love Classic Rock?

Get the latest Classic Rock news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more

“He was the best father I could ever ask for,” he wrote on social media following the announcement. “Every moment I’ve shared with him on and off stage was a gift. My heart is broken and I don’t think I’ll ever fully recover from this loss. I love you so much, Pop.”

Check out Lzzy Hale on Undead From Antarctica:

YouTube VideoPlay

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine