Wolfgang Van Halen Opens Up About Still Grieving Eddie Van Halen
Wolfgang Van Halen shared in a new interview that he’s still grieving his father, Eddie Van Halen, four years after his death.
The Mammoth WVH leader sat down recently with Billy Corgan for his podcast The Magnificent Others and said that the loss of his father is “not any easier.” Wolfgang explained how he was working on the first Mammoth WVH album from 2015 to 2018, but the album was put on hold when Eddie got sick.
Wolfgang said, “It wasn’t until he passed in 2020 when I realized, ‘My life is completely empty. I need something to give me purpose.’ And that’s what I’m still doing to this day.”
Corgan asked Wolfgang who he turned to for inspiration and support to make music after Eddie died. Wolfgang mentioned a number of people, including his mother, Valerie Bertinelli, and his wife, Andraia Allsop, whom he married in October 2023.
He added, “In the absence of my father, which is a heavy absence that I’m dealing with to this day, his pride in me was so large that in his absence, there’s just kind of this black hole sitting there.”
Wolfgang explained that one of the most painful things about the loss of his guitar god dad is that he can’t share life milestones with him.
“He never got to see what happened with Mammoth [WHV],” said Wolfgang. “He never go to see me get married. He never got to see me have kids eventually. And those are some tentpole moments that will always have a tinge of sadness no matter what.”
