Dave Grohl Declares Rock And Roll Is Not Dead And Then Points To The Reason Why

Dave Grohl has denied cynical claims that rock and roll is on its deathbed and has pointed to the likes of teen sensation Billie Eilish as its potential savior.

The former Nirvana stickman knows a thing or two about hype. When Kurt Cobain and the boys were riding the crest of the Nevermind wave in the early 1990s, the public couldn’t get enough of grunge and its most prominent princes.

Of course, for a rock act to generate that level of interest is as rare and elusive as bottled lightning. It’s been a mighty long time since the ground has trembled, and a long while since the foundations have shaken in the way they did when Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Guns N’ Roses, or Nirvana shook, rattled, and rolled.

In fact, for a while now, many have considered that rock has died a slow and lonely death and has nothing more to offer.

The NME reports that the Foo Fighters frontman doesn’t believe that’s strictly true, and in an interview, Grohl explained that when he looks at someone like Billie Eilish he believes rock and roll is not even close to death.

In case you didn’t know, Eilish is a former Los Angeles Children’s Chorus member whose debut single, “Ocean Eyes,” accumulated over 200 million streams on Spotify. Her debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, will drop in March and critics and fans are predicting big things from the youngster.

And Grohl is no different. He compared the hype surrounding Eilish as similar to that which used to buzz around Nirvana. Revealing how his daughters are obsessed with Billie Eilish, Grohl explained that he finds it similar to how people gravitated toward his former band in the early ’90s.

“The same thing is happening with her that happened with Nirvana in 1991. People say, ‘Is rock dead?’ When I look at someone like Billie Eilish, rock and roll is not close to dead!”

Although quick to praise Eilish, Grohl confessed that today’s music scene leaves him feeling a little like the last of the dinosaurs.

“A lot of the changes in music I don’t understand,” he said. “I don’t know the difference between Pandora and Spotify. I don’t get it. I don’t have the app. Sorry.”

Grohl, who is the first to admit he’s feeling his age these days, recently revealed that the Foo Fighters were forced to cancel two shows this month so he could have surgery on his left arm.

Loudersound.com reports that although Grohl wouldn’t reveal the exact nature of his injury, he explained that it’s something he’s “had to deal with for a long time.”

“It’s not the end of the world, but I did have to have surgery on my arm because I need it to pay the rent,” Grohl continued.