David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and film director. He was the longest-serving drummer for the grunge band Nirvana and is the founder, frontman, lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, lead guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Foo Fighters. He is also the drummer and co-founder of the rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures, and wrote the music and performed all the instruments for his short-lived side projects Late! and Probot. He has also recorded and frequently toured with the rock band Queens of the Stone Age. In 2014, as a member of Nirvana, Grohl was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in his first year of eligibility.[1]

Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 2.1 Scream (1986–1990) 2.2 Nirvana (1990–1994) 2.3 Foo Fighters (1994–present) 3 Musical projects and contributions 4 Television 5 Cal Jam 6 Personal life 6.1 Advocacy, philanthropy and views 6.2 Honors 6.3 Legal issues 7 Discography 8 Filmography 9 References 10 External links Early life

David Eric Grohl was born on January 14, 1969[2][3] in Warren, Ohio, the son of teacher Virginia Jean (née Hanlon) and newswriter James Harper Grohl (1938-2014).[4] He is of German, Irish, and Slovak descent.[5][6] When he was a child, Grohl's family moved to Springfield, Virginia. When Grohl was seven, his parents divorced,[7] and he subsequently grew up with his mother. At the age of 12, he began learning to play guitar. He grew tired of lessons and instead taught himself, and he eventually began playing in bands with friends.[2][8] At that age, "I was going in the direction of faster, louder, darker while my sister, Lisa, three years older, was getting seriously into new wave territory. We’d meet in the middle sometimes with Bowie and Siouxsie And The Banshees".[9] At 13, Grohl and his sister spent the summer in Evanston, Illinois, at their cousin Tracy's house. Tracy introduced them to punk rock by taking the pair to shows by a variety of punk bands. His first concert was Naked Raygun at The Cubby Bear in Chicago in 1982 when he was 13 years old.[10] Grohl recalled, "From then on we were totally punk. We went home and bought Maximumrocknroll and tried to figure it all out."[8]

In Virginia, Grohl attended Thomas Jefferson High School as a freshman. He was elected vice president of his freshman class and in that capacity would manage to play bits of songs by punk bands like Circle Jerks and Bad Brains over the school intercom before his morning announcements. Grohl's mother decided that he should transfer to Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria because his cannabis use was affecting his grades. He stayed there for two years, beginning with a repeat of his first year. After his second year, he transferred yet again to Annandale High School.[8] While in high school, Grohl played in several local bands, including a stint as guitarist in a band called Freak Baby. It was during this period that Grohl taught himself to play drums.[2] When Freak Baby kicked out its bass player, Grohl decided to switch to drums, and the reconstituted band renamed themselves Mission Impossible.[8]

During his developing years as a drummer, Grohl cited John Bonham as his greatest influence, and eventually had Bonham's three-rings symbol tattooed on his wrist.[11] Mission Impossible later rebranded themselves Fast before breaking up, after which Grohl joined the hardcore punk band Dain Bramage.[12][13] Many of Grohl's early influences were at the 9:30 club, a live music venue in Washington D.C. He said, "I went to the 9:30 club hundreds of times. I was always so excited to get there, and I was always bummed when it closed. I spent my teenage years at the club and saw some shows that changed my life."[14] Grohl said in an interview with The Guardian, "They don't understand that when I was 15 and had Zen Arcade, that's when I decided that I loved this music. For me to do anything else for the sole reason of doing something different would be so contrived."[15]

Career Scream (1986–1990) Main article: Scream (band) Grohl with Scream in 1989

At the age of 17, Grohl auditioned with local DC favorites Scream to fill the vacancy left by the departure of drummer Kent Stax. In order to be considered for the position, Grohl lied about his age, claiming he was 20.[16] To Grohl's surprise, the band asked him to join. After waffling for a brief period, Grohl accepted the offer. Grohl dropped out of high school in his junior year; he said, "I was 17 and extremely anxious to see the world, so I did it."[17] Over the next four years, Grohl toured extensively with the band, recording a couple of live albums (their show of May 4, 1990 in Alzey, Germany being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.10) and two studio albums, No More Censorship and Fumble, on which Grohl penned and sang vocals on the song "Gods Look Down".

While playing in Scream, Grohl became a fan of Melvins and eventually befriended the band. During a 1990 tour stop on the West Coast, Melvins' Buzz Osborne took a couple of his friends, Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic, to see the band.[18]

Nirvana (1990–1994) Main article: Nirvana (band) This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)