Premiering Wednesday, May 1st on Paramount+ is an MTV “Behind the Music” episode dedicated to Wolfgang Van Halen. The 33-year-old son of the late Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli has been a public figure since birth but became a professional musician in 2007, when he replaced Michael Anthony as Van Halen‘s bassist, touring with the group and recording on its final album, 2012’s “A Different Kind of Truth.” Van Halen was also part of Tremonti, a solo band fronted by Mark Tremonti of Creed and Alter Bridge, and in 2020 launched his own group Mammoth WVH.
The band has so far released two albums and toured both on its own and opening for Metallica, Guns N’ Roses Foo Fighters and others. Van Halen’s song “Distance,” a tribute to his father, was nominated for a 2022 Grammy Award for Best Rock Song.
Van Halen also played on “I’m Just Ken” for the “Barbie” film soundtrack in 2023 and was part of its performance at the 96th Academy Awards in March.
While he has a touring band, Mammoth WVH has so far been a truly solo endeavor in the studio, with Van Halen playing all the instruments and performing all the vocals. He tells us that’s unlikely to change any time soon: