Foo Fighters' Drummer Dave Grohl Reveals His Father Disowned Him for Becoming a Musician

After having a complicated and strained relationship with his father for the entirety of his childhood, tensions finally came to a head when Dave Grohl told his father he was dropping out of school to be a musician in a band.

The father and son had never had a strong relationship where they could lean on one another. Instead, they clashed throughout Grohl's childhood as they disagreed with one another's opinions continuously.

Grohl and his father could never agree on the idea that Grohl wanted to be a musician. Instead, his father believed that he should do anything but that.

Dave Grohl performing at the Intersect Music Festival in Las Vegas, 2019 | Photo: Getty Images

GROHL'S SCHOOL CAREER

Having a public school teacher as a father might allow you to think that Dave Grohl was academically gifted and received all the help he needed at home from his father. However, his school career couldn't be more different from that assumption.

Grohl has mentioned that both of his parents were writers, and they encouraged Grohl's ability to write, too. He told a story on his Instagram page about his father telling him that he was a talented writer and revealed that those were the first words of validation he received from his father.

Dave Grohl performing at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards, LA, 2020 | Photo: Getty Images

He also mentioned that his parents were "terminally frustrated" with him through adolescence because he rebelled against authority and was not doing well in school.

Although Grohl's father was educated and tended to come across as an incredibly professional man, he shared a love of music with Grohl and was a talented musician himself. However, he did not believe that one should make a career out of music.

Grohl was talented as a musician, but his parents made it clear that because his grades were not what they should be, he would not be allowed to play music until his grades had improved.

Grohl's father then asked him what he would do with his life, and Grohl had no answer for his father. He felt awkward and confused, so he wrote a runaway note that marked the beginning of the chasm between him and his father.

GROHL'S MUSIC CAREER

The fact that Grohl ran away when he was asked what he would do with his life and knew that he could not be a musician began the rift between him and his father, but it was far from over at that point.

Grohl revealed that his father phoned him the morning after he had run away and told him never to run away again, to which he replied that he wouldn't have to because he became a drummer in the band "Scream."

He then admitted that the early days as a musician were difficult because they had no money for food, and he budgeted to eat three corn dogs a day from a gas station across the road from where he lived.

Unfortunately, his father had disowned him during this time because he had given up on education to pursue a career in music. At the time, neither Grohl nor his father knew how successful he would be as a musician.

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