Foo Fighters Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters after performing in June 2018. From left to right: Chris Shiflett, Taylor Hawkins, Dave Grohl, Nate Mendel, Rami Jaffee, and Pat Smear.
Background information
Also known as	The Holy Shits Dee Gees
Origin	Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Genres	Alternative rock post-grunge hard rock grunge pop rock
Years active	1994–present
Labels	Roswell Capitol RCA
Associated acts	Nirvana The Fire Theft Sunny Day Real Estate Scream

Members	Dave Grohl Nate Mendel Pat Smear Chris Shiflett Rami Jaffee

Past members	William Goldsmith Franz Stahl Taylor Hawkins

Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in 1994 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of Nirvana after the death of Kurt Cobain. The group took its name from foo fighter, a nickname coined by Allied aircraft pilots for UFOs and other aerial phenomena. Over the course of their career, Foo Fighters have won 12 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album four times. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.

Prior to the release of Foo Fighters' 1995 debut album Foo Fighters, which featured Grohl as the only official member, Grohl recruited bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, as well as Nirvana touring guitarist Pat Smear. The band began with performances in Portland, Oregon. Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album The Colour and the Shape (1997); most of the drum parts were re-recorded by Grohl. Smear departed soon afterward but appeared as a guest with the band frequently from 2005; he rejoined in 2010.

Smear and Goldsmith were replaced by Franz Stahl and Taylor Hawkins; Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999). The band briefly continued as a trio until Chris Shiflett joined on guitar after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002. It was followed with the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.

For Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full member. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to reach number one in the United States and their first studio album to feature longtime session and touring keyboardist Rami Jaffee as a full member. In 2021, the band released their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight. Drummer Taylor Hawkins died in Bogota, Colombia in March 2022.

Images for kids

Dave Grohl (pictured in 2019) founded Foo Fighters after his band Nirvana disbanded in 1994.
Foo Fighters performing at Phoenix Festival in 1996
Long-time drummer Taylor Hawkins (pictured in 2017) joined the band in 1997.
Chris Shiflett (pictured in 2017) joined as guitarist in 1999.
Grohl performing with Foo Fighters in 2003
Grohl performing with Foo Fighters in 2006
Foo Fighters performing live in 2007
Hawkins (second from left) and Grohl (right) with John Paul Jones (left) and Jimmy Page (second from right) of Led Zeppelin performing at Wembley Stadium, London in 2008
Foo Fighters in 2009. From left to right: Hawkins, Shiflett, Grohl, Mendel.
Foo Fighters performing in December 2011
Grohl performing at Fenway Park in 2015 on a custom-built throne while recuperating from a broken leg
Foo Fighters performing in 2017
Foo Fighters performing at Download Festival Paris in June 2018

Foo Fighters facts for kids

Images for kids

See also