In the Weeks Following Taylor Hawkins' Death, Foo Fighters Hit Several Major Milestones

     Part of what made Taylor Hawkins' death so tragic was that it not only happened so unexpectedly, but at the pinnacle of his career. Hawkins, longtime drummer of the Foo Fighters, looked up to Queen drummer Roger Taylor, and the influence is obvious. Hawkins went above and beyond what most drummers do, working in tandem with lead vocalist Dave Grohl to serve as the backbone of the band, its personality, a relationship similar to the one Roger Taylor shared with Freddie Mercury. Hawkins even performed the vocals for "Somebody to Love," with Dave Grohl reprising his role on the drums, during their final tour in South America.

     In the year or so immediately before Hawkins' death, the Foo Fighters were perhaps the busiest they had ever been. They performed at the inauguration of President Joe Biden in January 2021; released their tenth studio album, Medicine at Midnight, in February 2021; were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility in May 2021; saw Grohl release the series From Cradle to Stage in May 2021; released their Bee Gees tribute album Hail Satin under the name Dee Gees in July 2021 (on what happened to be the author's 19th birthday); saw Grohl publish his memoir The Storyteller in October 2021; released a comedic horror film called Studio 666 in February 2022; and released a companion album called Dream Widow on March 25th, 2022 (in a tragic twist of fate, the same day Hawkins died). That was far from the only project Hawkins was involved in. During this same time period, he played drums on the Elton John Lockdown Sessions song "E-Ticket" in October 2021; that year, he also recorded an album for his supergroup NHC with Jane's Addiction members Dave Navarro and Chris Chaney, an album that is due to be released later in 2022. (Chaney, like Hawkins, had been a touring musician for Alanis Morrisette's band.) 

     After the well-deserved outpouring of support for Hawkins, his family, and his bandmates (particularly Grohl, who has now lost two musical partners in his career), there came a point of reflection, a point of appreciation for the music that the Foo Fighters and Taylor Hawkins have created. In April 2022, the Foo Fighters won three more Grammy Awards, bringing their total to 15; just weeks later, their song "The Pretender" became their first to surpass 500 million views on YouTube; then, their YouTube channel achieved another big milestone, reaching 3.34 million subscribers, or two-thirds of the way to five million subscribers and one-third of the way to 10 million.

     There's still a lot more to do: even on YouTube alone, "All My Life" is on track to become their fifth song to reach 100 million views or more while "Best Of You" and "Everlong" race toward 250 million views apiece. That's what makes music, and art more generally, so special. Even when an artist dies, good art is never forgotten, and especially not great art. Great art lives as long as it is appreciated, and there are millions of fans who will continue to appreciate all the Foo Fighters and Taylor Hawkins have created until the day they die. Rest in peace, Taylor.