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Friday night (March 25), the Foo Fighters shared that their drummer Taylor Hawkins has passed away. He was 50 years old.
Their statement reads: "The Foo Fighters family is devastated by the tragic and untimely loss of our beloved Taylor Hawkins. His musical spirit and infectious laughter will live on with all of us forever. Our hearts go out to his wife, children and family, and we ask that their privacy be treated with the utmost respect in this unimaginably difficult time."
The Foo Fighters were in Colombia preparing to play at the Estéreo Picnic festival at the time, one of their many South American tour stops. Their last gig with the drummer took place five days earlier (March 20th) at Lollapalooza Argentina. During their headlining set, the band covered Queen's classic "Somebody To Love," with Hawkins on lead vocals and Dave Grohl on drums. Before starting off the song, Hawkins told the crowd: “I f*ckin’ love Dave Grohl, man. I’d be delivering pizzas if it wasn’t for fuckin’ Dave Grohl. I’d be managing the drum department at a Guitar Center if it wasn’t for Dave Grohl.” Hawkins joined the Foo Fighters in 1997.
The music world has been mourning the death of the late drummer. Axl Rose, Tom Morello, Ringo Starr, and Miley Cyrus are among the artists that have paid tribute.
Watch the full two-hour set below.