Taylor Hawkins, Foo Fighters Drummer, Dead at 50

By Andrew Roberts

Taylor Hawkins, Foo Fighters' drummer, has died at 50. The band confirmed the rockstar's death on Friday night, with sparse details from local outlets in Bogata, Colombia, following soon after. The band was in Bogata to play Festival Estéreo Picnic on Friday.

"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," the statement read. "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."

According to Semana in Colombia, Hawkins reportedly died in a Bogata hotel room ahead of a Foo Fighters performance today. No cause of death has been revealed yet. The report indicated that authorities had arrived at the hotel and were taking custody of the body.

The band confirmed they will not be performing at their planned Festival Estéreo Picnic appearance in Bogota due to the sudden, tragic loss. Many flooded online to pay tribute to the late drummer and the joy he helped spread over the decades, including fellow musicians and friends.

Hawkins, full name Oliver Taylor Hawkins, was born in Forth Worth, Texas in 1972 before making his way west to Laguna Beach and the California sun. He was drummer for Alanis Morissette from June 1995 until March 1997, even appearing in the video for "You Oughta Know" before leaving the singer's group to join Foo Fighters.

Foo Fighters would enlist Hawkins after drummer William Goldsmith quit over a disagreement with leader Dave Grohl, who went on to record the drums for The Colour and the Shape himself. Before finding a replacement, Grohl reached out to Hawkins for drummer recommendations, finding that Hawkins was looking for a rock band to hold down and prompting his exit from Morissette's touring band. He was announced as the official drummer in March 1997, remaining in the position until his passing.

Hawkins has been listed as a co-writer for the band since the release of Nothing Left to Lose and has stepped from behind the kit several times to show off his singing skills during concerts. The drummer leaves behind his wife and three children, Oliver Shane, Annabelle and Everleigh. While drugs have played a role in Hawkins' life over the years, including an overdose in 2001, no indications point toward it playing a part in his passing. He talked about his incident with Beats 1's Matt Wilkinson back in 2018.

"Well, I was partying a lot. I wasn't like a junkie per se, but I was partying. There was a year where the partying just got a little too heavy," Hawkins said. "Thank God on some level this guy gave me the wrong line with the wrong thing one night and I woke up going, 'What the fuck happened?' That was a real changing point for me." Rest in peace.

0comments
Start the Conversation

of