• Dave Grohl confirms Foo Fighters hiatus

    Theo Wargo / Getty Images

    Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters performs in New York on Sept. 29.

    By Rolling Stone

    Dave Grohl took to the Foo Fighters Facebook page Tuesday with a note confirming the band will take a hiatus just a few days after his onstage comments at the Global Citizen Festival in New York led to rumors of a break-up.

    You can read the full text of Grohl's letter here. 

    Hey everyone . . .

    Dave here. Just wanted to write and thank you all again from the bottom of my heart for another incredible year. (Our 18th, to be exact!) We truly never could have done any of this without you . . .

    Never in my wildest dreams did I think Foo Fighters would make it this far. I never thought we COULD make it this far, to be honest. There were times when I didn't think the band would survive. There were times when I wanted to give up. But . . . I can't give up this band. And I never will. Because it's not just a band to me. It's my life. It's my family. It's my world. 

    Yes . . . I was serious. I'm not sure when the Foo Fighters are going to play again. It feels strange to say that, but it's a good thing for all of us to go away for a while. It's one of the reasons we're still here. Make sense? I never want to NOT be in this band. So, sometimes it's good to just . . . put it back in the garage for a while . . .

    But, no gold watches or vacations just yet . . . I'll be focusing all of my energy on finishing up my Sound City documentary film and album for worldwide release in the very near future. A year in the making, it could be the biggest, most important project I've ever worked on. Get ready . . . it's coming. 

    Me, Taylor, Nate, Pat, Chris, and Rami . . . I'm sure we'll all see you out there . . . somewhere . . . 
    Thank you, thank you, thank you . . .

    Dave


    At the Global Citizen Festival, Grohl said: "We don't have any shows after this. This is where we play as many songs as we can in a short period of time, because, honestly, I don't know when we're gonna do it again."

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  • Scarlett Johansson, Natalie Portman, Kerry Washington to speak at DNC

    By Tina Daunt, The Hollywood Reporter

    Jason Merritt / Getty Images

    Scarlett Johansson.

    Democratic National Convention managers released their own list of "surprise" celebrity speakers Wednesday -- but don't expect any of them to bring furniture onstage.

    Before President Barack Obama goes to the microphone Thursday in Charlotte, N.C., he will be preceded by Scarlett Johansson, Natalie Portman and Kerry Washington, according to a list of last-minute speakers provided to CNN by the DNC.

    Why Julia Roberts Turned Down a Role From Barbra Streisand

    The actresses are listed as following Foo Fighters on the itinerary. Eva Longoria also is expected to speak before Obama's appearance.


    Joe Paterno's Son Called Aaron Sorkin After Watching 'The Newsroom'

    Not only are the Democrats' most prominent celebrity speakers women, but their collective age barely equals Clint Eastwood's. It's another striking statement about the difference between the audiences the two conventions were meant to address.

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  • Seven-year-old drummer taught himself how to rock

    By Ree Hines, TODAY contributor

    If Taylor Hawkins ever steps away from his Foo Fighters drum kit for good, the rest band can take heart: There’s a talented drummer out there who knows the music and knows how to get attention too. Of course, since he’s just 7 years old, they’d have to work around his early bedtime.

    Viral video star Jaxon Smith is already entertaining crowds online with his beats on the Foo Fighters' "Pretender," as well as songs from The Who, Heart, Rush and more. On Tuesday morning the phenom and his father visited TODAY to share his story (so far).

    “From a young age, I’d say from the age of 1, he took spoons on our coffee table and put about -- to my wife’s horror -- about 500 dents in a brand new coffee table,” dad Kevin Smith recalled. “I thought, ‘What’s going on here?’”

    Whatever it was, it marked incredible progress for an infant that started life with the odds against him in a neonatal intensive care unit, weighing in a just one pound.


    As time went on, Jaxon continued to thrive, and his unexpected talent took over.

    “At the age of 2, (he played) on the sinks, with toothbrushes every morning,” his father explained. “It just evolved to chopsticks on the couch. We probably got him his first kit when he was 3-years-old. He was a bit sloppy on it for a while, (but) he’s totally taught himself. It’s like 100 percent Jax. I don’t know how he did it ... just watching live concerts of bands that I like on TV.”

    That’s right -- there’s been no formal training for the tyke. But Dad admits there’s a chance that some of the talent has been handed down. After all, two of Jaxon’s grandparents were music teachers, and his mother knows a thing or two about rhythm as a dancer.

    As for Jaxon’s drumming motivation, he explained that for himself.

    “I don’t know,” he said. “I just feel really good at it.”

    To prove just how good at it he is, the pint-sized performer put on a show.

    Do you think little Jaxon has a big future in music? Share your thoughts about the child prodigy on our Facebook page.

     

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