When asked if his preparation before stepping out in front of tens of thousands of fans has become a science, Grohl admitted, “It has been the same for decades.” The singer explained that he often seeks out the wardrobe room, filled with “hanger after hanger of black shirt, black shirt, black shirt, black pants, black pants, black pants,” to find a bit of “peace and quiet.”
However, as stage time approaches, the atmosphere shifts into a shared experience. “About an hour before the show, everyone starts, you know, like, having a cocktail,” Grohl said. “And for me, the most important thing is that when it’s time to play, everybody’s in a great mood, and we’re all laughing hysterically, and we walk out on stage like a bunch of friends. So, that’s really the most important thing. The specific ingredients? They vary.”
When the high-energy, multi-hour performance concludes, Grohl avoids the typical rockstar cliché of rushing immediately to a waiting getaway vehicle. “The one thing I don’t like to do after a show is to jump into a car and go,” Grohl confessed. “Because I’m soaking wet, and like, you get into the back of like a minivan and there’s a cold pizza and there’s a warm beer, and you’re soaking wet and, like, I don’t like that. So, I do like to just go back and sit down.”
Instead, Grohl cherishes a recent backstage tradition involving his 11-year-old daughter, Ophelia. “One of my favourite things lately has been I walk off, as I’m walking off stage, Fifi, will be standing there waiting – Fifi is 11 – and we go arm-in-arm, Fifs gives me a towel, we walk back to the dressing room, and Fifs goes and grabs a Guinness and hands it to me and says, ‘I’m proud of you.’ That’s the best! And I sit there soaking wet in heaven. Just, ‘This is great!’”
The conversation also turned to sports, specifically regarding the band’s major performance at the historic home of Liverpool Football Club. When questioned about the fierce local football politics between the city’s two main clubs, the American rock icon remained strictly neutral. “I’ve got no dog in that fight, no skin in that game,” Grohl laughed.
Reflecting on his own youthful athletic background before music took over his life, Grohl added, “When I was young, I was a goalie for years in almost every sport that I played. In football, in lacrosse, I was always a goalie, and I love the sport. And then I discovered Led Zeppelin. That’s all I’ve got say. So no, I’m not really invested into any of that.”
