Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith is paying tribute to his late friend Taylor Hawkins with a touching compilation video, soundtracked by Foo Fighters’ “My Hero,” filled with images of the two drummers over the years.
“Taylor is my good buddy who I’ve known forever,” says Smith in an interview, before cutting to clips of the two rocking out onstage. Foo Fighters opened for Red Hot Chili Peppers during the Californication tour in 1999, where the musicians would play pranks on each other during the shows.
“I wanted to be in a band from the second I heard rock and roll. I like music. I like the way rock and roll makes me feel,” Hawkins explains in an archive interview with Smith.
“I think we’re going to make a lot of other rock bands a little jealous,” Hawkins and Smith tell each other in another clip.
Hawkins, 50, died March 25 in Bogotá, Colombia as Foo Fighters were preparing for a headlining set at the Festival Estéro Picnic. A cause of death has not been determined, but the Attorney General of Colombia said at least 10 substances — including antidepressants, benzodiazepines and opioids — were found in Hawkins’ system.
On Thursday, as Red Hot Chili Peppers received their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Smith gave a shoutout to the late drummer. “I have to give a shoutout to my brother Taylor Hawkins. I love you Taylor,” he said. “He would laugh and make a smartass comment about this whole thing.”
Foo Fighters recently canceled their appearance at the Grammys and a handful of shows due to Hawkins’ death. “It is with great sadness that Foo Fighters confirm the cancellation of all upcoming tour dates in light of the staggering loss of our brother Taylor Hawkins,” the band said in a statement earlier this week. “We’re sorry for and share in the disappointment that we won’t be seeing one another as planned. Instead, let’s take this time to grieve, to heal, to pull our loved ones close, and to appreciate all the music and memories we’ve made together.”