Dave Grohl tried to reassure daughter Violet about performing when her voice wasn’t at its best. She had a short reply to her dad’s singing advice: “Yeah, but you scream. I sing.”
The Foo Fighters frontman, 57, recalled the exchange on the October 26 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, as Entertainment Weekly reported. Violet, 20, is playing clubs on tour behind her debut solo album, Be Sweet to Me.
Father and daughter FaceTime almost every day. When she complained about a scratchy throat, Grohl suggested a hot shower and tea, then assured her that the audience would not mind a little raspiness.
He compared his own nightly vocals to Motörhead’s Lemmy Kilmister. Violet’s comeback drew a gasp from the studio audience, but Grohl laughed and agreed: “And she’s not wrong!”
Grohl Heard Violet Sing Amy Winehouse at Four
Grohl recalled recognizing his daughter’s musical ear when she was four, sitting in her car seat and singing along to Winehouse. He was struck by how precisely she followed the singer’s phrasing and small vocal inflections.
Violet grew up traveling with Foo Fighters and began singing backup for the band at 12. Before she stepped out in front of crowds of roughly 50,000 people, Grohl remembered feeling nervous and checking that she was ready. His daughter brushed off his concerns and headed onstage.
Violet Later Sang ‘Take the Box’ With Her Dad on Drums
In December 2021, she recorded Winehouse’s “Take the Box” with her father and producer Greg Kurstin for their Hanukkah Sessions series.
As NME documented, Violet handled the lead vocal while Dave played drums and Kurstin accompanied her on piano, with two backing singers completing the performance. It was the fifth installment of that year’s series, which celebrated Jewish musicians with a different cover for each night of Hanukkah.
Violet Wrote Her Debut Album in Justin Raisen’s Studio
Be Sweet to Me arrived May 29 through Auroura Records and Republic Records. Violet recorded it with a group of musicians at producer Justin Raisen’s Los Angeles home studio. Raisen’s previous collaborators include Kim Gordon and Charli xcx.
In the album’s release announcement from Universal Music Canada, Violet described arriving with playlists of music that inspired her. The musicians would listen together before they started writing. Her references included PJ Harvey, the Breeders and Cocteau Twins, alongside other alternative artists she had listened to since childhood.
The first song she wrote with her collaborators, “THUM,” took inspiration from an unusual object, the packaging of anti-nail-biting polish she brought into the studio. That song and “Applefish” were released in 2025, before the full record, according to an earlier Universal announcement.
The album title came from a phrase Violet and her best friend used when they were playfully arguing. She told KROQ‘s Miles the DJ in an interview published in April that she rediscovered the words in her phone’s notes while in Scotland. She described the title as both a nod to that friendship and a request for kindness as she introduced her own music.
Her Record Deal Came With a Family Dinner and Ice Cream Cake
Speaking with Radio X‘s Chris Moyles in February, Grohl said Violet sent him songs after she finished them, but that he had no involvement in making the album. He knew she was seeking a record deal, though he learned about the signed contract only afterward. He also credited the energy and speed of her recording process with inspiring his approach to Foo Fighters’ Your Favorite Toy.
Violet gave her own account during the KROQ conversation, explaining that she and her dad were both busy and that the paperwork had taken time to finalize. Once she signed, she called him with the news. The family celebrated over dinner with a Baskin-Robbins ice cream cake.
Her touring band also included musicians who helped make the record. Violet told KROQ that Anthony Lopez was playing drums and Ainjel Emme bass; the album credits list Lopez as a producer and mixer and Emme as vocal producer.
Her official schedule lists upcoming shows at the Constellation Room in Santa Ana on October 29 and the Regent Theater in Los Angeles on October 30. Later dates include Mexico City’s Corona Capital festival in November and support slots for Beabadoobee in Europe, including Amsterdam on December 2 and 3 and Berlin on December 6.