BY MIKEY MIGO
Everyone knows that one kid who is all but forced into the family business. It may be a storefront, a fortune 500 company, or even a trade like carpenter. That might be you, a friend, or your personal savior but this is a situation that has happened for countless years.
Now what if your parent was a huge rockstar? Would you even attempt to try to fill those shoes? Granted you may love music and want to do your own thing, there's no way in hell that your parent's success won't come up. The level of their success will always hang over your head and hold you in the shadows. Unless there's a possibility that you somehow overshadow your rockstar parent's success, there's nothing much you can do about it.
This is not fair at all, but we're a celebrity-fueled civilization. We also like to compare things, merit the comparison or not. Sadly, the biggest thing some aspiring musicians will accomplish in the eyes of the masses is just "being someone's kid". The chances of stardom being in your blood are about the same as being born with three ears. If you're born with three ears, I feel for your children…
Spawn : Jakob Dylan
Parent : Bob Dylan
When your dad is Bob Dylan you're going to have a rough time getting much attention of your own. Then when one of your big singles is "Heroes", a David Bowie cover you're not doing much good for yourself. Maybe his plan wasn't to "break out on his own", but rather just do his own thing but let's be realistic here. Was he trying to get a "oh man! he's SO old school!" thing going? That didn't work at all. "One Headlight" was a pretty big hit and is still a song that one can enjoy, but needless to say his father is much more known. He's been making the rounds to Bonnaroo, Summerfest, and Austin City Limits Festival this summer and seems to be on the rise again as "Jakob Dylan and the Gold Mountain Rebels". I've not heard anyone around me even mention the band "The Wallflowers" so I don't know what's up. A quick search online revealed that they played a few shows in April, lost their keyboardist, and do a lot of covers.
Expectations : Success? Yes. Hall of Fame? No.
Spawn : Jason Bonham
Parent : John Bonham
John Bonham was one of the best and most known drummers of all time. If you don't know that John Bonham is the late drummer of Led Zeppelin then I'm not sure if you're a music fan at all. Still, Jason, his son has had plenty of his own success. He was the drummer for UFO, Foreigner, and other acts. Jason has proven himself to be one of the best drummers out there today, but his father had Zeppelin. That's something that barely ANYONE can hold a candle to. The recent Led Zeppelin show at the O2 in London featured Jason taking the seat behind the stacks. I'm sure if you're a fan like I am you've read the reviews and know that he did his father's legacy more than justice.
Expectations : If Zeppelin does tour again, it's very likely that Jason will step in to play drums. He's not trying to recreate the wheel, but he's very capable of playing the music he's heard his entire life.
Spawn : Wolfgang Van Halen
Parent : Eddie Van Halen
Take 25 years of Rock and Roll Legacy, controversy, and some of the biggest hits in music history and you get Van Halen. Being a fan of the band can sometimes be rough due to the members changing, but you'll always have Eddie Van Halen. To many people out there Eddie is one of the best guitar players of all time. He's held in the same regards as Hendrix, Clapton, and King. That's a lot of pressure to put on someone, but Eddie has kicked ass and done some magical things with the stringed axe. His son, Wolfgang Van Halen recently joined the band on tour to step in on bass. I've not seen it life myself, but I've heard nothing but good things about the guy. Touring with Van Halen sounds crazy enough, but being on stage night in and night out is amazing. Good for him. I'm sure this experience will only help him in the future.
Expectations : He's got a long way to go to live up to his dad's legend, but is still very young and has nothing but potential.
Spawn : Robin Thicke
Parent : Alan Thicke
Yep, I'm going old school 80's with some love for "Growing Pains". Little do many people know (or care), but "Jason Seaver", the dad was also a singer. In fact, if you're a fan of the shows "Diff'rent Strokes" or "Facts of Life" then you've heard his work already. He wasn't a rockstar persae, but he DID make music and was famous; just not famous for music. Yet, Robin has grown quite famous all because of it. Robin was interested in R&B and Soul at an early age and at start was known simply as "Thicke". He had a pretty big hit in 2002 with "When I Get You Alone". At the time he was grungy with longish hair and to me he actually had more personality than his more recent transformation. He cut his hair and blew up to a R&B superstar. He's recently been nominated for "Male Artist of the Year" at the VMAs, he's gotten noms from BET, and even Soul Train. He's not had that super hit like a "Bringing Sexy Back" or anything like that, but he's on track to continue his "evolution" without having to worry about any shadows of his father.
Expectations : He's surpassed his father by far in the music world, but in pop culture his dad will always be my favorite stay at home psychiatrist.
Spawn : P. Exeter Blue I
Parent : Cher
I know what you're thinking and I'm sure you're not a lone. Who the hell is "P. Exeter Blue I" you ask? It's the lead vocalist for the electro-rock band "DEADSY". If you don't remember the song "The Key To Gramercy Park" then you probably don't remember the band too much. It's sorta like Orgy meets old 30 Seconds to Mars(pre-emo). I'm a casual fan of the music, but I know it's not for everyone. A distinct and currently not-so-accepted genre is one thing, but his parents are another. First, Gregg Allman is his father. "The Allman Brothers" was obviously a popular rock band. Then you toss in the fact that his mother is Cher. It's Cher. I don't think I need to say much about her. You know how successful and known she is and if not, then really? Go read a tabloid. It's been recently said that Elijah will be recording a solo album under the name "Elijah Blue and the Trapezoids". Hopefully it works out for him and it brings in some bigger success.
Expectations : I can't recall him ever being disrespectful about his roots, but I'm sure he has been asked, mocked, and singled out about it many times. He's doing his own thing.
Surely, I missed someone on the list. I know there is Master P's son "Romeo", the Zappas, John Lennon's sons, and a slew of others. Still, this isn't a research project. It's a discussion.
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