There are so many amazing artists performing at the 2016 Grammys. Adele, Rihanna, Bonnie Raitt, John Legend, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood and James Bay are all confirmed to take the stage — just to name a few. But out of all of the big names, there’s one band that has us champing at the bit to watch live, and that’s the Hollywood Vampires.
The announcement that the legendary combo of Johnny Depp, Alice Cooper and Joe Perry will be making its television debut at the Grammy ceremony on Monday night has left us asking, “How the heck haven’t we heard more about this band before?”
Here’s what you need to know about Hollywood Vampires.
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1. They were founded to honor rock history
The original Hollywood Vampires were a group started by Cooper in the ’70s. Though the OG vampires were comprised of rock ‘n roll royalty such as Cooper, Keith Moon, Harry Nilsson and sometimes John Lennon and Ringo Star, their goal was not to make music. Instead the ’70s version of Hollywood Vampires liked to hang out and drink. Cooper started the new Hollywood Vampires to pay homage to his buddies that had all met untimely deaths back in the day. There’s even a song on their self-titled album called “My Dead Drunk Friends.”
“These are historical characters,” Cooper told Rolling Stone of his fallen comrades. “When you’re talking about a John Lennon, that goes beyond being a guy you drank with and into Abraham Lincoln. You’re over the sadness of it, and you’re now going, ‘All right, if John were here, what would he do?'”
2. They’ve already been playing shows for a while
Depp, Cooper and Perry have played a handful of shows in Hollywood and also hit the stage for Rock in Rio last fall. Though the the group didn’t officially form until 2015, the guys have been messing around on stage together as far back as 2011, like in the video below.
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3. Their shows often have amazing cameo appearances
It’s not uncommon for the likes of Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction or Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello to hop up on stage with Depp, Cooper and Perry.
4. Guest appearances on their record read like a Who’s Who of rock
Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Slash and Joe Walsh all showed up to the studio to record with Hollywood Vampires.
5. They might not get to do an official tour together
“It’s gonna be a matter of schedules,” Perry answered when asked if Hollywood Vampires could do a large-scale tour, according to radio.com. “Johnny’s schedule runs differently than ours. He has to promote [his films]. He has some movies coming out that are really good.”
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6. But they will headline Rock Fest 2016
On Feb. 5, Hollywood Vampires announced on their website that they, along with Slipknot and Alice in Chains, will headline this year’s festival held in Wisconsin in July. Pre-sale tickets sold out in less than two hours.
7. They do a mean version of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love”
They’re not Zeppelin, but this cover is still pretty awesome.
Are you excited to see Hollywood Vampires perform at the 2016 Grammys?
Before you go, check out our slideshow below.
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