Google has dropped their “Year in Search 2024,” breaking down the biggest search terms of the year, and two rock acts turned up. It might not entirely be for positive reasons, however. Both Foo Fighter’s frontman Dave Grohl and Linkin Park were major Google searches this year.
When it comes to Grohl, his search results are almost definitely due to his announcement that he fathered a child outside of his marriage. The Foo Fighters singer/guitarist has been married to Jordyn Blum since 2003, and the pair share three daughters. In September, Grohl revealed that he was a father, again, of a baby girl with a woman whom he’d allegedly had an affair with.
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“I love my wife and children, and I am doing everything I can to regain their trust and earn their forgiveness,” Grohl wrote in a social media post. While the former Nirvana drummer and his family have remained quiet since the announcement. There have been reports that he and Blum could divorce.
As for Linkin Park, their Google search results are likely two-fold, but with an important connector: new singer Emily Armstrong. Also unveiled in September, the nu-metal icons announced that Armstrong — co-founder of the band Dead Sara — would be their new co-vocalist and that they were releasing a new album, From Zero, which is out now, as well as a world tour. The news came seven years after the death of the band’s longtime vocalist Chester Bennington.
Obviously, a new frontwoman, album, and tour are enough to drive a lot of Google searches, but the added layer is that it was quickly learned that Armstrong has ties to the Church of Scientology and that she had been a supporter of Danny Masterson during his rape trial.
In response to the claims, Armstrong took to social media to offer her side of the story, explaining in part: “Several years ago, I was asked to support someone I considered a friend at a court appearance, and went to one early hearing as an observer. Soon after, I realized I shouldn’t have. I always try to see the good in people, and I misjudged him. I have never spoken with him since.”
Here’s to hoping 2025 brings Google search results for some big-name bands that aren’t related to adultery or sexual assault… but that might be too much to ask.