Bizarre conspiracy theories are nothing new, and the music world is not exempt from them. From rumors about Elvis Presley still being alive to Tupac secretly living in Cuba, or Paul McCartney dying before The Beatles recorded Abbey Road and being impersonated by an impostor for decades, the theories seem endless. The latest in this line of speculation? Some conspiracy theorists are now claiming that Wolfgang Van Halen, son of the legendary Eddie Van Halen, actually died as a child.
Recently, Wolfgang himself addressed this conspiracy on his Instagram. He shared a screenshot of a post where a conspiracist confidently asserts that the guitarist "died as a toddler." Wolfgang responded with a touch of sarcasm, captioning the post with, "Chat, am I alive?"
"This is getting ridiculous," reads the original post. "I know for a fact that Wolfgang Van Halen died as a toddler. But now they are showing him as grown and alive."
The conspiracist goes on to claim that Wolfgang is actually "Valerie Bertinelli and Van Halen's son who fell from a balcony and died many years ago." This mix-up seems to confuse Wolfgang's life story with that of another famous guitarist, Eric Clapton, whose son Conor tragically died in a fall from a New York apartment building in 1991. Eddie Van Halen, however, has no such tragedy in his past.
Fans of Wolfgang quickly picked up on the error, with one commenter humorously noting the confusion by referencing Clapton's famous song "Tears In Heaven", with a pun: "Tears In Halen".
Rather than dwell on the somber implications of the mix-up, Wolfgang encourages his followers to join him in laughing off the absurdity of it all. "Guys we know they're confusing me for Clapton's kid," he wrote, urging his fans to focus on "[making] fun of this stupid person with me."
The reaction from most fans has been lighthearted, with many playing along with the conspiracy. "It's official dude… Sorry, you got the news late," one fan jokingly commented. Another added, "You know you're famous when you're ‘dead' when you're absolutely not."
