Van Halen Drummer Alex Van Halen Knighted in the Netherlands

“I think institutions like this are important in people’s lives because it adds a dignity and a gravity to what we do,” said the musician

Alex Van Halen has been knighted as a member of the Order of the Netherlands Lion.

The legendary drummer received the country’s highest civilian honor in Nijmegen, where he and his brother Eddie grew up before moving to Los Angeles in 1962. During the ceremony, the characteristically humble Van Halen said, “My cousin organized most of this, but I’m very grateful. I think institutions like this are important in people’s lives because it adds a dignity and a gravity to what we do. Whether it’s actually deserved or not, that’s another question. But we can live up to it. That’s the whole thing, is you gotta have something to live up to.”

Van Halen shared photos on social media taken by the city of Nijmegen, which praised the musician’s remarkable career and bold sound that has inspired generations. The drummer was also pictured signing Nijmegen’s Book of the City, a register of notable figures including Bruce Springsteen and King Willem-Alexander.

In October 2024, Van Halen released the memoir Brothers, chronicling his life with Eddie from their childhood to the end of the original Van Halen lineup in 1984. “I was with him from day one,” Alex writes in the book. “We shared the experience of coming to this country and figuring out how to fit in. We shared a record player, an 800 square foot house, a mom and dad, and a work ethic. Later, we shared the back of a tour bus, alcoholism, the experience of becoming successful, of becoming fathers and uncles, and of spending more hours in the studio than I’ve spent doing anything else in this life. We shared a depth of understanding that most people can only hope to achieve in a lifetime.”

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