The 20-year-old Violet Grohl recently brought her headlining tour to The Atlantis in DC. For artists with parents in the same industry, it is often an uphill battle to emerge from the shadow of that legacy set before them. The “nepo baby” title has become a pervasive tag, demanding that artists justify their art with a much greater rigor than their peers. Yet, Violet Grohl has shown herself to be a musician worthy of her place.
In support of her critically acclaimed debut album, Be Sweet To Me, released on May 29, the evening delivered a short introduction into the live skills of Grohl. By keeping the setlist short, only playing 14 songs, including one cover, and not including an opener on this tour, Grohl kept this focused solely on her skill to carry a show on June 6. Playing this 45-minute set left DC with a short intro to the artist; the audience wanted to hear and learn more. It was almost an elevator pitch to an inevitable breakout artist.
And for an artist currently garnering millions of streams on her debut album, booking The Atlantis and other similar venues across the USA may seem strange. But in this smaller venue with a shorter set, it was truly a litmus test to see if Grohl could show off her musical talent. The audience at the show reflected a transitional phase in Violet Grohl’s career. On one hand was a visible crowd of Gen X alt-rock fans drawn to the 1990s sound. On the other hand, the crowd was also populated by a large number of Gen Z fans who discovered her moody singles via the algorithm or through curated Spotify concert recommendations. The older demographic was there to evaluate the authenticity of the grunge revival, while the younger crowd was there to bring the energy and intensity.
Dressed entirely in black, Grohl emerged from behind the curtain like a rockstar. She planted herself behind the microphone stand and opened with the song “Bug In The Cake,” allowing her strong vocals to immediately capture the attention. The set quickly transitioned to more punk-sounding cuts.
Watch the official music video for “Bug in the Cake” by Violet Grohl on YouTube:
Drummer Anthony Lopez set an incredible tone for each song, pounding at his drumkit with an unmatched command. Bassist Ainjel Emme was clearly engaged with the audience all night, anchoring down the rhythm. Guitarists Salar Rajabnik and Tim Gray were the perfect duo and worked in tandem to intertwine incredibly complex layers of instrumentation. One of their most impressive displays of collective synergy came during “Big Memory,” where Grohl and all band members shared duties and came together on a five-part harmony.
The instrumental performance was absolutely incredible, but unfortunately, in some instances left the audience struggling to discern Grohl’s voice from the noise. However, she made sure she was heard loud and clear during a break in the set when she said DC was her whole heart and soul, acknowledging her family’s deep roots in the DMV area.
Grohl is uniquely in a position at the center of the current evolution of alt-rock. The appeal for authentic, slightly abrasive guitar has returned, largely driven by the exhaustion of the synthetic, highly polished production that has dominated the music industry in the past decade. She is right at that gap, bridging a historical comeback and a modern innovation of the genre.
While her lineage undoubtedly provided the initial platform and assistance in the studio, the performance showed off her talent in a way that confirmed her artistic prowess is entirely self-made. Grohl’s stage presence was characterized by a detached confidence, not something I am particularly a fan of, but suited to some of the deep topics she sang about.
Setlist:
Bug In The Cake
THUM
Last Day I Loved You
Cool Buzz
Stimulant Breakfast
Big Memory
Mobile Star
Applefish
Sun Is Blind
Transdermal Celebration (Ween Cover)
Swallowtail
595
Often Others
Plastic Couch
All photographs from Violet Grohl’s performance at The Atlantis on June 6, 2026, are copyright and courtesy of Caden Forrester (@flicksby4ster).
