Ongoing History Daily: Dave Grohl’s first royalty cheque

Dave Grohl started playing drums professionally when he was just 17. He went through the usual indignities of being in struggling bands: touring in a crowded, crappy van, sleeping on the floors at fans’ houses, bad food, and playing gigs in weird places. It wasn’t until he joined Nirvana that he actually got a significant cheque.

It was for $400, which, to Dave was a fortune. He immediately went out and bought some of the things he wanted as a kid but could never afford. He bought himself a Nintendo and a BB gun. Within a week, all the money was gone and he was back to eating corndogs from 7-11 twice a day.

It’s safe to say that those days are far behind him. He’s also much more careful with his money.