The Michigan woman whose name inspired the Grammy-winning rock band Greta Van Fleet has died at the age of 95. Gretna Van Fleet passed away Monday at a senior living center in Frankenmuth, Michigan, according to her obituary. The band was formed in the same community in 2012, when Van Fleet was in her 80s.
A Name Born from a Local Connection
Gretna Van Fleet never played music with the band, but she became an integral part of their story. In a 2019 interview with MLive.com ahead of the band's appearance on "Saturday Night Live," she joked about how the band came to use her name.
"I think they checked out my background to make sure I wasn't on the Ten Most Wanted list or something, and they went ahead with it," Van Fleet said. "But later, when I met the boys, I said, 'That's OK.' But, no, they did not approach me to begin with."
Kyle Hauck, a drummer in the band's early days, has shared the story of how the name was chosen. He recalled hearing his grandfather talk about helping a friend named Gretna Van Fleet. Something clicked, and the band dropped the 'n' in Gretna, creating the name Greta Van Fleet.
A Musical Legacy
The band went on to win a Grammy in 2019 for Best Rock Album for "From The Fires" and received other nominations that year. Their album "Starcatcher" was nominated for Best Album in 2024. Gretna Van Fleet's obituary notes that she was "musically talented," playing saxophone, violin, tuba, and piano. She told MLive.com that her favorite song by the band was "Flower Power."
"There's a couple others that I like, but that's not really my style," Van Fleet said of the music. "It's not my era that they're making popular come back."
