FRANKENMUTH, Mich. (AP) — Gretna Van Fleet never performed with the Grammy-winning rock band Greta Van Fleet, but her name became synonymous with their success. The 95-year-old Michigan woman passed away Monday at a senior living center in Frankenmuth, as reported in her obituary. This same community served as the birthplace of the band in 2012, when Van Fleet was in her 80s.
A Serendipitous Naming
In a 2019 interview with MLive.com, Van Fleet humorously recalled the band's decision 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." She added, "But later, when I met the boys, I said, 'That's OK.' But, no, they did not approach me to begin with."
Kyle Hauck, an early drummer for the band, has explained that a name was urgently needed for a local performance. He remembered his grandfather mentioning helping a friend named Gretna Van Fleet. The band dropped the 'n' from Gretna, and Greta Van Fleet was born.
Musical Legacy
Greta Van Fleet won a Grammy in 2019 for Best Rock Album for From The Fires and received other nominations that year. In 2024, their album Starcatcher was nominated for Best Album. Gretna Van Fleet's obituary notes she was "musically talented," playing saxophone, violin, tuba, and piano.
In the 2019 interview, she named "Flower Power" as her favorite song by the band, though she admitted, "There's a couple others that I like, but that's not really my style. It's not my era that they're making popular come back."
