Sammy Hagar has addressed why he now considers himself finished being known primarily as “the Van Halen guy,” speaking on Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk.
The singer explained that he will continue to include some Van Halen material in his shows. He views his recent Best of All Worlds project as a one-time undertaking rather than an ongoing commitment. Even so, he continues to balance that legacy with a desire to pursue new creative work.
“I’m kind of done with being the Van Halen Guy,” Hagar said. “I’ll always keep some of it in my show. The Van Halen thing was supposed to be once, and that was in 2024.”
Hagar went on to discuss the pull between honoring that history and following his own artistic ambitions.
“I want to do so many things. I don’t want to just go out there and just do Van Halen,” he continued. “But Mike and I are kind of obligated. I like it, but I feel like I owe my old fans more than that.”
He then turned to a long-running personal project that predates his time with Van Halen entirely.
“I wrote this space opera when I left Montrose in 1975. Every album I ever did had a space song on it,” Hagar said. “These are part of my rock opera, and I want to do it, I really do.”
That sense of obligation becomes clearer when looking at how deeply the Best of All Worlds run has leaned into Van Halen’s catalog since it began.
The tour launched in 2024 alongside longtime bandmate Michael Anthony and guitarist Joe Satriani. It has continued well into 2026, with dates stretching from a Las Vegas residency to a broader run of shows and even Hagar’s first UK performance in more than three decades. Kenny Aronoff and keyboardist Spider Cherry round out the band, giving the project the feel of a full-circle reunion of Hagar’s Van Halen-era rhythm section.
The setlists tell the story of just how central Van Halen remains to the show. Nights typically open with a stretch of Van Hagar staples like “Why Can’t This Be Love,” “Top of the World,” “Runaround” and “Best of Both Worlds,” before widening out into deeper cuts. Michael Anthony has taken lead vocals on “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” during several performances. The band has occasionally dusted off rarities such as “Mine All Mine” and Chickenfoot’s “Soap on a Rope” for the first time in years.
Hagar and company average around 18 songs a night, split between Van Halen classics, Montrose tracks, Chickenfoot cuts and solo hits. That volume of Van Halen material across two years of touring underscores why Hagar feels he has fulfilled his commitment to that chapter of his career. He now appears ready to step back from it.
Hagar’s comments about moving on carry extra weight against that backdrop. Hagar has spent more than two years reviving the Van Hagar era on stage. He now appears ready to redirect his energy toward the space opera he first conceived decades ago, treating Best of All Worlds as a closed chapter rather than a permanent fixture of his live show.
