AS A CHILD, MTV WAS MY NEWS,' Annakim Violette WROTE IN A SERIES OF TOUCHING TRIBUTES
In the wake of Tom Petty's death at the age of 66 early Tuesday morning, a torrent of tributes to the star have rolled in on social media. The ones from Petty's classic-rock contemporaries — like Ringo Starr and Steven Van Zandt — are perhaps most expected, but it's also notable that generations of younger artists have shared their love, too, including Lorde, Kesha, and Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig.
As we know by now, whenever a beloved artist dies, these social remembrances are an important part of the grieving process. But the ritual takes on a more specific, personal meaning when family members begin sharing theirs.
Petty's daughter AnnaKim Violette posted throughout the day on Monday when her father was in the hospital, culminating in a beautiful series honoring him in perhaps the most fitting way: as a cultural icon.
- She shouted out how "surreal" it was to see her father on MTV, which was, as she said, "my news."In the 1985 video for "Don't Come Around Here No More," Petty plays the Mad Hatter in a trippy Alice in Wonderful retelling.
- "My dad had matching stage clothes made for me as a kid.""When I got the call to come to the hospital I grabbed this jacket and I'm still wearing it," Violette wrote about the matching ensemble Petty sometimes wore onstage himself.
- "Twin Stars"
- "I love you dad," she wrote. "Your songs are dreams manifested."
See the rest of Violette's remembrances via her Instagram page.
