Fans were outraged that the teenager had been brought in to replace Michael Anthony, who'd fallen foul of Eddie Van Halen's wrath.

The issue escalated after the band airbrushed Anthony out of album covers on their website, and used Wolfgang's likeness in their Guitar Hero computer game to perform songs written before he'd been born.

Announcing he's become a full-time member of Mark Tremonti's band, the 21-year-old tells Billboard: "There's definitely a lot of hate out there that I try not to acknowledge. It's definitely intimidating as a 16-year-old to have the world hating on you and saying you're only in because it's your dad's band.