Wolf Van Halen Celebrates One Year of 'Distance': 'I Hope You're Still Proud, Pop'

Wolf previously told PEOPLE, "What really helps me keep going is my dad"

Wolf Van Halen and Eddie Van Halen. Photo: Wolfgang Van Halen/Instagram

Wolf Van Halen is making his late father proud.

On Tuesday, Wolf celebrated the first anniversary of the lead single "Distance," from his debut album. The single also marked the first release by his band, Mammoth WVH — and paid tribute to his relationship with his late father, Eddie Van Halen, who died on Oct. 6, 2020 after battling lung cancer for several years. He was 65.

Wolf, 30, shared a screenshot on Instagram from the music video which plays home videos of his family growing up. Alongside the photo of Wolf as a young boy with his father, he reflected on the inspiration behind the song.

"'Distance' released a year ago today. It's a special song for two very important reasons. A song commemorating my Pop and our bond, as well as being the very first Mammoth release," he wrote. "It marks the beginning of a new chapter in my life in more ways than one."

He continued, "I never could've imagined the overwhelming outpour of responses from something so close to my heart. It blew me away."

Wolf then went on to thank his fans for their support, "I just wanted to take this moment to thank you all for listening and for the amazing support you've given me and Mammoth this past year. You have no idea how much it means to me. Thank you 🙏."

The musician closed with a special note to his father.

"I hope you're watching and I hope you're still proud, Pop. I love and miss you more than you could ever know ❤️," he wrote.

In October, Wolf shared a touching letter to his father to commemorate the first anniversary of his death — and wrote he was "not OK."

"One year. You fought so hard for so long but you were still taken away," Wolf wrote. "It's just so unfair."

"I'm not OK. I don't think I'll ever be OK," he continued. "There's so much I wish I could show you. So many things I wish I could share with you. I wish I could laugh with you again. I wish I could hug you again. I miss you so much it hurts."

He ended the note by writing: "I'm trying to do my best here without you, but it's really f—ing hard. I hope you're still proud. I love you with all of my heart, Pop. Watch over me."

Ahead of the release of his debut record Mammoth WVH, he told PEOPLE in June that Eddie was the "only thing that keeps me going."

Wolf Van Halen and Eddie Van Halen. Ethan Miller/Getty

"What really helps me keep going is my dad, because if I just gave up and stopped and crawled in a hole, which I feel like doing every day, I know he'd be really pissed off at me," he said. "He's the only thing that keeps me going."

"It's really tough," he added. "I guess I'm a good actor when it comes to pretending that everything is okay. But it's really not."

Since kicking off his solo career as Mammoth WVH, Wolf released his debut album and recently concluded an opening tour with Guns 'N' Roses. He's now set to kick off his Young Guns tour with the band Dirty Honey in 2022.