50 Fun Facts About Blink-182

Blink-182 formed in 1992 in which Southern California suburb?

Poway, a suburb north of San Diego, is where Hoppus, DeLonge and their first drummer started playing together in August 1992, naming the band Blink before the number was added.

Mark Hoppus was introduced to Tom DeLonge in August 1992 by whom?

The bassist's sister, Anne Hoppus, was dating DeLonge's friend Kerry Key and introduced them in August 1992; Mark had just moved from Ridgecrest to work in a record store.

Why did the trio tack '182' onto their original moniker in 1995?

An Irish group already called Blink objected and threatened legal action, so in 1995 the band added 182, a number Hoppus has described as essentially random.

Which drummer played on Cheshire Cat and Dude Ranch before being replaced in 1998?

Scott Raynor, the original drummer, played on Cheshire Cat and Dude Ranch; the band dismissed him mid-tour in 1998, partly over his drinking.

Travis Barker was drumming for which tour-mate band when he first filled in for Blink-182?

The Aquabats were touring with Blink-182 in early 1998, and their drummer Travis Barker learned the set in about 45 minutes to fill in; he became a full member later that year.

The band's early demo Flyswatter was recorded in May 1993 where?

Scott Raynor's bedroom held the four-track on which Flyswatter was taped in May 1993, mixing originals with punk covers; the band counted 1994's Buddha as its first real release.

How long did it take to record the debut album Cheshire Cat at Westbeach Recorders?

Cheshire Cat was cut in just 3 days in late 1994 at Westbeach Recorders in Los Angeles, mixing new songs with re-recorded demo tracks; 'M+M's' became the first single.

Which independent San Diego label released the band's first two albums via Grilled Cheese?

Cargo Records, a San Diego independent, signed the band on a 'trial basis' and issued Cheshire Cat through its Grilled Cheese imprint in February 1995.

Which country embraced the band early on, so much that they toured there before they could afford the flights?

Australia took to the band first, through skate and surf videos that used their songs; their first overseas tour was there in 1996, playing with Pennywise.

The 1996 bidding war for the band came down to Interscope, Epitaph and which label, which won?

MCA Records won the 1996 bidding war by promising the band complete artistic freedom, though parts of the punk scene accused them of selling out anyway.

Who produced Dude Ranch over about a month in late 1996?

Mark Trombino, the former Drive Like Jehu drummer, produced Dude Ranch at Big Fish Studios in Encinitas in late 1996; 'Dammit' became the band's first mainstream hit.

Which producer worked with the band from Enema of the State until his death in 2008?

Jerry Finn produced Enema of the State, Take Off Your Pants and Jacket and the 2003 untitled album; he died in August 2008 after a brain hemorrhage, aged 39.

Who appears in a nurse's uniform on the cover of Enema of the State?

Adult film actress Janine Lindemulder posed as the nurse on the Enema of the State cover; later pressings changed her red-cross insignia after the Red Cross objected.

Roughly how many copies has Enema of the State sold worldwide?

15 million worldwide copies is the figure usually cited for Enema of the State, which went five-times platinum in the US and made Blink-182 a mainstream act.

'What's My Age Again?' was originally titled what?

The song catalogues Hoppus's refusal to grow up; the label thought the original title too obscure.

Which Enema of the State track reflects Tom DeLonge's fascination with UFOs and government cover-ups?

Aliens Exist, on Enema of the State, came straight from DeLonge's UFO obsession; in 2017 his To the Stars Academy published Navy cockpit footage the Pentagon formally released in 2020.

Take Off Your Pants and Jacket (2001) achieved which chart milestone?

Take Off Your Pants and Jacket became the first punk album to top the US Billboard 200, opening with about 350,000 copies in June 2001.

Which post-hardcore side project did DeLonge and Barker release an album with in 2002?

Box Car Racer, DeLonge's darker side project with Barker and guitarist David Kennedy, released its only album in May 2002; leaving Hoppus out bred lasting tension.

The 2003 untitled album introduced which new band logo on its cover?

A smiley face with arrow eyes and a dashed mouth was designed for the 2003 untitled album's cover and became the band's lasting emblem, reused on 2023's One More Time...

Which two singles led the untitled album's more emo direction?

Feeling This and I Miss You opened the untitled album's campaign in late 2003; the same touring cycle included a show for troops on an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf.

In what year did a press statement announce the band's 'indefinite hiatus'?

2005 is when a February press statement from Geffen called the split an 'indefinite hiatus'; DeLonge and Hoppus barely spoke until Barker's plane crash in September 2008 brought them back together.

Which band did DeLonge form after quitting Blink-182, describing it as a 'multimedia project'?

Angels & Airwaves, which DeLonge launched after leaving the band and billed as a 'multimedia project' of music and film, released We Don't Need to Whisper in 2006; Hoppus and Barker answered with one album as +44.

The 2008 plane crash Travis Barker survived left how many survivors in total?

Two people survived, Barker and DJ AM Adam Goldstein, both badly burned; the four others aboard the Learjet died when it crashed on takeoff in South Carolina in September 2008.

Where did the reunited trio first appear together in public in February 2009?

Presenting at the Grammy Awards on 8 February 2009, Hoppus, DeLonge and Barker walked out together and told the crowd they were playing music together again; a reunion tour followed that summer.

Which 2011 album was the band's first after the 2009 reunion?

Neighborhoods, released in September 2011, was Blink-182's first album after the reunion; the band produced it themselves, recording largely in separate studios and trading files.

Which Alkaline Trio frontman replaced DeLonge from 2015 to 2022?

Matt Skiba was brought in to 'fill in' for three Musink festival shows in March 2015 and stayed for the California and Nine albums until DeLonge's return in 2022.

Who produced California (2016), the band's first new producer in years?

John Feldmann, the Goldfinger frontman, produced California in 2016 in sessions that yielded dozens of songs, and returned for 2019's Nine, which added outside co-writers.

California earned the band its first what?

Grammy nomination for Best Rock Album at the 2017 ceremony was a first for the band; California also gave them a second US number one and a first UK number one.

Which spin-off duo did Hoppus form in 2018 with All Time Low's Alex Gaskarth?

Simple Creatures, the duo Hoppus and All Time Low's Alex Gaskarth unveiled in early 2019, released the EPs Strange Love and Everything Opposite that year; All Time Low began as a Blink-182 covers band.

Which major label released the band's 2019 album Nine?

Columbia Records signed the band in 2019 after California's run on BMG; Nine came out that September, and the label also released One More Time... in 2023.

In June 2021 Mark Hoppus revealed he was being treated for what?

The diagnosis, stage 4 diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, brought DeLonge back to the table; Hoppus was declared cancer-free later that year.

Which single accompanied the October 2022 announcement of DeLonge's return?

Edging, released in October 2022 alongside the announcement of DeLonge's return and a world tour, topped Billboard's Alternative Airplay chart and led off One More Time...

One More Time... (2023) was the band's how-manieth number-one album on the Billboard 200?

Third: Take Off Your Pants and Jacket (2001) and California (2016) had already topped the Billboard 200, and One More Time..., produced by Barker, debuted at number one in October 2023.

Which graffiti artist drew the band's signature smiley logo?

Eric Haze, the New York graffiti artist who also did logo and lettering work for the Beastie Boys, drew the smiley for the 2003 untitled album's cover.

Which Enema of the State track grew out of a teenager's suicide note Hoppus read?

Adam's Song, written by Hoppus about loneliness on tour, took its framing from a teenager's suicide note he read in a magazine; it followed 'All the Small Things' as an Enema of the State single in 2000.

To land gigs at high schools, DeLonge pitched the group as what?

A motivational band with a strong anti-drug message was DeLonge's pitch to school officials to get the trio onto high-school stages; he also rang San Diego clubs constantly, angling for any open slot.

Kevin Lyman was told to sign them for the 1996 edition of which touring festival?

Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman added the band to the 1996 line-up; Blink-182 became a fixture of the skate-punk festival, returning to headline in 1999 and at its 2019 anniversary shows.

Travis Barker was born in which California city?

Fontana, in San Bernardino County, is where Barker was born in November 1975; his mother gave him his first drum kit at four, and Rolling Stone later called him punk's first superstar drummer.

Which clothing company did Travis Barker found in 1999?

Famous Stars and Straps, Barker's streetwear label, launched in 1999; DeLonge and Hoppus later co-founded Atticus Clothing, and DeLonge started Macbeth Footwear.

Mark Hoppus's 2025 autobiography is titled what?

Fahrenheit-182, published in April 2025 and co-written with Dan Ozzi, covers Hoppus's Ridgecrest childhood, the band's rise and break-ups, and his 2021 cancer treatment.

Which NYT critic wrote in 2011 that "no punk band of the 1990s has been more influential than Blink-182"?

Jon Caramanica of The New York Times wrote it in 2011, hearing the band's sound in Fall Out Boy and the high-gloss pop-punk generation that followed.

Why was Tom DeLonge expelled from his first high school?

Being drunk at a basketball game got DeLonge expelled from his first high school; he spent a semester at Rancho Bernardo High, where a Battle of the Bands introduced him to the band's first drummer.

In which 1999 teen comedy did the band make a cameo appearance?

American Pie features the trio in a cameo, watching the webcam broadcast from Jim's room; the film's bawdy humour matched the band's reputation for nude antics.

Which NHL team adopted 'All the Small Things' as its theme song in 2019?

Colorado Avalanche fans began belting out 'All the Small Things' at Denver home games in 2019, making the 1999 single an arena anthem twenty years after its release.

With which band did blink-182 co-headline the Pop Disaster Tour in 2002?

Green Day co-headlined the Pop Disaster Tour with Blink-182 from April to June 2002, with Jimmy Eat World opening; the Blink DVD Riding in Vans with Boys documented the run.

Which drummer filled in for Travis Barker on the Soundwave festival dates in 2013?

Brooks Wackerman of Bad Religion sat in for the February 2013 Soundwave dates because Barker, who survived a 2008 plane crash, would not fly; Barker first flew again in 2021.

Which band joined blink-182 in headlining the 10th Honda Civic Tour in 2011?

My Chemical Romance co-headlined the 10th Honda Civic Tour with Blink-182 across North America from August to October 2011, with Matt and Kim and Manchester Orchestra among the openers.

Which song on the 2003 untitled album features The Cure's Robert Smith?

All of This, on the 2003 untitled album, features The Cure's Robert Smith singing with Hoppus; the band had long cited The Cure as a key influence.

What is the title of Travis Barker's memoir?

Can I Say, written with Gavin Edwards and published in October 2015, covers Barker's drug addiction, the 2008 plane crash and the band's breakups.

Which Chicago festival did blink-182 co-headline in September 2025?

Riot Fest, Chicago's punk-leaning September festival, put blink-182 atop its 2025 bill alongside Weezer, Jack White and 'Weird Al' Yankovic.