50 Fun Facts About Blink-182

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

It is a northern suburb of San Diego County, and Tom DeLonge was expelled from its high school for turning up drunk to a basketball game.

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

She was dating DeLonge's friend Kerry Key; Hoppus had just moved to town from Ridgecrest to work in a record store.

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

The label demanded they 'change the name or we'll change it for you', so they settled on a random number while skateboarding.

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

The trio had rehearsed in his bedroom; he was still a minor when the band signed its first contract, so only Hoppus could sign it.

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

He learned the 20-song set in 45 minutes before the first show and was a full member by July 1998.

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

It mixed originals with punk covers; the band regarded 1994's Buddha as their first legitimate release.

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

The sessions at Westbeach Recorders in Los Angeles mixed 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?

The label signed them on a 'trial basis' with help from a friend whose father ran it.

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

The members of Pennywise paid for their plane tickets on the Good Times tour.

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

The label promised complete artistic freedom; the punk community accused them of selling out anyway.

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

'Dammit' from that album became the band's first mainstream hit and shipped the record gold by 1998.

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

MTV News described him as part adviser, part impartial observer; he died of a cerebral hemorrhage.

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

The title, a pun on 'enemy of the state', reportedly came from DeLonge's diet worries at the time.

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

The band's total sits at about 50 million albums worldwide.

'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?

Two decades later his company To the Stars released Navy UFO footage that the Pentagon officially declassified in 2020.

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

It opened with 350,000 copies; Rolling Stone called it a concept album about adolescence.

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

DeLonge channelled chronic back pain from a herniated disc into it; the project stoked tensions with Hoppus.

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

Drawn by a famous graffiti artist, the logo was still on the physical editions of One More Time... twenty years later.

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

The same touring cycle took the band to play for troops in the Persian Gulf during the first year of the Iraq War.

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

DeLonge and Hoppus did not speak again until 2008.

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

Hoppus and Barker answered with one album as +44.

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

He and DJ AM were the only survivors; the crash prompted the meeting that led to the reunion.

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

Barker was not yet ready to fly, so Brooks Wackerman filled in for the European leg of the comeback tour.

Neighborhoods (2011) was notable as the band's first album without which collaborator since Dude Ranch?

The self-produced record still reached number two on the Billboard 200.

Which Alkaline Trio frontman replaced DeLonge from 2015 to 2022?

He was brought in to 'fill in' for three shows in March 2015 and stayed for two albums.

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

The Goldfinger frontman stayed on for Nine, which added outside co-writers.

California earned the band its first what?

'Bored to Death' became another Alternative Songs chart-topper and the album their second US number one, and first UK number one.

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

All Time Low is one of many bands that started out playing Blink-182 covers.

For Nine (2019) the band returned to a major label. Which one?

The same label 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?

It topped Billboard's Alternative Airplay chart for 13 weeks and was their first Hot 100 entry since 2016.

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

The others were Take Off Your Pants and Jacket and California; Barker produced it largely at his Woodland Hills compound.

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

The logo returned on the physical editions of One More Time...

The band's early tour van was nicknamed after which famous vehicle?

They bought it themselves for the tour that took them beyond San Diego's Elks Lodges and YMCA gigs.

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

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?

The band went on to be a fixture of that tour for years, on and off.

Travis Barker was born in which California city?

His mother gave him his first drum kit at four; Rolling Stone later called him punk's first superstar drummer.

Which clothing company did Travis Barker found in 1999?

Atticus and Macbeth were the band's other business ventures; the shows before them had helped bankroll all three.

Mark Hoppus's 2025 autobiography is titled what?

In it he claims original drummer Scott Raynor left voluntarily, contradicting the long-told story that he was fired.

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

He heard the band's sound in Fall Out Boy and the whole high-gloss generation that followed.

Why was Tom DeLonge expelled from his first high school?

He was sent to Rancho Bernardo High for a semester, where a Battle of the Bands introduced him to drummer Scott Raynor.

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

The film's bawdy humour matched the trio's reputation for juvenile antics, including a habit of running around nude.

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

The 1999 single became a Denver arena singalong two decades after its release.

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

The tour supported Take Off Your Pants and Jacket, and the relentless pace helped push DeLonge toward his Box Car Racer side project.

Which drummer covered the 20th Anniversary Tour because Travis Barker was not yet ready to fly?

Barker had survived a plane crash in 2008 and avoided air travel for years; the tour covered Europe, North America and Australia.

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

The tour came during what AllMusic called a period of 'growing evidence of remaining friction' between the members.

Which two punk bands were Hoppus and DeLonge particularly enamoured with growing up?

Both grew up on punk in a Southern California scene fed by surfing, skating and snowboarding culture.

What is the title of Travis Barker's memoir?

In it Barker claims DeLonge abruptly quit in mid-2014 and rejoined the very next day.

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

The bill also featured 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Jack White, Weezer and Idles, as the trio worked on new material.