Hootie & the Blowfish is an American soft rock band that was formed in Columbia, South Carolina, in 1986. The bands lineup for most of its existence has been the quartet of Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, and Jim Sonefeld. The band went on hiatus in 2008 until they announced plans for a full reunion tour in 2019 and released their first new studio album in fourteen years, Imperfect Circle.
The official story is that the band collectively decided to take a break in 2008. Darius Rucker, the lead singer of the band, announced in an AOL Sessions interview that the band would go on hiatus for several years so that he could pursue a solo career as a country music performer. Rucker confirmed that the band would still perform their scheduled charity concerts, but added that they would not record or tour. However, Rucker later clarified that the band was not splitting up.
According to an article in Esquire, the band never officially broke up, but in 2008 they announced what would become a decade-long hiatus, ostensibly so lead singer Darius Rucker could pursue a solo career as a country music performer. Meanwhile, the band was on a dark path of substance abuse.
