Hootie and the Blowfish

Friends

Hootie and the Blowfish

On August 27, 2008, Hootie frontman Darius Rucker announced in an AOL Sessions interview that Hootie and the Blowfish would be splitting so Rucker could pursue his solo career as a country music performer. Although the band will no longer be recording or touring, Rucker confirmed they will still perform their scheduled charity concerts stating, "We have four charity gigs every year and we will still do them, but we will not do a record or tour." Rucker also said that the split will last "for five or six years, or until I record three or four country albums". He later amended his statement, saying "To be honest with you, we're not even split up right now, and we're not really thinking about splitting up."
Hootie and the Blowfish reunited to do a special show at Incirlik Air base in Turkey on 18 October 2008 to show their support to the troops.
The band's name comes from two of frontman Darius Rucker's college choir friends, neither of whom was ever a band member. One, with a round face and glasses, was nicknamed Hootie because of his perceived owl-like appearance. The Blowfish, also got his nickname from his facial appearance, in his case chubby cheeks. Rucker is often
Hootie & The Blowfish have became known not only for their music, but also for their charity work. Most notably, recently, Hootie brought their entire band and crew down to New Orleans for five days of building houses in Musicians' Village, on October 16-20, 2006. The band's members are avid golfers, and have sponsored the annual spring Monday After the Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament, benefiting charities, since 1995.