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Hootie's Rucker Explains Foray Into R&B, Vows Never To Leave Blowfish
03/28/2002 1:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Jerry Armor
(3/28/02, 1 p.m. ET) -- Darius Rucker, the lead singer of the 20-million-record-selling rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, has put his R&B chops to work for his solo debut, Back To Then, which is scheduled to be released on May 28 on Hidden Beach, which is also label home to neo-soul forerunner Jill Scott.
Rucker, who was offered lucrative deals from several record companies, spoke to LAUNCH about his decision to join the Hidden Beach family. "The record business right now is so hit and miss," he said. "If your first single doesn't do it, then everybody's ready to bail on you. And if it doesn't do it in the first week, they're ready to bail on you. I just wanted to be with someone who really understood music, and was willing to be in it for the whole ride. Whether it's a ride to 20 million or a ride to 20,000, I knew they would be in for the whole ride."
Picking the right label was critical for Rucker, since Back To Then marks his foray into R&B music, featuring production by A Touch Of Jazz and Ryan Toby from City High, as well as collaborations with Snoop Dogg, Scott, Musiq, and Jimmy Cozier.
Rucker admits he was initially nervous about recording an R&B album, even though Al Green, Otis Redding, and Gladys Knight are among his influences. "When I started to make this record, you know, you worry if I could have gone out and made a piece of crap that I would have never let anyone listen to," Rucker told LAUNCH. "I've been singing rock 'n' roll for so long. You know, you think, 'Can I sing this stuff?' Is it really going to come off real?' And then the music starts, and I start singing, and I realize that it's no different. It's just me singing."
While Rucker's solo career is off to a good start, he told LAUNCH that he doesn't have any plans on leaving Hootie, despite the rumors. "Yeah, that seems to be the big Internet parse now, you know, that Hootie & the Blowfish is broken up. Yeah, that's too easy to walk away from. I mean, that's just. . .The four of us are just so good at what we do, and it just comes so natural, and so easy to us. I don't think I'll ever leave Hootie & the Blowfish. It's just getting into your 30s, you realize, and after being in the band for 16 years, you know, I just realized that there are so many things I just want to do, and you realize that I can do both."
"Wild One," produced by City High's Toby, is the album's first single.
-- Billy Johnson Jr., Los Angeles
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