# Blink-182
**Blink-182** is an American pop-punk band formed in 1992 in [Poway, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/poway-california), by bassist and vocalist [Mark Hoppus](https://www.edgepedia.org/mark-hoppus), guitarist and vocalist [Tom DeLonge](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-delonge), and drummer Scott Raynor, and known since 1999 for its classic lineup of Hoppus, DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) • [2](https://www.billboard.com/artist/blink-182/) With hooky, high-energy, often humorous songs, the trio became one of the most prominent pop-punk bands after its early-2000s mainstream breakthrough, standing out from the teen pop and nu-metal that then dominated the airwaves.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1992, Poway, California, by Hoppus, DeLonge, and drummer Scott Raynor[2](https://www.billboard.com/artist/blink-182/) • [3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/) |
| Classic lineup | Mark Hoppus (bass, vocals), Tom DeLonge (guitar, vocals), Travis Barker (drums)[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) |
| Breakthrough | *Dude Ranch* (1997) went platinum by the end of 1998; *Enema of the State* (1999) sold over four million copies[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) |
| First number one | *Take Off Your Pants and Jacket* (2001), the band's first Billboard 200 number one[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) |
| Hiatus and reunion | "Indefinite hiatus" announced February 2005; reunion in 2009 after Barker's 2008 plane crash[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) |
| Skiba era | Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio replaced DeLonge in 2015; *California* (2016) debuted at number one[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) |
| Latest studio album | *One More Time...* (October 2023), produced by Barker, topped the Billboard 200[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) |
| Chart record | Seven songs on the Billboard Hot 100, including "What's My Age Again?", "All the Small Things", and "I Miss You"[2](https://www.billboard.com/artist/blink-182/) |
## History
After self-released recordings, Hoppus and DeLonge, with drummer [Scott Raynor](https://www.edgepedia.org/scott-raynor), began a non-stop gigging schedule on the local punk circuit, and their highly melodic thrash rock broke onto the mainstream charts in the late 1990s.[4](https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195313734.001.0001/acref-9780195313734-e-52022) The group first performed under the name Blink; the Library of Congress authority record notes the name was changed to Blink-182 after a threat of lawsuit from a similarly titled band.[5](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no00015830.html)
**Early albums.** After some demos, the debut album *Cheshire Cat* arrived in 1994, and in 1997 the band had a solid success with the pop punk of *Dude Ranch*, jointly released by Cargo and MCA.[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/) • [1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) *Dude Ranch* expanded the group's audience and went platinum by the end of 1998, helped by the single "Dammit (Growing Up)".[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
**Mainstream explosion.** The third studio album, *Enema of the State*, was recorded at various locations throughout California with producer Jerry Finn and first released on June 1, 1999, on [MCA Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/mca-records).[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) Finn was also known for his work with [Green Day](https://www.edgepedia.org/green-day) and Rancid.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) Driven by the singles "What's My Age Again?", "All the Small Things", and "Adam's Song", the album sold over four million copies, and the band followed it with the limited-edition live release *The Mark, Tom, and Travis Show (The Enema Strikes Back)* in fall 2000.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) When *Take Off Your Pants and Jacket* came out in spring 2001, the band went back to their SoCal punk origins, and the record was their first to hit number one in the United States.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
**Hiatus and reunion.** The 2003 self-titled album showed greater compositional maturity and preceded the band's temporary dissolution in 2005.[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/) In February 2005, popular as ever, blink-182 unexpectedly announced an "indefinite hiatus", supposedly to spend more time with their growing families; a *Greatest Hits* collection followed that November.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) The intervening years brought tragedy: producer Jerry Finn died in August 2008 after a brain hemorrhage and heart attack, and in September 2008 Barker and [DJ AM](https://www.edgepedia.org/dj-am) were seriously injured in a plane crash that killed four others; Barker's recovery took 11 months and involved PTSD.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) The crash prompted Hoppus and DeLonge to reconnect with Barker in support of his recovery, and in 2009 the band announced it was reuniting, touring with Weezer.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) Four years after the 2005 split the band had announced its return to the music scene.[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/)
**The Skiba era and the classic lineup's return.** *Neighborhoods* (2011), the band's sixth studio album and first album of new material in eight years, was the final album with DeLonge before his departure in 2015.[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) In January 2015, Hoppus and Barker were quoted in *Rolling Stone* saying that DeLonge had left the band, and [Alkaline Trio](https://www.edgepedia.org/alkaline-trio)'s Matt Skiba filled in on guitar.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) The album *California* followed in 2016, preceded by the single "Bored to Death" in April 2016, and debuted at number one.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) Treccani also records the Skiba-era album *Nine* (2019).[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/) DeLonge later returned, and the reunion tour that followed sold out arenas, amphitheaters, and stadiums across the world.[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) Some dates on the 2023/2024 world tour were postponed by Barker's February 2023 finger injury; the band made a surprise Coachella appearance in April 2023, DeLonge's first performance with the group in almost a decade.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
## Members and lineups
Three configurations define the band's history. The original trio of Hoppus, DeLonge, and Raynor recorded *Cheshire Cat* and *Dude Ranch*; Raynor, born 1978, left midway through a 1998 U.S. tour and was replaced by [Travis Barker](https://www.edgepedia.org/travis-barker), formerly of the Aquabats.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) • [7](https://snl.no/blink-182) The classic Hoppus-DeLonge-Barker lineup carried the band through its commercial peak beginning with 1999's *Enema of the State*, and again from 2022, when the trio recorded *One More Time...* and its deluxe follow-up during the reunion tour.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) • [6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) In the Skiba configuration, DeLonge was replaced by [Matt Skiba](https://www.edgepedia.org/matt-skiba), born 1976, of Alkaline Trio, for *California* and *Nine*.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) • [7](https://snl.no/blink-182)
## Musical style and evolution
Store norske leksikon calls blink-182 the foremost band from California's skatepunk milieu, playing high-energy pop punk.[7](https://snl.no/blink-182) The band's early identity rested on hooky, fast, humorous songs in the [Southern California](https://www.edgepedia.org/southern-california) punk tradition.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
The sound widened over time. Recorded throughout 2003, the self-titled *blink-182* marked a departure from earlier work, infusing experimental elements into the usual pop punk sound, and features a collaboration with the Cure frontman Robert Smith; the lead singles "Feeling This" and "I Miss You" received the most radio airplay, and "I Miss You" topped the modern rock chart in 2005.[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) • [1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) *Neighborhoods* (2011) showed poppier sounds and less ironic lyrics, and was the first blink-182 album produced by the band members themselves without the help of an outside record producer.[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/) • [6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) The Guardian's review of *One More Time* framed the band's latest phase as the "gross-out pop-punk trio come of age".[8](https://theguardian.com/music/blink-182)
## Discography
The studio albums, with the details the sources record, run as follows:
- *Cheshire Cat* (1994), debut album after some early demos.[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/)
- *Dude Ranch* (1997), jointly released by Cargo and MCA; platinum by the end of 1998.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
- *Enema of the State* (June 1, 1999, MCA), produced by Jerry Finn; over four million copies sold.[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography) • [1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
- *Take Off Your Pants and Jacket* (spring 2001), first U.S. number one; a 25th [Anniversary](https://www.edgepedia.org/anniversary) edition arrived in 2026, adding all six of the original hidden bonus tracks.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
- *blink-182* (2003), with Robert Smith; experimental elements.[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography)
- *Neighborhoods* (2011), self-produced, final DeLonge album before 2015.[6](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography)
- *California* (2016) and *Nine* (2019), Skiba era.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) • [3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/)
- *One More Time...* (October 2023), produced by Barker, first full-length album with the classic lineup since 2011; *One More Time... Part-2* (September 2024) added eight additional songs including the single "All in My Head".[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
## By the numbers
The commercial record shows a band that converted a regional punk following into sustained chart presence. *Dude Ranch* went platinum by the end of 1998; *Enema of the State* sold over four million copies; *Take Off Your Pants and Jacket* gave the band its first Billboard 200 number one in 2001.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) The band has landed seven songs on the Hot 100, including "What's My Age Again?" and "All the Small Things" (1999) and "I Miss You" (2003).[2](https://www.billboard.com/artist/blink-182/) Top Ten Billboard 200 albums followed with *blink-182* (2003), *Neighborhoods* (2011), and *California* (2016), and in 2023 *One More Time...* topped both the Billboard 200 and the Top Modern Rock/Alternative Albums charts.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
## Side projects and related work
The years after the 2005 hiatus were marked by the members' side projects: [Box Car Racer](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-car-racer), The Transplants, Angels & Airwaves, and Plus 44.[7](https://snl.no/blink-182) These outfits kept each member active during the split, before the trio resumed cooperation in 2009.[7](https://snl.no/blink-182)
## How it compares with its pop-punk peers
Treccani situates blink-182 among the bands that reinterpreted early punk-rock sounds in a modern key, alongside Green Day, Rancid, and [Offspring](https://www.edgepedia.org/offspring), and notes the band's irony about the boy-band phenomenon; with *Enema of the State* in 1999 the band reached the tops of the world charts.[3](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/) AllMusic's assessment is similar in kind: one of the most prominent pop-punk bands since the early-2000s breakthrough, distinct from the teen pop and nu-metal then dominating radio.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) In the 2020s the band also figured in pop punk's chart resurgence: Guardian coverage grouped a new Green Day single, blink-182 knocking Drake off the top of the album charts, and a new [Descendents](https://www.edgepedia.org/descendents) record as evidence of pop punk's latest reboot.[8](https://theguardian.com/music/blink-182)
## Legacy and influence
The band's role in mainstreaming pop punk rests on the numbers above: multi-million sales with *Enema of the State* in 1999, a first number-one album in 2001, seven Hot 100 entries, and number-one albums spread across three decades.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342) • [2](https://www.billboard.com/artist/blink-182/) Critical reassessment has also touched the band's musicianship: the Guardian has profiled Travis Barker under the headline framing of how he became "the most influential person in music".[8](https://theguardian.com/music/blink-182) The reception of *One More Time...* as a maturation record, from a trio once defined by gross-out humor, closes the arc that runs from *Cheshire Cat* to the 2023 reunion.[8](https://theguardian.com/music/blink-182)
## References
1. [blink-182 — Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/blink-182-mn0000757342)
2. [blink-182 | Biography, Music & News, Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/artist/blink-182/)
3. [Blink 182, Treccani Enciclopedia](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/blink-182/)
4. [Blink-182, Oxford Reference (Encyclopedia of Popular Music)](https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195313734.001.0001/acref-9780195313734-e-52022)
5. [Blink-182 (Musical group), Library of Congress Name Authority Record](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no00015830.html)
6. [Discography, blink-182 Official Store](https://www.blink182.com/pages/discography)
7. [blink-182, Store norske leksikon](https://snl.no/blink-182)
8. [Blink-182, The Guardian](https://theguardian.com/music/blink-182)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Ensembles and groups › Rock, pop, and metal bands › Metal, hardcore, and punk bands › Pop punk and skate punk bands*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license