Darius Rucker was already a household name when he decided it was time to make the transition into country music.
For almost 15 years, beginning in 1986, Rucker was the front man for the soft rock group Hootie and the Blowfish, known for massive hits like "I Only Want to Be with You" and "Hold My Hand." The band earned two Grammys in 1995 for Best New Artist, and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group for their single "Let Her Cry."
"We didn’t see it as fame, we only saw it as the shows were getting bigger," Rucker told Fox News Digital the day before his performance with The Black Crowes at the 2023 CMT Music Awards. "And you had three guys who were there to keep you in your place. So… when ‘Only Want to Be with You’ came out and blew up we just kept playing."
To say the band "blew up" is a bit of an understatement. Their debut album "Cracked Rear View," released in 1994, has sold over 21 million units and is one of the top 10 best-selling albums of all time. Putting that in perspective, The Beatles' self-titled record, popularly known as the White Album, has only sold approximately three million more copies.
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Hootie and the Blowfish went on to release four more studio albums before going on hiatus in 2008, leading Rucker to pursue an entirely different genre: country music.
"The moment I knew it was time was when we had a meeting and we said we weren’t going to tour… anymore like that, so I knew it was time to go to Nashville and see if I could do it," he said.
It wasn’t the easiest transition for the singer-songwriter.
"When I very first started, there was a lot of naysayers and everything, but once ‘Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It’ hit, I think acceptance started."
While some critics questioned whether Rucker could make the leap from performing the kind of music Hootie and the Blowfish was known for to country music, others were concerned that a Black man couldn't be successful in the genre.
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As Rucker explained in a 2020 interview on the "Color Me Country" radio show, the first time he walked into a country radio station studio, "What was said was, 'I don't think my audience will accept a Black country singer.' Just like that. 'I love the song. I think it's country. Love it. I'm going to play it tomorrow, but I don't think my audience will accept a Black country singer.'"
He quickly proved those critics wrong.
"Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It" was Rucker’s first solo country single, debuting at 51 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts upon its release in May 2008. It eventually reached the number one spot in September of that year.
At the 2009 Country Music Association Awards, Rucker earned New Artist of the Year at age 43.
"I didn’t expect the success I got, but I’m really glad it happened," Rucker said.
Since that initial hit in the genre, Rucker has released four more country albums, all of which have reached number one on the country charts. His achievements also include nine No. 1 singles on the Billboard country chart and 11 Gold, Platinum or multi-Platinum certified hits, according to his website.
The Charleston, South Carolina, native was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 2012, and in 2013, he won the Grammy for Best Country Solo Performance for his cover of the classic "Wagon Wheel."
In 2019, Hootie and the Blowfish reunited to go on tour for the 25th anniversary of "Cracked Rear View," and that same year they released a new album called "Imperfect Circle," their first studio album since 2005.
Even with the certified successes in both rock and country, Rucker remains grateful to be doing what he loves.
"I have no idea why any of this is happening. I just know I’m enjoying it," he told Fox News Digital. "I’ve wanted to play music since I was 4 and I’m getting to do it at 56 still so I think that’s pretty cool."
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Though he enjoys his life as a musician, he did admit there is a downside.
"The only hard thing about being on the road is being away from your kids," he said. "That’s the only hard part. Everything else is gravy. But you know being away from the family and not seeing them as much as you can… is tough, but it’s your job."
Rucker is a father to three children: his eldest is daughter Caroline, 26, with girlfriend Elizabeth Ann Phillips, followed by Daniella, 21, and Jack, 17, with former wife Beth Leonard. Rucker and Leonard were married in 2000 and together until 2020, when Rucker announced on his Instagram account that the couple decided to "consciously uncouple."
Now with huge success as a country artist, Rucker can’t help but share what he loves about the genre.
"Country music’s real," he told Fox News Digital on the red carpet at the CMT Music Awards. "It’s stories and it’s life. It’s what music is supposed to be."
He continued, "It touches you in the way I think music’s supposed to touch you. And it’s just getting bigger and bigger and doing its thing." ,
"It’s all about the songs and that’s what country music is about, the song."
