Roo AOTD #108 Red Hot Chili Peppers
All aboard the hype train for Bonnaroo 2024! Only 15 days until we are all on the Farm again, can you believe it? It’s coming up fast and we can’t wait to be dancing with all of you at Bonnaroo! Today’s Artist of the Day is the one and only Red Hot Chili Peppers. Learn more about the artist below. Don’t forget to check out all of our artist spotlights! Thank you for reading these posts!
Artist Biography
The Red Hot Chili Peppers is a rock group from the 1980s that has managed to be leaders of rock even in the present day. The band was formed by school friends Anthony Kiedis, Michael Balzary, and Hillel Slovak while they attended Fairfax High School in California backing the late 70s to early 80s. Michael and Hillel showed great musical ability on the trumpet and guitar, respectively. Anthony focused on poetry and acting. Hillel taught Michael how to play bass, and the pair of musicians encouraged Anthony to put his poetry to music. After adding in drummer Jack Irons, the group formed the band called Tony Flow & the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem. The band played strip bars along the Sunset Strip during the early 80s and took on a stage gimmick as their trademark for their shows, the gimmick of performing naked except for a sock covering their private parts. By 1983, Michael went by the name “Flea” and the group officially changed their name to the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Word spread about the band, landing them a contract with EMI. At this time, Jack and Hillel left the band to focus on their other band, What Is This. They were replaced by Jack Sherman on guitar and Cliff Martinez on drums who were both featured on the Red Hot Chili Peppers self-titled debut album in 1984. The absence of the original band members showed as the album failed to capture the excitement of their live shows. By 1985, What Is This failed as a band, and Jack and Hillel came back into the fold for the band’s second album Freaky Styley. This album was still missing the spark found in their live shows. However, their next album, 1987’s The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, finally captured the magic. Then tragedy struck when Hillel died from a heroin overdose on June 25th, 1988. Jack parted ways with the group in the wake of Hillel’s death. Anthony and Flea kept the band moving forward. Eventually, the pair brought in guitarist John Frusciante and drummer Chad Smith. Their next album, 1989’s Mother’s Milk, became the bands breakout hit mainly due to MTV. The rest is history as the Red Hot Chili Peppers found their roster. John struggled with drug addiction on and off over the decades, but he has returned to the band to reform that magic core group.
Genre
Alternative Rock, Funk, Punk Rock
Scheduled at Bonnaroo
Saturday (Link to Daily Schedules)