Turns out The Goo Goo Dolls frontman, John Rzeznik, isn’t so “goo goo” for the band name.
LISTEN NOW: John Rzeznik talks about Goo Goo Dolls name on Kenny Aronoff Session Podcast
Appearing on a recent episode of musician, Kenny Aronoff’s, The Kenny Aronoff Sessions podcast, Rzeznik shared he’s not fond of the 37-year-old band’s highly-recognizable name.
“I still hate the name of our band now,” Rzeznik told the drummer. “I wish we would've had 10 more minutes to find a cooler name.”
He went on to explain The Goo Goo Dolls name was one they came up with to replace their first band name, Sex Maggots, which started as a joke. The guys decided to quickly brainstorm a new name before taking the stage at a large gig and forever being locked into the Sex Maggots name.
“It was like a joke, and then it kind of, like, caught on,” he said. “We made a record and we sold like 400 copies. And then Robby's like, ‘We got a fan base. They're not going to know who we are.’ I'm like, ‘It's 400 people. They'll get over it.’”
While naming the band may not be their forte, the music definitely is as the group has celebrated more than 35 years of music. Most recently they released their thirteenth studio album, Chaos in Bloom, and shared the music on the road with their 2023 North American Tour.