“I always say, no matter what happens to me as a black man in country music, I can handle it if Charley Pride could handle all the stuff he went through.”

American singer, musician, and songwriter

Darius Rucker is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He first became known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of Hootie & the Blowfish, the rock band he helped found in 1986 at the University of South Carolina. With the band, he was part of six studio albums and six top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. He also co-wrote most of the group’s songs with the other members, which shaped much of the work that brought him early fame.