Mark Hoppus on Blink-182 Reunion: ‘I Feel Like a Weight Has Been Lifted Off My Shoulders’

Blink-182 are finally getting back together. On Tuesday (Oct. 11) the pop-punk trio announced a reunion with former bandmate Tom DeLonge for an upcoming global tour and single.

While joining After School Radio on Apple Music Hits, the band’s singer/bassist Mark Hoppus shared his excitement over the news. “Yes, it’s happening. Blink-182, world tour, new music, new album. Tom’s back. Man, I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. That was a burden to carry that secret for so long,” he shared.

On keeping that secret, Hoppus also revealed a sweet anecdote from just days ago, when he was asked by a fan when a reunion would happen. “I was at the Dodgers game the other night, and a fan came up. It was a guy and his wife, probably late twenties, early thirties.” the musician recalled. “We take our picture, and he’s like, ‘I love your band. Grew up on your band.’ He’s like, ‘Dude, is there any way, any way at all?’ And I’m like, ‘Any way for what?’ And he’s like, ‘Is there any chance of a Blink-182 reunion tour with Tom back in the band at all?’ And he had such hope and desperation in his eyes, and I just wanted to put my hand on his shoulder and say, ‘My friend, just you wait. Just wait three, four more days.'”

Hoppus jokingly added, “I should have taken his name and should have just posted it on Instagram, been like, ‘This is for you Steve. Great idea.'”

Blink-182’s tour is slated to kick off on March 11 in Tijuana, Mexico at the Imperial GNP festival. They hit North America on May 4 with a show at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, and those dates will run through a July 16 gig in Nashville at the Bridgestone Arena and then move on to Europe in September and Australia/New Zealand in early 2024.

The group’s new single, “EDGING,” is coming on Friday (Oct. 14), commemorating the trio’s first time in the studio in 10 years.