How Mark Hoppus Says the Blink-182 vs. Green Day Feud Fueled Their Punk Ascent
Okay, but like… why does pitting two punk giants against each other sound like a genius band boot camp? Mark Hoppus just spilled the tea in a fresh NME interview about the legendary Pop Disaster Tour of 2002, and it’s all kinds of retro rock therapy. Hoppus, now 53 and fresh off his memoir Fahrenheit-182, admits he was fangirling over Green Day long before sharing a stage with them—and headlining right after. He recalls waiting in line to buy Dookie back in the ’90s, then doing double takes as his own band, Blink-182 (with Tom DeLonge and Travis Barker), closed each night over his childhood idols.
Rewinding to April through June 2002, Green Day were still climbing back from the Warning dip, two years shy of the American Idiot landmark. Blink-182, meanwhile, were riding high on Enema of the State and Take Off Your Pants and Jacket. Though billed as co-headliners, Hoppus says Blink “were closing every night,” a twist that felt “strange” yet oddly validating. Citing People and Rolling Stone, he recounts Green Day strolling in “ready to fight—musically of course,” which he compares to athletes who can trash talk off the field but play fair when the lights go on.
It wasn’t all backstage bro-hugs. According to Fahrenheit-182, some nights the bands “drank together like old war buddies,” and others saw them screaming at Green Day’s manager in hallway clashes. Hoppus admits Green Day “blew us off the stage” early on, which lit a competitive fire under Blink-182’s members. A riff-for-riff showdown unfolded onstage: who could spark mosh pits, drop the punchiest setlist, or simply win over the crowd? Hoppus flat-out credits this rivalry for making Blink-182 tighter—and maybe even kick-started the ethos behind American Idiot two years later.
Offstage cool and onstage combat turned into creative fuel. Hoppus details how this punk poker match taught both bands to up their game, sharpen their hooks, and never coast on past glory. While the last joint tour remains that 2002 run, both acts have thrived in its wake—Blink-182 gearing up for their Missionary Impossible Tour this August through October, and Green Day cementing their place in rock history.
Whether you’re diving into Fahrenheit-182 for the first time or just here for the nostalgia, it’s clear that a little healthy punk rivalry can go a long way. Anyway, that’s the deal. Do with it what you will.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and NME, People.com, Rolling Stone
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
