Darius Rucker was the founder of Hootie & the Blowfish.
Darius Rucker . He first gained fame as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Grammy Award-winning American rock band Hootie & the Blowfish , which he founded in 1986 at the University of South Carolina along with Mark Bryan , Jim `` Soni '' Sonefeld and Dean Felber . Hootie & the Blowfish is an American Alternative rock band that was formed in Columbia , South Carolina , in 1986 by Darius Rucker , Mark Bryan , Dean Felber , and Jim Sonefeld .