The Documentary Explores the Personal Triumphs and Struggles
Behind the Trailblazing Artist’s Rise From Charleston, South Carolina
to Music Superstardom
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For more than four decades, Darius Rucker has defied expectations, rising to fame as a member of two-time Grammy Award-winning Hootie & the Blowfish before forging a groundbreaking career in country music that earned him another Grammy as a soloist. The new feature-length documentary “Darius Rucker: They Called Me Hootie” explores the triumphs and hardships that shaped Rucker’s life, from his childhood in Charleston, South Carolina, to music superstardom around the globe. The documentary, executive produced by “Good Morning America” co-anchor Robin Roberts and directed by Emmy®-winner Jason Bergh, premieres Monday, Nov. 16, on Hulu, Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers in the U.S. and Disney+ in select international markets.
Rucker gets deeply personal about the cost of stardom, revealing his struggles with drugs and alcohol, the breakdown of his marriage and brushes with death. Through candid interviews with collaborators, friends and family, new footage from the road and in the studio as he records his forthcoming album and never-before-seen tape dating back to the start of Hootie & the Blowfish, the film traces the full journey of his extraordinary career, revealing a deeply personal story of ambition, resilience and reinvention.
“When I look back on my life and career, I never could have imagined the road I’d take or where it would lead me,” reflects Rucker. “I’ve had opportunities beyond anything I dreamed of, but there have also been times when I had to take a chance, bet on myself and trust that I could do things my own way. But I’ve never walked that road alone. The love and support of my family, my road family and the people I’ve been fortunate enough to work alongside have been at the heart of everything we’ve accomplished. With ‘They Called Me Hootie,’ I get to reflect on that journey, the people and experiences that shaped me, and share a side of my story that people may not know.”
“I crossed paths with Darius 30 years ago, when I was with ESPN and Hootie & the Blowfish first appeared on ‘College GameDay,’” said Roberts. “I’ve enjoyed following and covering his career ever since, but I’ve never seen Darius quite like this. This documentary reveals a side of Darius that is raw, vulnerable and unexpected. It’s a deeply personal story, and I think audiences will be surprised by what they discover about this exceptionally talented man.”
Sharing their personal stories are those who have known and worked with Rucker throughout his career, including actor Woody Harrelson; Hootie & the Blowfish bandmates Jim “Soni” Sonefeld, Mark Bryan and Dean Felber; country music stars Brad Paisley and Lady A; former manager Doc McGhee; and record producer Frank Rogers, among others. Their stories offer a revealing portrait of the man behind the music.
“Darius Rucker: They Called Me Hootie” is produced by ITV America Nashville for ABC News Studios. Directed and executive produced by Jason Bergh and executive produced by Adam Reed and Sarah Howell for ITV America Nashville. Robin Roberts serves as executive producer. For ABC News Studios, David Sloan is the senior executive producer, and Katie Conway is executive producer.
About ABC News Studios
ABC News Studios is inspired by ABC News’ trusted reporting and is an award-winning, premium news and documentary original production house and commissioning partner of series and specials. ABC News Studios champions untold and authentic stories driving the cultural zeitgeist, spanning true crime, investigations, pop culture and news-adjacent stories. ABC News Studios’ original titles include critically acclaimed documentaries “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields,” “BRATS,” “The Lady Bird Diaries,” Emmy-winning “Patrice: The Movie,” “Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything,” “Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery – The Untold Story” and most recently “#SKYKING.” Other popular docuseries, documentaries and specials include “Scamanda,” “The Fox Hollow Murders: Playground of a Serial Killer,” “Betrayal” series, “Death in Apartment 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg?,” “The Nightmare Upstairs: What Happened to Ty and Bryn?,” “Welcome to the Family: The Murder of Dan Markel” and “The Mystery of Richard Simmons – A Diane Sawyer Special.”
About Darius Rucker
Rucker first achieved multi-Platinum status in the music industry as lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the Grammy Award-winning band Hootie & the Blowfish, who have sold more than 25 million albums worldwide, including their Double Diamond-certified (22x Platinum) debut Cracked Rear View, which remains among the top 10 best-selling studio albums of all time. Since releasing his first Country album in 2008, Rucker has earned a whole new legion of fans with four No. 1 albums on the Billboard Country chart plus 10 No. 1 singles at Country radio and 11 Gold, Platinum or multi-Platinum certified hits. Rucker was inducted as a Grand Ole Opry member in 2012, and he won his third career Grammy Award in 2014 for Best Solo Country Performance with his Diamond-certified (11x Platinum) version of “Wagon Wheel,” one of the top five best-selling Country songs of all time and one of the few Country songs to amass over a billion streams on Spotify. His new single “I Believe” is available everywhere now, following his 2023 album Carolyn’s Boy plus his New York Times bestselling memoir “Life’s Too Short,” released via Dey Street in 2024.
As a lifelong philanthropist, Rucker co-chaired the capital campaign that generated $150 million to help build the new MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital in his hometown of Charleston, S.C. and has raised over $6.2 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital through his annual Darius and Friends benefit concert and golf tournament. In addition, Rucker has advocated for over 200 charitable causes supporting public education and junior golf programs in South Carolina through the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation and serves as a National Chair for the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville, Tenn. Rucker is also an avid sports fan, with his Darius Rucker Collection by Fanatics line of NFL, MLB, NHL, NCAA and WWE apparel available via Fanatics.com, and he is part of the Music City Baseball investment group working to bring an MLB team to Tennessee in addition to serving as a partner at the MGC Sports & Entertainment agency.
For more information, visit www.dariusrucker.com and follow on social media @DariusRucker.
About ITV America Nashville
ITV America Nashville is the heartland-focused division of ITV America, one of the largest television content producers in the U.S. Led by veteran producer Adam Reed, ITV America Nashville’s recent hits include July 4th ratings-winner Disney Celebrates America: Nashville’s Star-Spangled Bash (ABC/Hulu); tribute special Toby Keith: American Icon (NBC); Thank God: Christmas at Keller Ranch (Lifetime), When I Said I Do (Lifetime) and Christmas Traditions Unwrapped with Kimberly Schlapman (Wonder).
ITV America’s other hit series include streaming-leader Love Island USA (Peacock), The Voice (NBC), Hell’s Kitchen (FOX), Queer Eye (Netflix), Alone (History), Pawn Stars (History) and many others.
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