According to The Guardian, the beginning of the Red Hot Chili Peppers can be traced back to a single afternoon in 1978. This was the year the band was formed. Anthony Kiedis and Michael Balzary, a fellow student and friend of Anthony’s from Fairfax High School, decided to hitchhike to a waterpark located in a faraway suburb of Los Angeles. After going swimming and smoking, they tried to figure out how to get back home, but they couldn’t until they saw a fellow student from their geometry class driving down the street in a Datsun B210. The student offered them a ride home. The passengers, Anthony and Michael, found out that the driver played guitar in a band, and the driver advised that Balzary learn to play the bass instead.
kiedis, Anthony
Michael, better known by his stage name Flea, told The Guardian, “That was Hillel [Slovak].” “That one random incidence was the catalyst for a complete life transformation for both of us.” The band would eventually come together in 1983, and over the course of the subsequent four decades, RHCP would ascend to the heights of rock glory as the members of the group endured the lowest of personal lows. The lineup of the band would likewise change over time, reaching more than a dozen members by the time the band celebrated its fortieth anniversary. A glance at all of the former and current members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers is provided in the following gallery.
Current Members
The artist Anthony Kiedis
One of the two original members of RHCP that are still performing with the band is Anthony Kiedis. Kiedis served as the master of ceremonies at first for the three that consisted of Flea, Slovak, and the band’s first drummer, Jack Irons, but he quickly transitioned to the role of vocalist. According to an article published in Far Out magazine from 2021, he stated at the time that “We were drawn to one other by the forces of mischief, love, and The Grateful Dead.” We were almost ever apart from one another. Both of us were considered to be social misfits. We managed to locate one another, and it has become the friendship that has served me the best during my entire life.
During the time that Kiedis was a member of the band, he became notorious for his battle with drug addiction. This conflict served as the inspiration for “Under the Bridge,” one of the most successful songs released by the band. I had the impression that there was an unsaid connection between me and my city. Anthony is quoted as saying about the song, “I’d spent so much time wandering through the streets of L.A. and hiking through the Hollywood Hills that I sensed there was a nonhuman entity, maybe the spirit of the hills and the city, who had me in her sights and was looking after me,” according to Ultimate Guitar. Anthony wrote the song after spending so much time in Los Angeles and hiking through the Hollywood Hills.
Anthony believes that the band is still going strong and has managed to hold on to its pioneering ethos all these years after it was created. “Because of who we are, the way we live, and what we do, we could be having dinner with the queen of England and still maintain our punk-rock relevance,” Anthony told Rolling Stone in 2002. “We could be having dinner with the queen of England and still maintain our punk-rock relevance.” “We could fly around in private planes and go around in limos all day long, and we’d still be more punk rock than bands that proclaim themselves punk rock in today’s day and age.” People trying to sound like something that happened twenty years ago are less representative of the spirit of punk music than the fact that all of our motivation is genuine and authentic.
Anthony is also well-known for his forays into acting, most notably in the films Point Break (1991) and The Chase (1994), both of which he starred in.
Flea Flea, who was born on October 16, 1962, is widely regarded as one of the most talented bass players to ever live. He got his nickname as a child because he was unable to sit still for very long. After learning how to play the instrument with the assistance of Slovak, he developed a style that combined elements of funk, punk, jazz, and a wide variety of other avant-garde musical traditions. When the band was first getting together, Flea told The Guardian that they were at the “dark end” of the L.A. punk scene. He went on to say that the scene was “full-on” and “violent and aggressive and wild and intense.” We put a lot of effort into making it a coherent whole that has the potential to blast your f*cking face off. The majority of individuals aren’t paying attention since they prefer easy listening. They have no interest in listening to Captain Beefheart. Well, I do! I need to hear Captain Beefheart as soon as possible!
Although he is still a member of RHCP, Flea is the only other original member of the band besides Anthony who is still performing with them. However, Flea’s interests have taken him away from the stage and into the spotlight. His filmography is quite broad, including appearances in cult classics like Suburbia and Dudes, as well as The Chase and The Blue Iguana. In addition to such parts, he has appeared in films that are considered to be more commercially successful, such as Back to the Future Parts II and III, The Big Lebowski, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. In the late 1990s, he also provided the voice of Donnie Thornberry for the animated series The Wild Thornberrys, and in 2022, he played the role of a bounty hunter in the Obi-Wan Kenobi television series.
Smith, Chad.
Chad Smith, who was born on October 25, 1961, has been the drummer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers for the longest amount of time. He has been a member of the band since 1988, despite the fact that he was not a member of the band’s original lineup. After D.H. Peligro was fired from the band, he joined the band and helped them refocus in time to finish recording Mother’s Milk, which was an album that helped the band become more successful in the mainstream (thanks to songs like “Taste the Pain” and “Knock Me Down,” as well as their cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground”).
Chad has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in addition to having won six Grammy Awards, having seven albums reach the Top 10 of the Billboard 200, having a drum battle with his doppelganger Will Ferrell, and having seven albums reach the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 since he joined the band. However, in 2022, the band was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and Chad acknowledged that this was the true sign that he had arrived. During Loudwire Nights, he shared his thoughts on his mother’s reaction to the news that the band would be honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. “My mother was so overcome with excitement, and she was so proud to hear that the band was getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” he explained. “That is something that she is able to empathise with. It’s okay, but my mum is 95 years old. And with that, she exclaims, “Oh my god, you’re getting a star!” Bob Hope and Carol Burnett each have their own star!'”
Frusciante, John
Guitarist John Frusciante, who was born on March 5, 1970, is a member of the band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Along the same lines as Chad, he made his first recorded performance on Mother’s Milk in 1989, taking the place of Hillel Slovak. According to Louder, an exhausted John left the band in 1992 after the phenomenal success the band experienced with the album Blood Sugar Sex Magik in 1991.
After that, he started using illegal narcotics. “I attempted to quit [heroin] by taking speed and other stuff, then smoking crack and just taking heroin occasionally. Finally, I simply used heroin infrequently and smoked crack.” I experimented with it by sniffing cocaine. “I thought I was going to die,” he said in an interview in 2003 with The Guardian. “It was the beginning of the year, and I knew that if I continued to do narcotics, I would be dead by the beginning of March. Therefore, I gave it a shot while under the influence of no narcotics at all. I reasoned to myself, “Let’s wait a year and see what happens.” You have the option of returning to your drug use and ending your life if you continue to have the perception that the world is conspiring against you and that no one wants you.
John overdosed in 1996, yet he managed to pull through the near-death experience unscathed. In 1998, he checked into a rehabilitation centre. In the same year, he got back together with the band, and he remained a member of it up until the year 2008. According to Rolling Stone, he said the following in a blog entry on his MySpace website: “To put it simply, my artistic inclinations have taken me in a different direction.” “I have a lot of love for the band and what we accomplished together. Because of the profound personal and creative shifts that have occurred in me over the past 12 years, continuing to work in the same vein as I did with the band would be in direct opposition to who I am as a person and as an artist. This decision did not come with any options for us to choose from. I simply have no choice but to be who I am and to act in the manner in which I am required to act. He stated that there was “no drama” surrounding this departure, citing the fact that the band itself was taking a breather after an exhausting second act following the release of Californication in 1999.
John would ultimately rejoin the group in 2019. In the year 2022, Flea stated to Forbes that the return of John had a “obviously tremendous impact” on their band. “We are a band that creates in a collaborative manner. We are a band that collaborates on improvised musical ideas. We are a band that is always together; there are always four of us in the same room, looking at one another, listening to one another, and playing together; this allows us to influence one another in a wide variety of ways. If you love someone, if someone irritates you, if you’re uncomfortable with someone, if you’re comfortable with someone when they’re in a beautiful mood, if you’re at odds with someone altogether over a creative idea or something in life, whatever it may be, everything is always influencing all the sound.”
Past Members Hillel Slovak
Hillel Slovak, who was born on April 13, 1962, is known as the original guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Up until the day he overdosed on heroin and died on June 25, 1988, he was a member of the band.
Slovak did not participate in the recording of the band’s debut album; however, he did come back in time to play on their second album, which was titled Freaky Styley. Anthony expressed his regret to the NME in 2022, saying, “I wish Hillel hadn’t missed out on that first recording in the first year.” “In 1984, my band and I performed some television appearances, and when I look back at them now, I can’t help but say, ‘Damn, I wish Hillel had been there for that.'” He was one of the founding members of the band. That was his little one. Anyway, it was intended to be the way that it was meant to be, and everything worked out according to the way that life works… But Hillel will always be with us, whether it’s been 30, 40, 50, 60, or even 100 [years] since he passed away.
Jack Irons was the man.
Jack Irons, who was born on July 18, 1963 and served as the band’s original drummer, continued to perform with the band up until Slovak’s passing in 1988. Reportedly, Jack did not want to be a part of a band that was dealing with issues related to drug use. Following his departure from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, he collaborated with Joe Strummer, founded the band Eleven, and eventually became a member of Pearl Jam in late 1994. His drumming may be heard on the albums Vitalogy, Merkin Ball, No Code, and Yield that the band released while he was still a member of the band, which continued to play together until 1998.
C. Martinez, Cliff
After Irons and Slovak took a hiatus from RHCP in order to concentrate on their other project, What Is This, Cliff Martinez, who was born on February 5, 1954, became a member of the band. Martinez was a member of the band for a period of three years before turning his attention to composing music for movies. Because of his contributions to the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ first two albums, including their self-titled debut from 1984 and Freaky Styley, he was elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside the band.
Martinez responded to a question posed by BMI regarding his time spent with the band by stating that one of his fondest memories was “working with George Clinton and members of Funkadelic at United Sound in Detroit.” Aretha Franklin was working in another studio down the hall when the studio became famous for producing a number of singles for the Motown label. We had George as our producer, and we all enjoyed working with him very much. From him, we gained a lot of knowledge regarding the production of records and “the Funk.”
The late Jack Sherman
Jack Sherman was a guitarist who filled in for Slovak while he and Irons focused on writing and recording What Is This? Sherman was born on January 18, 956. Before the band fired him, he would collaborate with other songwriters on Freaky Styley tracks. Unfortunately, the band was not selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, and he suffered a heart attack and passed suddenly in 2020.
Flea wrote in a lengthy tribute that addressed their frequently contentious relationship, “He taught me about diet, to eat clean and be conscious of my body,” Flea said of his mentor. “He taught me about diet, to eat clean and be conscious of my body.” “However, above all else, he was a good friend to me. Because our upbringings were so dissimilar and we held such unique perspectives on the world, it was frequently challenging for us to find common ground with one another. But the enthusiasm we felt over music, and the love that swelled up between us will stay forever. Sherm, I pray that you rest in peace. I love you.
It was DeWayne McKnight.
Funk legend DeWayne McKnight was born on April 17, 1954, and he was a member of Parliament-Funkadelic, which he played with from 1978 until 2008. He also had a brief association with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. After Slovak’s passing, he briefly filled in as the band’s guitarist before John Frusciante was brought in to take over the position permanently.
D.H. Peligro
Punk legend D.H. Peligro was born on July 9, 1959, and he is best known for playing drums for The Dead Kennedys. In addition to that, he spent some time as a member of the Chili Peppers. During a question and answer session in 2019, Flea stated, “There was actually a Bay Area man named D. H. Peligro, who played with the Dead Kennedys, he in our band for a little bit [in 1988] — a tremendous drummer.” [Citation needed] Peligro, much like McKnight, only spent a short time as a member of Mother’s Milk, but he did contribute to the composition of a couple songs on the album.
Arik Marshall
In 1992, Arik Marshall, who was born on February 13, 1967, took over for John Frusciante. It was in February of 1993 when he played his final show with the band after touring with them for an entire year. Because they didn’t feel he was a good match for the band, they let him depart. Since that time, he has collaborated with Macy Gray, Weapon of Choice, and released music under his own name.
Jesse Tobias
Jesse Tobias, who was born on April 1st, 1972, is a former member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and may hold the record for the lowest amount of time spent in the band. After Arik Marshall left the competition, he joined the band, but a month later he was eliminated from the competition. Jesse has collaborated with artists such as Alanis Morissette and Splendid, and since 2004, he has served as the lead guitarist for Morrissey’s band.
Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro was already a well-known guitarist when he joined the Red Hot Chili Peppers in September 1993. He had gained fame with the band Jane’s Addiction before joining the Chili Peppers. Navarro was born on June 7, 1967. He became a member of the band in the early 1990s, contributed to the recording of their album One Hot Minute (which was issued in 1995), and remained a member of the band until 1998. He was let go because of “creative differences,” and with Jane’s Addiction coming back, it was for the best for both parties that he was let go. Since then, Dave has enjoyed a prosperous career in music as a member of Jane’s Addiction, Deconstruction, and The Panic Channel. He also served as the host of Ink Master up until 2020, when he announced his intention to step down from that role.
Klinghoffer, Josh
Josh Klinghoffer, who was born on October 3, 1979, started performing with the band for the first time in 2007 during the Stadium Arcadium tour’s final leg. Josh, who was already a well-known guitarist because to his time spent in The Bicycle Thief, performing with John Frusciante in his side project Ataxia, and working as a session musician for Gnarls Barkley, took over the job of guitarist when the band resumed their activities in 2009 after a sabbatical (since John had quite the year prior).
In 2019, Josh made the announcement that he was “going his separate way” with the band. Anthony Kiedis stated in an interview with Clash magazine in 2022 that “there was nothing that he done to justify getting dismissed.” “He was great, a very wonderful human being to co-exist with, and if it weren’t for Josh, we wouldn’t be here together today,” she said. “He was a wonderful human being to co-exist with.” He claimed that a “psychic presence in the air” was the reason why Josh was asked to leave the band, which made room for Frusciante to come back in.
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According to what Flea told Clash, the two of them “had a deep urge to play with one another.” They also “had a highly emotional connection on that issue one evening like a year before he came back that felt lovely,” and “it felt like there was a wonderful potential.” “The energy of the universe is always moving, and I just always feel it’s like you live life by trying to be the kind of person that’s present and aware and conscious enough to follow your heart and follow the light as it guides you as life moves, as opposed to like a preconceived idea or something,” she said. “I just always feel it’s like you live life by trying to be the kind of person that’s present and aware and conscious enough to follow your heart and follow the light as it guides you
Since the year 2020, Josh has been playing with Eddie Vedder’s backing band, Pearl Jam, as a member of The Earthlings.
