4 Non Blondes

Before its disbandment in 1994, 4 Non Blondes was one of the famous rock bands in the United States. The group came into existence in 1989 and had the following musicians as its founding members:

• Shaunna Hall
• Christa Hillhouse
• Wanda Day
• Linda Perry

At the initial stages, the group was mainly performing in bars and night clubs. They quickly gained fame and after their performance at one of San Francisco’s biggest music concert dubbed “Gavin Convention” in 1991, they were signed onto the Interscope Record Label. The following year, they released their maiden single entitled “Dear Mr. President”. That same year, they dropped their debut album which was under the name “Bigger, Better, Faster, More!” The album included hit singles such as “What’s Up?” and “Spaceman”.

Prior to the release of the album, Wanda Day was sacked from the group. Dawn Richardson filled the spot left by Day as the drummer. While working on the album, David Tickle, who worked as the producer, signaled that he wasn’t impressed with the works of Hall and replaced her with Louis Metoyer. Later Kevin “Dev” O’Neill, and Roger Rocha were added to the group.

How the band got the name “4 Non Blondes”

In an interview, Hillhouse explained that they came up with the name for the band after an experience they had in Bay-Area. She said the name was to move away from a type of stereotype which was predominant in California.

Breakup

Though the group were successful after the release of their album, they had some internal issues which resulted in their breakup in 1994. Perry, who expressed her displeasure with the album, also cited her sexual life (lesbian life) as one of the reasons why her relationship with other members of the group deteriorated. The following year, Perry began her career as a solo artiste which saw her work with some renowned artistes such as Alicia Keys, Christina Aguilera, and Pink. The other members, especially Day and Hall, also started their personal projects, with the former working with other bands such as ‘Bad Dog Play Dead’ and ‘Malibu Barbi’. She died in 1997.

Five years after leaving the group, Hillhouse and Perry reunited to perform in the latter’s 1999 solo tour. The band, nonetheless, came together to perform at a fundraising concert dubbed “An Evening For Women: Celebrating Arts, Music and Equality” in 2014.

Achievements

In 1994, the band received an award at the ‘Danish Music Awards’ for their song titled “What’s Up?”. They were also nominated for other awards like ‘Brit Awards’, and ‘MTV Video Music Awards’.

From 1992 to 1994, the band sold over 1 million copies of the album.