Mark McGrath thinks he’s the last of a dying breed he’s affectionately dubbed “douches from the ’90s.”
The former Sugar Ray frontman told Page Six that while he embraces the rock star persona he cultivated during that decade, he’s no longer the same guy who could be found perpetually sporting frosted tips, a goatee, and no top. “It’s certainly a part of me, [but] do I see myself that way? No way,” he said. And while McGrath admits that he had plenty of “unfortunate haircuts” and “bad moves” in his day, he’s still extremely proud of the music his band released and that he was able to participate in this era “we can really define.” He continued, “At the end of the day, we wrote four amazing songs that we still get to tour the world on today, not because of my hair, not because I took my shirt off, but because of those four amazing songs. So I’m very proud of the songs we wrote for sure.”
But despite Sugar Ray’s sonic contributions, the singer says that he understands why he’s been typecast as this particular type of guy. “I’m kind of stuck in this, like, vacuum of being the last douche, if you will,” he joked. “And there’s been no douches to replace me, so I’m the go-to guy for that very thing.” McGrath also confessed that his wild behavior throughout that decade—which included regular trips to the Viper Room—certainly earned him that uncomplimentary title. “Listen, I was in a rock and roll band and I gave myself a long leash to hang myself,” he explained. “And I went right to the end of that leash.” He elaborated, “You know when you see a dog in a junkyard and they’re barking at something…like, I got right to the end of that leash and was fortunate to bring it back. I was surrounded by good people.”
Thankfully, he was also able to stay away from heroin, which claimed the lives of many of his fellow rock stars from that era. “It never appealed to me,” McGrath said. “I’m a guy who likes to get up to get down. You know what I’m saying? So I was able to navigate those murky waters.”
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