During a recent appearance on the Tuna On Toast with Stryker podcast, Matt Skiba expressed his single regret about stepping in for Tom DeLonge in Blink-182.
Skiba became part of the band in 2015, taking over for DeLonge, who left for personal reasons. After seven years with the group, the musician left when Blink-182 announced in 2022 that Tom was coming back. Matt shared how awkward his first photoshoot was with Blink-182 after he joined the band, explaining:
“I wasn’t even thinking about it, but I was wearing Hurley [clothing company] sh*t [to rehearsal]. And I forgot that Blink was like the Hurley band forever. So when I showed up to practice, I’ve got a baseball hat on, and this Hurley T-shirt and everyone was like, ‘What the f*ck?’ Like, ‘You f*cking poser! You’re trying to be Tom!’ and I was like, ‘I didn’t know we were going to take a picture.'”
Regrets And Reactions To Mimicking Tom
He continued, sharing the one thing he’d change about his time with the band:
“We took a picture against the door, the loading dock, and I’ve got my dopey Hurley shirt on, clueless to how that would read, but that was the one thing where kids were like, ‘Dude, don’t do that.’ I’m like, ‘Do what? Oh, right.’ If I would have thought of it, I probably might have changed T-shirts, just because I don’t want to be that guy. So that was the one thing [I’d take back].”
Skiba’s Response To The Changing Lineup
Following Blink-182’s announcement that DeLonge was back in the band, Skiba reacted on Instagram with the following words:
“Congratulations to the homies Mark Hoppus, Tom DeLonge, and Travis Barker on their triumphant Blink-182 return/reunion and the release of their new single today! I’m sure there’s a joke in here about releases and happy endings I’m missing, but I am truly grateful for my time with Blink-182, and I am truly happy you guys are a band and a family again. Thanks to the band and all the Blink fans for having me. You were delicious! Matt from Chicago, with love.”
Later, speaking to Vulture, Matt also addressed the rumors, claiming that he felt betrayed after the announcement. Skiba mentioned he wasn’t surprised by the news and didn’t feel backstabbed. He explained that he, DeLonge, and the rest of the band were friends, and Tom had even supported Skiba’s own band, Alkaline Trio, in the past. Skiba expressed that he’s happy the original band members are back together.
You can watch the full interview below.
