Maroon 5 is an American pop-rock band. Formed in 1994 as Kara’s Flowers in Los Angeles, California by vocalist/guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist/guitarist Jessie Carmichael, bassist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick, they have gone on to become one of the most successful pop-rock acts of the 21st century. They make the songs “Makes Me Wonder,” “Little Of Your Time,” “Wake Up Call,” “Won’t Go Home Without You,” “This Love,“ “Misery,” “1 More Night“ and “Girls Like You,” which were all released as DLC for Rock Band 2, 3 and 4. Their 1st album as Kara‘s Flowers, “We Like Digging?” was released in 1995 and recieved little fanfare. Their sophomore LP, 1997’s ”The 4th World,” was given the same treatment, but still featured the hits “Soap Disco” and “Myself.“ Kara’s Flowers released 1 more album, “Stagg Street Recordings” in 1998, before disbanding later that same year so the members could attend college. In 2000, they regrouped to perform shows under the name Maroon. A year later, they added guitarist James Valentine to the lineup and changed their name to Maroon 5. They also embraced a more Pop-Rock/R&B/Funk/Jazz Fusion/Radio Friendly style. Their 1st album under the new moniker, “Songs About Jane,“ hit record store shelves in 2002 and featured the hits “Harder To Breathe,” “This Love,” “She Will Be Loved” and “Sunday Morning.” They later re-released the record 2 years later with a re-recording of “She Will Be Loved.” That’s when they began to take off. The record hit number 1 in several countries and the group toured heavily in support of it. They also headlined the 2005 Honda Civic Tour alongside Phantom Planet, The Donnas & The Thrills. Despite their popularity, it was all too much for Dusick, who quit the following year. Matt Flynn took over the drum stool, and in 2007 the group released their 2nd album as Maroon 5, “It Won’t Be Soon Before Long,” which featured more radio-ready pop hits, including “If I Never See Your Face Again,” “Makes Me Wonder,” “Little Of Your Time,” “Wake Up Call,” “Won’t Go Home Without You” and “Goodnight Goodnight.” A remixed version of “If I Never See Your Face Again” featuring Rihanna was later released as well. The group supported the record by opening for The Police on their Reunion tour. Despite this, some Alternative-Rock stations started removing Maroon 5 from their playlists, because they were becoming too mainstream. Even though some alt-rock stations still play “Harder To Breathe” and “This Love,” their newer songs are only played on Top-40 and Adult Contemporary stations. In 2009, Levine became a judge on the NBC singing competition show “The Voice” alongside Blake Shelton, Cee Lo Green & Christina Aguilera. Maroon 5 released their 3rd album, “Hands All Over” the following year, featuring the hits “Misery,” “Never Gonna Leave This Bed,” and “Give A Little More.” The deluxe edition featured the hit “Moves Like Jagger,” featuring guest vocals from Levine’s co-judge Aguilera. The record received mixed reviews, but became one of their most successful. They later went on a co-headlining tour with Train during the summer of 2011. That same year, Levine guested on Gym Class Heroes’ hit “Stereo Hearts.” Inspired by ”Moves Like Jagger,” the group fully embraced dance-pop on their next album, 2012’s “Overexsposed.” Some fans disliked their new style, but the record was still as successful as their past ones, and still featuring radio-friendly pop hits with “1 More Night,” “Love Somebody,” “Daylight,” and “Payphone,” the latter featuring rapper Wiz Khalifa. The group supported the record by co-headlining the 2013 Honda Civic Tour alongside Kelly Clarkson. Carmichael had left them the previous year, replaced by PJ Morton, who previously had an unsuccessful career as an R&B singer. After the trek, the group began recording their next album, which was to be titled “V.” It was released in 2014 and featured more radio-friendly hits with “Maps,” “Animals,” “It Was Always You,” and “Sugar.” By this time, Carmichael had returned, but Morton remained, and Maroon 5 now had 6 members. The group toured extensively in support of it, with the trek lasting 4 years and featuring support from rap duo R. City, whose song ”Locked Away” Levine later guested on. 6 became 7 when they added multi-instrumentalist Sam Farrar to the lineup in 2016. That same year, they released the tropical house single “Don’t Wanna Know,” which featured rapper Kendrick Lamar. They also released the single “Cold,” featuring a guest verse from Future. They later announced another new album, titled “Red Pill Blues,” which was inspired by “The Matrix.” It was released in October of 2017, and also featured the hits “Wait” and “What Lovers Do,” the latter featuring guest vocals from R&B singer SZA. They played the Rock In Rio festival in early 2018, and embarked on a North American trek to support the record, which featured support from “Issues” singer Julia Michaels. They also released a remixed version of “Girls Like You,” featuring a guest verse from rapper Cardi B. They have also been approached to play the Super Bowl in early 2019, featuring guest appearances from Cardi B among others.
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