Maroon 5 <!-- See WP:ENGVAR. Bands that originate from the U.S. are treated singular, per English criteria. Please do not change "IS" to "ARE". -->is<!-- See WP:ENGVAR. Bands that originate from the U.S. are treated singular, per English criteria. Please do not change "IS" to "ARE". --> an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles, California. It consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Adam Levine, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine, drummer Matt Flynn, keyboardist PJ Morton, and bassist and keyboardist Sam Farrar. Original members Levine, Carmichael, bassist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick first came together as Kara's Flowers in February 1994, while they were in high school.
After self-releasing their independent album ...We Like Digging?, Kara's Flowers signed to Reprise Records and released their debut studio album, The Fourth World (1997). It garnered a tepid response, after which the record label dropped the band and the members focused on college. In 2001, the band re-emerged as Maroon 5, adding guitarist Valentine. Signed to Octone Records, they released their first album as Maroon 5, titled Songs About Jane (2002). Aided by the hit singles "Harder to Breathe", "This Love" and "She Will Be Loved", the album peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 chart and went quadruple platinum in 2005. In the same year, the band won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. In 2006, Dusick left the band after suffering from serious wrist and shoulder injuries and was replaced by Flynn. Maroon 5's second album, It Won't Be Soon Before Long (2007), debuted atop the US Billboard 200 chart; its lead single, "Makes Me Wonder", topped the US Billboard Hot 100.
The band's acclaimed third album, Hands All Over (2010), was re-released in 2011 with the US number-one "Moves Like Jagger". In 2012, Carmichael took a break from the band and was replaced by keyboardist Morton. Maroon 5's fourth album Overexposed (2012), spawned the single "One More Night", which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for nine consecutive weeks. In 2014, Carmichael rejoined the band alongside Morton to record the fifth album V (roman numeral pronounced "five"),<!--WARNING!, Do not remove this sentence--> released on Interscope Records and Levine's own label 222 Records, and reaching number one on the Billboard 200. In 2016, Maroon 5 added long-time collaborator Farrar to their official lineup as the band continued for their sixth studio album Red Pill Blues (2017). V and Red Pill Bluess respective singles "Sugar" and "Girls Like You" peaked at numbers two and one in the US respectively.
Madden announced his departure from the band in 2020 following his arrest on domestic violence charges, with Farrar becoming their new bassist. Their following albums, Jordi (2021) and Love Is Like (2025), saw varying critical and commercial success. Maroon 5 has sold more than 135 million records, making them one of the best-selling music acts of all time. The band has won numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards and three American Music Awards.
History
1994–2001: Kara's Flowers and the formation of Maroon 5
Maroon 5 was formed as Kara's Flowers in Los Angeles, California, in 1994. Lead vocalist and guitarist Adam Levine was introduced to drummer Ryan Dusick by a mutual friend and guitarist, Adam Salzman. Levine was 15 years old, and Dusick was 16. Three of the five members of the band started playing together at age 12. The four original members of the band met while attending Brentwood School in Los Angeles. While attending Brentwood School, Levine and guitarist Jesse Carmichael joined with bassist Mickey Madden and Dusick to form Kara's Flowers. The name was taken from a girl that went to their high school that the band had a "collective crush" on.
The band would play many shows through the next few years, and would also record their official debut. While they were playing a beach party in Malibu, independent producer Tommy Allen heard them play and offered to manage them and record a complete record with his partner, songwriter John DeNicola, who is known for his work on Dirty Dancing (1987)including "(I've Had) The Time of My Life". Producer Rob Cavallo's management team heard the record Allen and DeNicola produced, which eventually led Cavallo to offer them a deal with Reprise Records, re-recording the album. However, after the release of The Fourth World, during Levine and Madden's senior year of high school in 1997, it had morphed into a band with an alternative rock, indie rock According to Levine, the failure of the album was "a huge disappointment" that nearly led them to break up. The album sold around 5,000 copies and the band was dropped after six months. While Levine and Carmichael were in New York, they began to take notice of the urban music surrounding them and later let the style influence the songs they wrote. Kara's Flowers competed in the 2000 UCLA Spring Sing competition, losing to Sara Bareilles.
When the band returned in 2001, they brought those influences with them. Berkman was surprised the song was credited to Kara's Flowers, because the band sounded completely different from the one he had heard while at Warner Bros. Records.
Berkman encouraged Diener and Boxenbaum to fly out to Los Angeles to watch a showcase gig at The Viper Room for the four-piece Kara's Flowers. After briefly being known as simply "Maroon", the band changed their name to "Maroon 5".
2002–2006: Songs About Jane and Dusick's departure
thumb|left|Maroon 5 in concert in 2004
thumb|right|Original drummer Ryan Dusick (pictured in 2020) left the band in 2006 due to burnout from touring
James Valentine attended Berklee College of Music with John Mayer in 1996, where they developed a rapport. In 2002, the two reconnected at a Mayer radio broadcast. After Mayer heard their album, he was so impressed (particularly by "This Love", which became the most successful release off the album) that he invited them to open for him during his early 2003 tour. The album went on to sell over 10 million copies worldwide. Mayer invited the band to open for him again in 2004. Over the next three years, the band toured, including visits to seventeen countries. During this time, the band toured with Michelle Branch, Graham Colton, and the Rolling Stones. Other acts the band toured alongside included Gavin DeGraw, Matchbox Twenty, Sugar Ray, Counting Crows, Phantom Planet, the Hives, Dashboard Confessional, Simon Dawes, the Thrills, Thirsty Merc, Marc Broussard, the Donnas, the RedWest, Michael Tolcher, and Guster. It was also during this time that drummer Matt Flynn, who played with Gavin DeGraw and The B-52's, began accompanying the band at concerts.