Widespread Panic

Widespread Panic is a southern rock band that has been together for the past 20 years. It was founded by guitarist Michael Houser and singer/guitarist John Bell. The other members are bassist Dave Schools, drummer Todd Nance, percussionist Domingo "Sunny" Ortiz, and keyboardist JoJo Hermann. Since their beginnings in Athens, Georgia, in the mid 1980s they have sold multimillion records and have grown a rabidly loyal fan base large enough to spend the last decade on Pollstar's top 50 touring acts. In 2002 Houser passed away after battling pancreatic cancer. The band decided to honor Houser's wishes and keep going by bringing in George McConnell to play lead guitar. After replacing McConnell with Jimmy Herring, Widespread Panic is still touring and developing new music.