On November 23, 2015, Popper and his then-wife Jordan Auleb had their first child, a daughter; the couple divorced in 2018. In 1999, he suffered a near-fatal heart attack brought on by years of
compulsive overeating (he had been diagnosed with
diabetes a few years earlier). Doctors at
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center performed an emergency
angioplasty, which saved Popper's life; he had 95%
arterial blockage. Popper later underwent
gastric bypass surgery and lost a significant amount of weight. Popper has a tattoo across his chest that says "I WANT TO BE BRAVE", written backwards. In August 2016, he announced a pending surgical procedure to repair collapsed vertebrae in his neck, necessitating the postponement and cancellation of some Blues Traveler shows. In 2024, Popper married Sherri "Gidget" Popper, telling
Rolling Stone that they first met "at a nudist colony in 2003".
Weapons collecting Popper is an avid collector of weaponry, including
firearms,
swords, and a working $10,000
American Civil War cannon. He cites a fascination with their
aesthetic of being "life-savingly efficient" machines. Popper is an advocate of
Second Amendment rights and once appeared on an
MTV-sponsored roundtable discussion on
gun control, which included panelists from the
Law Enforcement Alliance of America and
Harvard's
John F. Kennedy School of Government. He carries weapons in any state where it is allowed, even when onstage. On his 2003
Daily Show appearance, he stated that he decided to move away from New Jersey because of the state's restrictive
gun laws.
Politics Popper endorsed
George W. Bush in the
2004 U.S. presidential election. In November 2008, Popper said, regarding
Barack Obama, "this is the first time I've voted for a Democrat, ever." Popper was a supporter of
Ron Paul during the
2012 U.S. presidential election and participated in phone-banking at Paul's New Hampshire campaign headquarters. He also played a short set during Paul's "We are the Future Rally", an alternative convention for Paul supporters that was held in Tampa the day before the 2012 Republican National Convention. Popper (with and without Blues Traveler) has played at conventions, fundraisers, and ceremonies for both Republican and Democratic politicians. He has said, "I was a bleeding-heart
liberal, until I got a job", The singer summed up his political position by saying, "I believe in freedom for markets and freedom for individuals, so I guess that makes me a libertarian". He has toured with
United Service Organizations, both with Blues Traveler and solo.
Religion Popper was raised
Catholic, and for a time attended Stamford Catholic High School in Connecticut. However, he does not actively practice in his adult life. He has described himself as a "
recovering Catholic". He wrote the song "Trina Magna" as an exploration of his religious views.
Legal trouble In 2003, Popper was arrested for possession of
marijuana. He was arrested again on March 6, 2007, near
Ritzville, Washington, by the Washington State Patrol. He was the passenger in his own vehicle, which was stopped for speeding, and was found to be in the possession of a small amount of marijuana and weapons. Popper was released the same night. The vehicle had a stash of hidden compartments, which contained four rifles, nine handguns, a
switchblade knife, a
Taser, a set of brass knuckles, and
night vision goggles. The vehicle was temporarily seized. No charges were filed for the firearms and Taser, as they were all registered and securely locked away, and Popper was licensed to carry them. He agreed to surrender the
brass knuckles and switchblade knife. A deal was reached that allowed the marijuana charge to be dropped if Popper remained free of further drug infractions for one year and attended eight hours of drug counseling. Popper and the driver had been driving back to Washington from
Austin, Texas, and Popper likes to visit gun ranges during long trips.
Online controversy Popper is also known as an avid Twitter user and has caused some controversy on the platform. He also has publicly posted the home address and information of a particular Twitter user who often made jokes at his expense. Popper also drew attention for arguing with a
bot named "assbott", which had become well-known during the 2016 presidential campaign of
Donald Trump; it was the co-creator of this bot that Popper
doxxed in July 2017.
Autobiography On March 29, 2016,
Da Capo Press released Popper's autobiography, ''Suck and Blow: And Other Stories I'm Not Supposed to Tell
, written by Popper with the help of Relix'' co-editor-in-chief
Dean Budnick. In the book, among band exploits and a variety of topics, Popper discusses the group's rebound from the death of bassist
Bobby Sheehan, the creation of the
H.O.R.D.E. tour, his relationship with
Bill Graham, and his personal battle with being overweight. ==Equipment==