Hall and Oates: ‘A Shotgun Marriage’

The Early Days of Daryl Hall and John Oates

As that famous philosopher Meek Mill once said: “I think everyone in Philadelphia has been shot at.”


Rock giants Hall & Oates would certainly agree with the wisdom of Mr. Mill.
It was gunfire that brought the pair together in 1967.

John Oates and Daryl Hall had never met when they competed in separate groups in a Battle of the Bands contest in the ballroom of the old Adelphia Hotel at 12th and Chestnut.

Suddenly, gunfire broke out in the ballroom between rival gang members.

The two strangers rushed into a service elevator. On the way down there was some talk of music. The two rockers learned they were both Temple University students. The friendship deepened on campus.

According to their Wikipedia page the two eventually shared an off-campus apartment and decided to be known as “Hall & Oates” when they saw the names on their mail box.

Again, Wikipedia says sales of their albums “make them the best selling music duo in history.”