John Joseph Theodore Rzeznik (/ˈrɛznɪk/; born December 5, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and producer.

Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, Rzeznik grew up in a working-class Polish-American family, heavily influenced by music from a young age.

The band's breakthrough was the 1998 album Dizzy Up the Girl, whose biggest hit, "Iris", topped the charts after its inclusion on the soundtrack for the 1998 film City of Angels.

Rzeznik has been open about his personal struggles, including his battle with alcoholism, and is a dedicated philanthropist, participating in charity events and fundraisers.

Rzeznik had a strict Catholic upbringing in Buffalo's working-class East Side Polish neighborhood and attended Corpus Christi Grammar School.

Having lost both of his parents, he was brought up by his four older sisters, Phyllis, Fran, Gladys and Kate, with help from their cousin, John Guljas.

The band received early success with the single "Name" as well as being featured in Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare with the song "I'm Awake Now".

[13] Following the album Gutterflower, Rzeznik wrote "Always Know Where You Are" and "I'm Still Here" for the Disney film Treasure Planet,[14] which were also released as a single independently from the band.

[17] On November 29, 2020, he participated in a virtual fundraiser to help combat hunger and raise money for the Community Foodbank of New Jersey.

[18] Most of the music Rzeznik listened to while growing up was influenced by his sisters, and consisted of classic rock such as The Rolling Stones and The Kinks.

The youngest of his four older sisters moved towards punk music and Rzeznik became interested in bands such as Ramones and The Clash.

[19] Rzeznik attributes his gift for melody to listening to bands such as Kiss, Cheap Trick, The Cure and Rush in the early 1980s.

After the Goo Goo Dolls' equipment was stolen from a van in New York City (including Rzeznik's Marshall JCM800 amplifier and his only guitar at the time), following the recording of their 1989 album, Jed, a custom, yellow Stratocaster-style guitar (later nicknamed "Boing") was made for Rzeznik by ESP.