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Shannon Leto (; born March 9, 1970) is an American musician best known as the drummer of rock band
Thirty Seconds to Mars Thirty Seconds to Mars (commonly stylized as 30 Seconds to Mars) is an American Rock music, rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1998. The band consists of brothers Jared Leto (lead vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards) and Shannon Let ...
. He co-founded the group in 1998 in Los Angeles, California, with his younger brother
Jared Jared is a given name of Bible, Biblical derivation. Origin In the Book of Genesis, the Jared (biblical figure), biblical patriarch Jared () was the sixth in the ten pre-Noah's Ark, flood generations between Adam and Noah; he was the son of Maha ...
. Their debut album, '' 30 Seconds to Mars'' (2002), was released to positive reviews but only to limited success. The band achieved worldwide fame with the release of their second album ''
A Beautiful Lie ''A Beautiful Lie'' is the second studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released on August 30, 2005 through Virgin Records. It was produced by Josh Abraham. ''A Beautiful Lie'' differs notably from the band's self-titled ...
'' (2005). Their following releases, '' This Is War'' (2009) and ''
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams ''Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams'' (stylized as ''LOVE LUST FAITH + DREAMS'') is the fourth studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released through Virgin Records in the Netherlands on May 17, 2013, in the UK on May 20 and in ...
'' (2013), received further critical and commercial success. As of September 2014, the band has sold over 15 million albums worldwide. Leto has worked on several side projects during his career, including a collaboration with Antoine Becks, a recording with the short-lived supergroup
The Wondergirls The Wondergirls was a short-lived American rock supergroup and side project formed in 1999. In its initial, short lived incarnation, the band featured Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland, Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray, Ian Astbury of Th ...
, and performing on occasional dates with
Street Drum Corps Street Drum Corps is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 2004 by Bobby Alt, of S.T.U.N. and Faculty X; Adam Alt, of Circus Minor; and Frank Zummo, of TheStart. To date the group have released four albums and have been part of tours ...
. His creative contribution to music has received praise from musicians and critics. He is noted for his dynamic drumming style and his energetic live performances.


Early life

Shannon was born in
Bossier City, Louisiana Bossier City ( ) is a city in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, Bossier Parish in the northwestern region of the U.S. state, state of Louisiana in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in the Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area ...
, to Constance ( Metrejon). His mother has
Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the US state of Louisiana and surrounding Gulf Coast states. Whi ...
ancestry. (Leto is the surname of his stepfather, Dr. Carl Leto, an ophthalmologist.) His parents divorced when he was a child, and he and his younger brother,
Jared Jared is a given name of Bible, Biblical derivation. Origin In the Book of Genesis, the Jared (biblical figure), biblical patriarch Jared () was the sixth in the ten pre-Noah's Ark, flood generations between Adam and Noah; he was the son of Maha ...
, lived with their mother and their maternal grandparents, William Lee Metrejon and Ruby Russell. His biological father remarried and committed suicide when Shannon was ten years old. Leto moved frequently with his family from his native Louisiana around the country. He has two younger half-brothers from his father's second marriage. Leto's mother joined the
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
movement and encouraged her sons to get involved in the arts. Leto became interested in percussion from the moment he and his brother started playing music together at early age, and his models were artists of many mediums. "I come from a pretty artistic family," he explained, "There were canvases and paint everywhere, instruments, and all sorts of stuff. It just kind of made sense. I started playing on pots and pans at a very early age, so I just kind of flowed into it. It was just a natural progression." He received his first drum kit when he was ten years old and began teaching himself, developing his own style. Shannon Leto has described his adolescence as a troubled time, in which he used drugs and dropped out of school. He said, "I was in a mess, I felt I didn't belong anywhere", calling himself as an "outsider" who hated conformity and rules, and "took any opportunity to break them." Ultimately, Jared helped him recover from drugs.


Music career

Leto formed the rock band
Thirty Seconds to Mars Thirty Seconds to Mars (commonly stylized as 30 Seconds to Mars) is an American Rock music, rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1998. The band consists of brothers Jared Leto (lead vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards) and Shannon Let ...
in 1998 in Los Angeles, California with his brother Jared. Their debut album had been in the works for a couple of years and was recorded in rural Wyoming during 2001 and early 2002. Their work led to a number of record labels being interested in signing Thirty Seconds to Mars, which eventually signed to
Immortal Records Immortal Records was an American independent record label/imprint label based in Los Angeles, California. The company helped launch the careers of such influential acts as Korn, Thirty Seconds To Mars, and Incubus over the years. The label had a ...
. The band worked with producers
Bob Ezrin Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezri ...
and
Brian Virtue Brian Virtue is an American Grammy-nominated music producer, engineer and mixer based in Los Angeles, California. Virtue has worked with artists including Jane's Addiction, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Audioslave, Deftones, Puddle of Mudd, Chevelle, ...
on their debut album '' 30 Seconds to Mars'', which was released on August 27, 2002, in the United States through Immortal and
Virgin Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereof ...
. It reached number 107 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and number one on the US
Top Heatseekers The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
. Upon its release, ''30 Seconds to Mars'' was met with mostly positive reviews; music critic Megan O'Toole felt that the band has "managed to carve out a unique niche for themselves in the rock realm." The album was a slow-burning success, and eventually sold two million copies worldwide as of March 2011. It took two years to record their next release ''
A Beautiful Lie ''A Beautiful Lie'' is the second studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released on August 30, 2005 through Virgin Records. It was produced by Josh Abraham. ''A Beautiful Lie'' differs notably from the band's self-titled ...
'', with the band traveling to four continents to accommodate Jared Leto's acting career. ''A Beautiful Lie'' was released on August 30, 2005, in the United States. It has since been certified platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA), and has reached platinum and gold status in several countries, with a sales total of over four million. The band heavily toured in support of the album and played at several major festivals, including
Roskilde Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 53,354 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
,
Pinkpop Pinkpop is an annual music festival held in Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is usually held on the Pentecost weekend (''Pinksteren'' in Dutch, hence the name). If Pentecost falls on an early date in May, the festival is held later in June. Starting in ...
,
Rock am Ring The (German language, German for "Rock at the Ring") and ("Rock in the Park") festivals are two simultaneous rock music festivals held annually in Germany. While ''Rock am Ring'' takes place at the Nürburgring race track, ''Rock im Park'' tak ...
, and
Download In computer networks, download means to ''receive'' data from a remote system, typically a server such as a web server, an FTP server, an email server, or other similar systems. This contrasts with uploading, where data is ''sent to'' a remote ...
. In August 2008, during the recording process of the band's third studio album, Thirty Seconds to Mars attempted to sign with a new label, prompting
EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
(the parent label of Virgin), to file a $30 million breach of contract lawsuit. After nearly a year of legal battles, the band announced on April 28, 2009, that the suit had been settled following a defence based on the De Havilland Law. Thirty Seconds to Mars then signed a new contract with EMI and released their third album '' This Is War'' in December 2009 to critical acclaim. ''This Is War'' reached the top ten of several national album charts and earned numerous music awards. The band began their Into the Wild Tour in February 2010 and was among the hardest-working touring artists of the year. In December 2011, they entered the ''
Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...
'' for most live shows during a single album cycle, with 300 shows. In September 2012, Leto released a remixed version of " Night of the Hunter", a track featured on ''This Is War''. The musician explained that he wanted to "reinvent" the song, to "shed a different light on it by bringing a dance element to it." Thirty Seconds to Mars released their fourth album, ''
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams ''Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams'' (stylized as ''LOVE LUST FAITH + DREAMS'') is the fourth studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released through Virgin Records in the Netherlands on May 17, 2013, in the UK on May 20 and in ...
'', in May 2013 through
Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company that is a subsidiary of Comcast ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of N ...
. It received generally positive reviews and reached the top ten in more than fifteen countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States. The band promoted the album by embarking on their Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams Tour and the Carnivores Tour, co-headlining with
Linkin Park Linkin Park is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn, bass ...
. In April 2014, Thirty Seconds to Mars announced that they have parted from Virgin Records after tumultuous years with the label.


Artistry

Leto is known for his energetic live performances and his ability to blend traditional and experimental drum techniques. During the production of Thirty Seconds to Mars first studio album, he played almost exclusively electronic drums and drew influence from bands such as
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
,
The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...
,
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
, and
The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
, which he considers "mostly big conceptional bands; bands that had depth; bands that were dynamic."
Bob Ezrin Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezri ...
, producer of the album, felt that Leto is "one of the most inventive drummers I've worked with. He isn't satisfied with simply adding a beat; his drum parts are an integral part of the orchestration of the record. He's also a great live drummer who is lots of fun to watch, with a presence and energy level that are mesmerizing." Leto switched to a mostly acoustic set-up on the band's next release ''A Beautiful Lie''. His equipment consists of a hybrid kit that combines both acoustic and electric elements. His drum technician Joseph Ciccone, better known as Kentucky, stated that Leto's "sound is his technique. He's an animal behind that kit, so I love giving him tons of things to beat up." During the production of ''This Is War'', Leto widened his style with an abundance of electronic sounds and synth textures created by himself. He wrote the instrumental track "L490" and played every instrument on it, including all guitars and a
singing bowl A standing bell or resting bell is an inverted bell, supported from below with the rim uppermost. Such bells are normally bowl-shaped, and exist in a wide range of sizes, from a few centimetres to a metre in diameter. They are often played by st ...
. He experimented with different instruments and drew influences from a varied range of styles in ''Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams''.
Steve Lillywhite Stephen Alan Lillywhite (born 15 March 1955) is an English record producer. Since he began his career in 1977, Lillywhite has been credited on over 500 records, and has collaborated with a variety of musicians including new wave acts The Alarm ...
, who co-produced two band's albums, felt that Leto treats drumming "unlike most drummers do in rock bands. His cross rhythms explode in a guttural way ... very musical, extremely unique." Leto was largely an
autodidact Autodidacticism (also autodidactism) or self-education (also self-learning, self-study and self-teaching) is the practice of education without the guidance of schoolmasters (i.e., teachers, professors, institutions). Overview Autodi ...
on drums; "I've always wanted to find my way of doing things," he explained, "Discovering what I can contribute with my own voice. There were so many styles that I was into at a young age. I didn't want to get locked into just one thing." During his youth, Leto had been a devoted fan of
progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...
and
blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...
music, listening to artists such as
Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1967 by the singer and guitarist Peter Green (musician), Peter Green. Green named the band by combining the surnames of the drummer, Mick Fleetwood, and the bassis ...
,
Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and songwriter. One of the most iconic and successful Rock music, rock performers of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and her "electric" ...
,
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and
Boz Scaggs William Royce "Boz" Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was a bandmate of Steve Miller (musician), Steve Miller in the Ardells in the early 1960s and a member of the Steve Miller Band from 1967 to 196 ...
. He is inspired by
electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...
, including
Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Basildon, Essex in 1980. Originally formed with the line-up of Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher (musician), Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke, the band currently consists ...
and
The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...
. His major influences also include
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
band
Steely Dan Steely Dan is an American rock band formed in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, in 1971 by Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals). Originally having a traditional band lineup, Becker and Fagen cho ...
, as well as heavy metal groups
Mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...
,
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...
and
Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...
. According to Leto, these artists were commercially viable but also respected for their statements and contributions. He explained that he "never focused on the drummers," saying that he felt more connected to music than a particular drummer. When Thirty Seconds to Mars first started, the Leto brothers experimented to try and create a specific sound, whose process was described as "very organic". They were attempting to produce a "feeling" rather than a sound, in order to recreate the sense of community that marked their childhood. Leto also stated that the band's concerts are a direct reflection of that period of his early life. Journalist Kelly King, a long-time contributor with ''
Drumhead A drumhead or drum skin is a membrane stretched over one or both of the open ends of a drum. The drumhead is struck with sticks, mallets, or hands, so that it vibrates and the sound resonates through the drum. Additionally outside of percus ...
'' magazine, opined that Leto is "energy and grace behind the drums, stoking the fire that drives his band." He commented that the musician is both confident and aggressive on his kit, and felt that "his drive to push himself to the limit, to create and explore his own artistic capabilities is paramount." Ryan Jones, writing for
Alternative Addiction ''Alternative Addiction'' was an American daily Internet publication devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus was on Alternative rock. It was in operation from 1999 to 2020. History The website was ...
, described Leto as one of rock's most dynamic drummers of present day. He received the Indie Drummer Award at the 2012 Drummies Awards. He was also nominated for Alternative Drummer in 2009 and 2011.


Other work

In 1994, Leto found a minor role on the television series ''
My So-Called Life ''My So-Called Life'' is an American teen drama television series created by Winnie Holzman and produced by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. It aired on ABC from August 25, 1994 to January 26, 1995. Set at the fictional Liberty High Sch ...
'', in which his brother starred. He later appeared in the films '' Prefontaine'' (1997), '' Sol Goode'' (2001), and ''
Highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...
'' (2002). Leto recorded the songs "Drop That Baby" and " Let's Go All the Way" with the short-lived supergroup
The Wondergirls The Wondergirls was a short-lived American rock supergroup and side project formed in 1999. In its initial, short lived incarnation, the band featured Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland, Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray, Ian Astbury of Th ...
in 1999, which members included
Scott Weiland Scott Richard Weiland (, ; né Kline; October 27, 1967 – December 3, 2015) was an American singer and songwriter. He was best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Stone Temple Pilots from 1989 to 2003 and again from 2008 to 2013, r ...
,
Mark McGrath Mark Sayers McGrath (born March 15, 1968) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist of the rock band Sugar Ray. McGrath is also known for his work as a co-host of ''Extra'', and he was the host of ''Don't Forget the Lyrics!'' in 2010. McG ...
, and
Ian Astbury Ian Robert Astbury (born 14 May 1962) is an English singer, best known as the lead vocalist, frontman and a founding member of the rock band the Cult. During various hiatuses from the Cult, Astbury fronted the short-lived band Holy Barbarians ( ...
, among others. Since 2007, Leto has performed on occasional dates with American percussion band
Street Drum Corps Street Drum Corps is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 2004 by Bobby Alt, of S.T.U.N. and Faculty X; Adam Alt, of Circus Minor; and Frank Zummo, of TheStart. To date the group have released four albums and have been part of tours ...
. In June 2008, he joined
Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or Habitat, is a U.S. non-governmental, and tax-exempt 501(C)(3) Christian nonprofit organization which seeks to build affordable housing. The international ...
to work with Thirty Seconds to Mars on a home being repaired and renovated through the Greater Los Angeles Area's "A Brush With Kindness" programme. Leto began producing American electronic band CB7 after meeting musician Antoine Becks in 2009. CB7 later supported Thirty Seconds to Mars on the North American leg of their Into the Wild Tour in 2011. The same year, Leto created a side project with Becks and toured worldwide with him until the summer of 2012, when the duo split. In 2014, Leto launched Black Fuel Trading Company, a lifestyle brand primarily focusing on responsibly sourced, direct-trade coffee.


Discography

;Thirty Seconds to Mars studio albums * '' 30 Seconds to Mars'' (2002) * ''
A Beautiful Lie ''A Beautiful Lie'' is the second studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released on August 30, 2005 through Virgin Records. It was produced by Josh Abraham. ''A Beautiful Lie'' differs notably from the band's self-titled ...
'' (2005) * '' This Is War'' (2009) * ''
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams ''Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams'' (stylized as ''LOVE LUST FAITH + DREAMS'') is the fourth studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released through Virgin Records in the Netherlands on May 17, 2013, in the UK on May 20 and in ...
'' (2013) * ''
America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
'' (2018) * ''
It's the End of the World but It's a Beautiful Day ''It's the End of the World but It's a Beautiful Day'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, released on September 15, 2023, through Concord. It is the first album after their debut without guitarist Tomo Mili� ...
'' (2023)


Notes


References

* * * * * *


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leto, Shannon 1970 births American alternative rock drummers American activists American multi-instrumentalists American photographers Record producers from Louisiana American alternative rock guitarists American male guitarists American rock songwriters American male songwriters Living people Guitarists from Louisiana People from Bossier City, Louisiana Thirty Seconds to Mars members Songwriters from Louisiana 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 21st-century American drummers The Wondergirls members American people of French descent Drummers from Louisiana