Jared Leto Finds Juggling Acting and Music Easy

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Alternative, Rock, New Releases,

Jared Leto doesn't find it difficult switching from his role as a frontman to being an actor.

The Thirty Seconds to Mars singer, whose recent performance in Dallas Buyers Club as transgender AIDS victim Rayon has seen him win a string of awards, insists moving between the two professions comes naturally to him.

"You could stick me in front of a pile of rubbish, and I'll make something out of it. It all comes from the same place, I'm a creative person, I find creative solutions to problems, and the difference is process. The process of making music is very intimate, because at least for me, and Thirty Seconds to Mars, I write the songs, my brother [Shannon] plays the drums, and we have so much responsibility from the music to the production to the videos to the design to the marketing to the tours and the production of the tours ... everything."

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Jared Leto Visited ‘Magical Land’ to Write Album

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Alternative, Rock, New Releases,

Jared Leto went on a journey through a "magical land" while writing Love Lust Faith + Dreams.

The 30 Seconds to Mars frontman embarked on a spiritual quest around India for inspiration and it was during his trip that he wrote and recorded several tracks from their fourth album in a mobile studio, which helped make the record a "new beginning" for the band.

"I think the first three albums are kind of a trilogy in a sense and this is a new beginning. It was an unforgettably journey through this magical land. It was about absorbing the culture. I met wonderful people and went off the beaten track."

Part of this fresh start for the band - also made up of Jared's brother Shannon and Tomo Milicevic - included leaving behind the emotions captured on their last album, This Is War, and instead being more "reflective" through their music.

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30 Seconds to Mars Almost Ruined by Lawsuit

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Alternative, Rock, New Releases,

30 Seconds to Mars were almost destroyed by a legal battle. The group admit their future was in doubt when Virgin Records and EMI Music sued them for $30 million in 2009, citing breach of contract, and because the sum was so huge, the band had no choice but to fight the case in order to save their futures.

"The last record we had quite a few problems. We battled our record company. They sued us for $30 million. We made a film about it called Artifact, a documentary that is coming out later this summer. It was mind-blowing, The number was too big to conceptualize it but it was very real. Not only was there the financial risk at stake but there was the risk of losing our careers. We felt we had an important and just fight. I am glad we stood up for what we believed in. Ultimately we were victorious and we are here. The story went exactly as it was supposed too," frontmnan Jared Leto said.

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30 Seconds to Mars Launch Single from Space

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Upcoming Releases, Alternative, Rock, New Releases,

30 Seconds to Mars have launched their new single from space.

The rockers - comprised of Jared Leto, Shannon Leto and Tomo Milicevic - announced their fourth album, Love Lust + Faith Dreams, will be released on May 20, following the inter-galactic launch of their aptly-named first single, "Up In The Air," Monday night. The band teamed up with NASA to premiere their new track from space and a copy of the single was launched via a SpaceX cargo mission on March 1. It was given its first ever play by astronauts orbiting 230 miles above Earth on the International Space Station at midnight Greenwich Mean Time on Tuesday.

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Jared Leto Confirms New 30 Seconds To Mars Album

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Upcoming Releases, Alternative, Rock,

30 Seconds To Mars have finished their new album.

Singer Jared Leto confirmed the "Beautiful Lie" rockers - also including Shannon Leto and Tomo Milicevic - are putting the finishing touches to their fourth album, but the recording is complete.

"This is the first time I'm really talking about the album, and when you talk about these things it helps you put them into perspective. I just mastered it two days ago, and we're still toying with it, but it's been turned in and it's finished. I wrote and recorded about 70 songs for this album, and I think there's a feeling that all of us in the band have that, especially after touring as long as we did last time, that this is a really important album for us; it's a critical album for us. It's an evolution, this album is more of who we are than we have ever been before, and we've gone to an entirely new place, which is incredibly exciting. And it's provocative at the same time, because changes bring new opportunities, new challenges, a chance to learn."

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30 Seconds to Mars Says Their Next Album Will Be ‘More Evolved’

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Upcoming Releases, Alternative, Rock,

30 Seconds to Mars thinks that their next album will be "more evolved."

The band - made up of Jared Leto, Shannon Leto and Tomo Milicevic - are set to release their fourth LP in 2013, and Jared believes it will be a progression fro their previous offering This Is War.

"It will be stronger, better, more evolved. It's a complete transformation for us. I really think that this could be the best thing we've ever done," Jared said.

Jared - who recently announced his return to acting, where he will play a HIV-positive cross-dresser - has been recording the new album all over the world with his bandmates, but admitted none of the group were sure they wanted to continue when they were initially asked about their future projects: "People started to ask us about a new album. We had been on the road for almost two and a half years and I didn't know... I had no idea what the future held. I don't think any of us knew."

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30 Seconds to Mars Inspired by India

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Artist News, Upcoming Releases, Alternative, Rock,

Alternative rock band 30 Seconds to Mars' new album is inspired by India. Frontman Jared Leto has recently been to the Asian country and was inspired by what he saw there to write new songs.

"I was recording in India, and had an amazing experience over there, and came back with some really great material. And not so much that this is a World Beat record, it's more about the experiences and how they're influencing me in creative terms, emotional terms," he told MTV News.

Jared also told how one impromptu recording session saw him joined by a gang of local children: "There was one afternoon that we climbed up above a city called Jodhpur, we were on a cliff with a 2000-year-old fortress behind us. So it was about sunset, and I had a portable set up, so we started recording. I had an external speaker, and the kids started to hear this song I was working on. So they started climbing out onto the rooftops of the city, and soon they were scrambling up the side of this mountain, and before we knew it, we were surrounded by dozens of these amazing Indian kids, singing and dancing along to this recording process. It was really mind-blowing."

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Lady Gaga Wins Four Awards at MTV EMAs

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Awards, Music Videos, Performances, Videos, Alternative, Dance, Hip-Hop & Rap, Pop, Rock,

Pop star Lady Gaga took home four awards from the MTV EMAs in Belfast, Northern Ireland last night. The eccentric singer, who performed while sitting on a moon sculpture, picked up gongs in four out of the six categories she was nominated for to win Best Female, Best Song and Best Video for "Born This Way," and Biggest Fan, a brand new award that celebrates artists with the most committed fanbase.

Justin Bieber, Bruno Mars and 30 Seconds to Mars each won two awards with "Baby" hitmaker Justin winning Best Male and Best Pop, Jared Leto's band picking up Best World Stage and Best Alternative gongs and Bruno taking home awards for Best Push and Best New Artist.

The surprise win of the night went to Korean boyband BigBang, who beat off competition from acts including Britney Spears to take home Best Worldwide Act while Eminem picked up the Best Hip Hop artist. Katy Perry was presented with the award for Best Live Act and Linkin Park were voted as Best Rock, while Jessie J presented a moving video tribute to the late Amy Winehouse.

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Music Video: ‘This Is War’ From 30 Seconds to Mars

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Music Videos, Videos, Alternative, Rock, New Releases,

30 Seconds to Mars has released their music video for “This Is War,” the title track on the band’s new album. Front man Jared Leto said the band spent two years working on the album, calling the experience “brutal” and “overwhelming.” 30 Seconds to Mars was between record labels (and in litigation) at the time. From what we’re hearing and seeing in the music video, it all came together in the end.

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Quote of the Day: Jared Leto on Thirty Seconds to Mars’ New Album

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Gossip, Rock,

“We went to war and fought for what we believed in, and we refused to give in or give up until they addressed our concerns.  One day, they finally addressed our concerns and we were able to make peace and move forward.  But it was a long and sometimes vicious, brutal, and bloody battle.  It occupied every waking moment, and I carried a lot of it.  I tried my best to shield Shannon and Tomo from it so we could all focus on the creative aspects of making this record on our own.  We are very, very glad we took on that fight.  We never doubted it was the right decision, but we didn’t know how it would end up…. But we’re stronger as a result of it, and it will always be a part of our story.”

-Thiry Seconds to Mars’ Jared Leto explaining why their new album is titled This Is War.

(Make sure to check out our other notable quotes.)

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