Kings Of Leon

Our Recommendations: You probably already have heard "Sex On Fire", one of their most popular songs today; but we also recommend "On Call", "Knocked Up", and "Use Somebody". You can download them here FREE.


Band Members: Nathan Followill (drummer), Caleb Followill (lead singer and rhythm guitarist), Jared Followill (bass guitarist and pianist), Matthew Followill (lead guitarist). Contrary to popular belief, they are actually not related and the similar last names are just a huge coincidence. (Oh wait, no... they are related!)


Who they are: When they were young, the Followill boys were cut off from the pop-culture because their father Leon (after whom the band is named) was a Pentecostal preacher. They moved from place to place helping their father spread the "good word" by instilling the fear of God to parishioners. Not only were they home-schooled, they were also denied the "privilege" of listening to secular music. However, their musical senses arose from that time because they were part of church choirs. So they started singing, playing instruments and sometimes helped out with banging the drums during church services.
When their father resigned from the church and divorced their mother, the brothers decided to move to Nashville, Tennessee and try to make it big in the music industry. Luck was on their side and they ran into a Nashville songwriter who introduced them to "secular" bands like the Rolling Stones and Johnny Cash. After a few years their cousin Matthew decided to join them as well, giving birth to the Kings Of Leon were born.


Why they are big: They started off as a more punk/garage rock with southern roots, but are moving and evolving towards the more pop/alternative rock with southern roots. This change of cleaning themselves up and starting with a fresh new look made them lose some of their fan base, however it did reach out to a wider audience and made them even more popular than before.

Even in their early days, the band's popularity rose to world-wide standards with the British press claiming that the Kings Of Leon were the best American band of the decade. Since then, they have been on numerous television shows and won numerous acclaims and awards, including a Grammy Award. Even The Proclaimers have been covering the song "17" (off of their newest album)


Notable Albums:

• Youth and Young Manhood (2003) - their debut album that launched them into worldwide popularity. Has more of the punk/garage rock sound.
• Because of the Times (2007) - this album gained them even more critical acclaim and reached number 1 in the UK and Ireland.
• Only By the Night (2008) - it has gained the most commercial success (great for the band, not too great for all of the fans).
• Come Around Sun (2010) - latest album out.

Side Note #1: While checking our facts on the band, we had to edit the Wikipedia page a bit because of their mistakes. :]