1998–2000: Formation and first years Thirty Seconds to Mars started in 1998 in
Los Angeles, California, as a collaboration between brothers
Jared Leto and
Shannon Leto, who had been playing music together since their childhood. The duo later expanded to a four-piece when they added guitarist
Solon Bixler and bassist
Matt Wachter to the line-up. Additional guitarist
Kevin Drake, who first auditioned for the position of bassist, also joined the band as a touring musician. The band played its first concerts under different names, before finally settling on the name "Thirty Seconds to Mars", which Jared Leto stated was inspired by a rare
manuscript titled
Argus Apocraphex. Leto described the name as "a reference, a rough translation from the book. I think the idea is interesting, it's a metaphor for the future," he explained. "Thirty seconds to Mars—the fact that we're so close to something that's not a tangible idea. Also Mars being the God of War makes it really interesting, as well. You could substitute that in there, but what's important for my brother and I, is that it be imaginative and really represent the sound of our music in as unique a way as possible." He further characterized the name as working "on several different levels, a phrase that is lyrical, suggestive, cinematic, and filled with immediacy." Although Leto cited
Argus Apocraphex as the source of the name, inquiries to the
Harvard Library have not identified any such manuscript. This has led to speculation that the title may not correspond to any existing work but could instead have been created as a conceptual or imaginative reference by the band. When Thirty Seconds to Mars first started, Jared Leto did not allow his vocation as a Hollywood actor to be used in promotion of the band. By 1998, they performed gigs at small American venues and clubs. Their eponymous debut album had been in the works for a couple of years, with Leto writing the majority of the songs. During this period, the band recorded demo tracks such as "Valhalla" and "Revolution", or "Jupiter" and "Hero", which later appeared on the band's debut album as "Fallen" and "Year Zero" respectively, but also "Buddha for Mary". In 1999,
Virgin Records entered into the contract.
2001–2003: Debut album Thirty Seconds to Mars retreated to the isolation of Wyoming's countryside in 2001 to record their debut album, working with producers
Bob Ezrin and
Brian Virtue. They contacted Ezrin because they grew up listening to his work with
Pink Floyd,
Kiss and
Alice Cooper and they felt he was the only one who could help them capture the size and scope of what they wanted to accomplish on their debut recording. Even before the album was released,
Puddle of Mudd invited Thirty Seconds to Mars to open a six-week tour for them in the spring of 2002. The band later embarked on a North American tour to support
Incubus and began a club tour in August. The band released their first studio album,
30 Seconds to Mars, on August 27, 2002 in the United States through
Immortal and
Virgin. Jared Leto described the record as a
concept album that focuses on human struggle and
self-determination, in which otherworldly elements and conceptual ideas are used to illustrate a truthful personal situation. It was preceded by the single "
Capricorn (A Brand New Name)", which peaked at number 31 on the US
Mainstream Rock chart. 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. In October 2002, the band toured with
I Mother Earth and
Billy Talent on MTV Campus Invasion. The following month, Thirty Seconds to Mars made their first appearance on television on
Last Call with Carson Daly and opened concerts for
Our Lady Peace and
Sevendust. Released in 2003, "
Edge of the Earth" became the second single from the album. In early 2003, Bixler left the band due to issues primarily related to touring. He was later replaced by
Tomo Miličević, who successfully auditioned for the part of guitarist. The band later went on tour with
Chevelle,
Trust Company, and
Pacifier, and took a slot on the 2003
Lollapalooza tour.
2004–2008: A Beautiful Lie Thirty Seconds to Mars returned to the studio in March 2004 to begin working on their second album
A Beautiful Lie, with
Josh Abraham producing. During the recording process, the band traveled to four continents to accommodate Jared Leto's acting career.
A Beautiful Lie was notably different from the band's debut album, from both musical and lyrical aspect. "On the first record I created a world, then hid behind it," Leto said. "With
A Beautiful Lie, it was time to take a more personal and less cerebral approach. Although this record is still full of conceptual elements and thematic ideas it is ultimately much more wrapped around the heart than the head. It's about brutal honesty, growth, change. It's an incredibly intimate look into a life that is in the crossroads. A raw emotional journey. A story of life, love, death, pain, joy, and passion. Of what it is to be human."
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 (RIAA), and has reached platinum and gold status in several countries, with a sales total of over four million. During 2005, Thirty Seconds to Mars went on tour with
Chevelle,
Audioslave and
The Used. The group embarked on their first headlining tour
Forever Night, Never Day in March 2006. At the same time, the band released the album's second single, "
The Kill", which set a record for the longest-running hit in the history of the US
Modern Rock chart when it remained on the national chart for more than 50 weeks, following its number three peak in 2006. Its music video, directed by Jared Leto under the pseudonym of Bartholomew Cubbins, received a largely positive response and numerous accolades, including an
MTV Video Music Award. In October 2006, the band began their
Welcome to the Universe Tour, sponsored by
MTV2, and were supported by
Head Automatica,
The Receiving End of Sirens,
Cobra Starship, and several other bands including
Street Drum Corps. The third single from the album, "
From Yesterday", was released in November 2006 and became the band's first number one on the
Billboard's
Modern Rock Tracks. Jared Leto directed a short film for the single, which became the first-ever American music video shot in the People's Republic of China in its entirety.
A Beautiful Lie was released in Europe in February 2007. During the year, Thirty Seconds to Mars toured extensively throughout Europe and played at several major festivals, including
Roskilde,
Pinkpop,
Rock am Ring, and
Download. In March 2007, Matt Wachter left the group to spend more time with his family and was replaced by
Tim Kelleher, performing live only. On November 1, 2007, Thirty Seconds to Mars won an
MTV Europe Music Award in the category of
Best Rock. The band also received the
Kerrang! Award for Best Single in two consecutive years for "The Kill" and "From Yesterday" in 2007 and 2008, respectively. The album's title track, "
A Beautiful Lie", was released as the fourth single in North America and selected European countries. Its music video was filmed 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle in Greenland, and proceeds from the sales benefited the
Natural Resources Defense Council. At the
2008 MTV Europe Music Awards on November 6, Thirty Seconds to Mars earned their second Best Rock and
Best Video for "A Beautiful Lie".
2008–2011: EMI lawsuit and This Is War Thirty Seconds to Mars began recording their third studio album,
This Is War, in August 2008. To produce the record, the band worked with
Flood and
Steve Lillywhite. Thirty Seconds to Mars had attempted to sign with a new label after the
A Beautiful Lie tour, prompting
EMI (the parent label of Virgin) to file a lawsuit for $30 million. EMI claimed that the band had failed to produce three of the five records they were obliged to deliver under their 1999 contract, which Virgin entered into with the now-defunct Immortal Records. Jared Leto responded to some of the claims in the suit stating "under California law, where we live and signed our deal, one cannot be bound to a contract for more than seven years." Thirty Seconds to Mars had been contracted for nine years, so the band decided to exercise their "legal right to terminate our old, out-of-date contract, which, according to the law is null and void." After nearly a year of the lawsuit battle, the band announced on April 28, 2009, that the case had been settled. The suit was resolved following a defense based on a contract case involving actress
Olivia de Havilland decades before. Leto explained, "The California Appeals Court ruled that no service contract in California is valid after seven years, and it became known as the
De Havilland Law after she used it to get out of her contract with
Warner Bros." Thirty Seconds to Mars then signed a new contract with EMI. In a bid to involve their fans in
This Is War, Thirty Seconds to Mars held an event, called the Summit, at the Avalon Club in Los Angeles, where they invited fans to provide backing vocals and percussion. After the success of the initial Summit, the group repeated the event in eight countries and extended it digitally. The band also invited fans to submit close-up shots of their faces in order to make 2,000 different individual covers for the album. Leto described
This Is War as a record about survival: "It was a two-year creative battle that was ferocious and tough but creatively rewarding, and all of those adverse elements, in hindsight, made us stronger and made the record stronger." Although the release date was changed many times,
This Is War was eventually released on December 8, 2009. The album reached the top ten of several national album charts and entered the
Billboard 200 at number 18, with first-week sales of 67,000 in the United States. Its first two singles, "
Kings and Queens" and "
This Is War", reached the number-one spot on the US
Alternative Songs chart. After a promotional tour in winter 2009, Thirty Seconds to Mars embarked on their
Into the Wild Tour in February 2010. At the
2010 MTV Video Music Awards, "Kings and Queens" received four nominations, including
Video of the Year and
Best Direction, and went on to win
Best Rock Video. The album's third single, "
Closer to the Edge", was the 2010 best-selling rock single in the United Kingdom, topping the
UK Rock Chart for eight consecutive weeks. Thirty Seconds to Mars collaborated with rapper
Kanye West on the song "
Hurricane", which was released on the deluxe edition of
This Is War and became the album's fourth single in some countries. On November 7, Thirty Seconds to Mars and West performed "Hurricane" at the
2010 MTV Europe Music Awards at the
Puerta de Alcalá in Madrid, where the band also received their third
Best Rock. On May 13, 2011, Thirty Seconds to Mars recorded a performance for the television program
MTV Unplugged. They performed with musicians from the
Vitamin String Quartet and invited a gospel choir to join the group for a rendition of
U2's song "
Where the Streets Have No Name". A
Songkick study indicated that, based on quantity of tour dates, Thirty Seconds to Mars was among the hardest-working touring artists in 2010. On October 16, 2011, it was announced that the band would enter the
Guinness World Records for most live shows during a single album cycle, with 300 shows. The 300th show, called Tribus Centum Numerarae, took place on December 7, 2011 at the
Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City and was followed by a special series of shows which marked the end of the Into the Wild Tour. The album was produced by Jared Leto with previous collaborator
Steve Lillywhite. Leto said that the band took a new direction with
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams. He explained that the album "is more than an evolution, it's a brand new beginning. Creatively, we've gone to an entirely new place, which is exciting, unexpected, and incredibly inspiring." In September 2012,
Artifact, a documentary about the band's legal battle against the record label EMI and the making of
This Is War, premiered at the
Toronto International Film Festival and won the People's Choice Documentary Award. In February 2013, it was announced that "
Up in the Air" would be the first single from the fourth album. In partnership with
NASA, Thirty Seconds to Mars launched the first copy of "Up in the Air" aboard the
Dragon spacecraft on
SpaceX CRS-2. The mission was launched atop a
Falcon 9 rocket on March 1, 2013, sending the first ever commercial copy of music into space. On March 18, 2013, the single premiered from the
International Space Station, after a Q&A session with the band and
Expedition 35 flight engineer
Tom Marshburn, while
Annise Parker, mayor of the city of Houston, proclaimed the Thirty Seconds to Mars Day. "Up in the Air" made its radio debut on March 18 and became commercially available for downloading the following day. The song reached number three on the US
Alternative Songs chart and experienced success in international markets. Thirty Seconds to Mars released
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams on May 21, 2013, through
Universal in the United States. The album received generally positive reviews and reached the top ten in more than fifteen countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States. The band began their
Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams Tour in June, which included festival dates at
Rock Werchter,
Pinkpop,
Rock in Rio, and
Rock am Ring. The second single from the album, "
Do or Die", achieved a level of play on
modern rock radio, while "
City of Angels", the third single, was released to rave reviews from critics and eventually reached number eight on the Alternative Songs chart in the US. At the
2013 MTV Video Music Awards, held on August 25, "Up in the Air" won the award for
Best Rock Video. Thirty Seconds to Mars announced on April 25, 2014 that they have parted from Virgin Records after tumultuous years with the label, with Leto telling
Billboard, "We're free and clear and excited about the future. It's the most wonderful place to be." In August 2014, the group embarked on a double-headline tour, dubbed the
Carnivores Tour, with American rock band
Linkin Park, visiting arenas and stadiums throughout North America. Thirty Seconds to Mars then launched a music festival called Camp Mars. The first edition took place in Malibu, California, in August 2015 and included a series of activities in a semi-rustic setting and several DJ sets.
2015–2021: America and Tomo Miličević’s departure during the Monolith Tour On November 3, 2015, it was announced that Thirty Seconds to Mars was working on their fifth studio album. In August 2016, the band revealed to have signed to
Interscope Records. The group later unveiled that they would embark on a North American tour with
Muse and
PVRIS, which took place from May to September 2017. In August 2017, "
Walk on Water" was announced as the lead single from the band's fifth album. Thirty Seconds to Mars then performed the song at the
2017 MTV Video Music Awards featuring special guest
Travis Scott. During the ceremony, Jared Leto received media attention for his tribute to musicians
Chester Bennington and
Chris Cornell, who both died earlier that year. On January 25, 2018, Thirty Seconds to Mars released "
Dangerous Night" as the second single from their upcoming fifth studio album. In February 2018, the band officially announced the
Monolith Tour with
Walk the Moon,
Misterwives,
K. Flay,
Joywave, and
Welshly Arms. Thirty Seconds to Mars later confirmed
America as title of their fifth album, which was released on April 6, 2018. The album received polarized reviews from critics and debuted at number two on the
Billboard 200, becoming the band's highest entry on the chart.
America also reached the top ten in seventeen other countries, including number one in Germany and Austria. During the first leg of the Monolith Tour, it was announced that Miličević would be taking a break from touring due to personal matters. On June 11, 2018, he officially announced his departure from the band.
2021–2025: ''It's the End of the World but It's a Beautiful Day'' On October 5, 2021, Leto announced that he would be featured in a song with
Illenium called "Wouldn't Change a Thing". On August 27, 2022, Thirty Seconds to Mars announced a commemorative 20th-anniversary version of its debut album. On February 22, 2023, it was announced that the band would be playing at
When We Were Young on October 22, 2023. On May 8, 2023, Thirty Seconds to Mars released "
Stuck", the lead single from their upcoming sixth studio album, ''
It's the End of the World but It's a Beautiful Day'', which was released on September 15. The second track of the album, "Life Is Beautiful", was released as
promotional single on June 9. On August 16, 2025, the band performed a show at the
Kia Forum celebrating the 20th anniversary of
A Beautiful Lie.
Tomo Miličević joined the band on stage for a handful of songs in their first performance together in over seven years. During the show, Jared announced that they will be re-releasing A Beautiful Lie around November with several unreleased songs and an acoustic version of The Kill. He also confirmed that their next studio album will return the band to their alternative rock sound. ==Musical style==