Leto not put off labels by EMI legal battle

Jared Leto says he hasn't ruled out signing to a new record label – despite his band's high-profile legal issues with Virgin/EMI.

The Oscar-winning actor and frontman with Thirty Seconds To Mars says that although he is enjoying not being tied to a record contract, he is still considering his options for future releases with the band.

Last year he released the film Artifact, charting Thirty Seconds To Mars’ legal battle with Virgin/EMI, who tried to sue the band for $30million when Leto and co attempted to walk away from their contract.

Leto tells Rolling Stone: “I don’t hate on record companies, I’m just anti-corruption, anti-greed. And I think record companies can make fair, clear deals with artists and still be really profitable. So, we’re looking at our options; we have several labels that want to work with us, and yes, they’ve seen Artifact. They know what we’ve been through.

“We have been signed to a label since 1998, so for the first time ever we are actually free, and it’s exciting. There are limitless options out there. Tech options, crowd-funding options, but record companies are still a really great option too, because you have a group of people who believe in music, who help artists bring their dreams to life.”

Leto adds that he is “always” writing new material after some advice from Paul McCartney. Leto – who won an Oscar for his performance in Dallas Buyers Club – met the former Beatle at an awards show.

He says: “I was kind of prodding him for some advice. And he just talked about something I’ve heard many creative people say before. He said ‘You know what? Jus write. Show up every day and write something. And keep writing. Even when you think you don’t have something to say, just do it. And wonderful things will happen.’

“So I’m taking that approach. There are no rules right now. If a song is ready, we could release it. There might be a collaboration or a new song coming. You never know.”

Stef wrote close to 5,000 stories during his time as assistant online news editor and later as online news editor between 2014-2016. An accomplished reporter and journalist, Stef has written extensively for a number of UK newspapers and also played bass with UK rock favourites Logan. His favourite bands are Pixies and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Stef left the world of rock'n'roll news behind when he moved to his beloved Canada in 2016, but he started on his next 5000 stories in 2022.