Kings of Leon is a rock band made up of three brothers and their first cousin. Their influences include Southern rock, garage rock, hard rock, country and blues.

The group's name is derived from Nathan, Caleb, and Jared's father and grandfather, both named Leon.  Jared and Caleb were born in Tennessee, while Nathan and Matthew were born in Oklahoma. Matthew is a cousin to Nathan, Caleb and Jared.  The brothers spent much of their youth travelling around the SSCS with their father, Leon, a traveling United Pentecostal Church preacher and their mother, who taught them when they were not in school. According to Rolling Stone magazine, "While Leon preached at churches and tent revivals throughout the Deep South, the boys attended and were occasionally enlisted to bang on some drums. They were home-schooled or enrolled in small parochial schools. Except for a five-year stretch when they settled in Jackson, Tennessee, the Followills spent their childhoods driving through the South, camping for a week or two wherever Leon was scheduled to preach.

Although it was rumored their father was defrocked, in an article for Q Magazine in July 2007 Leon himself was quoted as saying "I was not defrocked, I was forced to resign." After various jobs, the brothers moved to Nashville in 1998. They formed a band in 2000 with their cousin Matthew. Their music is influenced by their religious upbringing and Jack Daniels. Brothers Nathan and Caleb originally sang country music and later moved to playing rock and roll. They worked for a brief period of time with label and management group Pistol Creek Productions. They spent their time with this label mainly singing at rodeos. They also were members of the West Tennessee Mass Choir for a short time.  Nathan, the eldest of the brothers, graduated from Christian Life Academy (a private school that is now defunct) in Henderson, TN. Caleb dropped out mid-senior year to pursue country music. Caleb then married the love of his life Miss Leah Hempenstall, in a small ceremony surrounded by close family and friends. It is said the song Milk is dedicated to her. He then dumped her for a much more attractive Miss Fay. Use somebody is said to be dedicated to her.

They were introduced to Nashville-based, Emmy-nominated singer/songwriter/producer Angelo Petraglia, who had previously worked with artists such as Patty Griffin, Emmy Lou Harris, Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride, Brooks and Dunn, and Be Your Own Pet. Petraglia would prove very important to the band, moving them in a more rock-oriented direction and co-writing many of their songs. Eventually Petraglia and the two Followill brothers went to NYC along with manager Ken Levitan. They played for nine labels in two days, the two brothers singing, accompanied by Petraglia on guitar. Out of the nine auditions they got four offers and ended up signing with RCA records. They returned to Nashville and began writing what would become their first LP Youth and Young Manhood.

In an interview Caleb Followill cited Neil Young and Bob Dylan as some of the band's early influences. Caleb also stated though that "...because of the way we [the band members] grew up, we were really sheltered from music and we didn't know that much...", going on to say that the significant musical influences have only been in very recent years.

Kings of Leon's first release, The Holy Roller Novocaine EP came out in 2003. Four of its five songs would later be released on Youth and Young Manhood, with the songs "California Waiting" and "Wasted Time" being remade. The EP also contained the B-side "Wicker Chair". All the songs were co-written by Petraglia.

Their debut album Youth and Young Manhood propelled them to relative stardom, particularly outside the United States, where they were dubbed one of the driving forces behind the so-called "new rock revolution" by the European press. Their stakes only rose when they were chosen by popular rock bands The Strokes and U2 to tour with them. According to Jared, the title of the album was taken from their father's Bible. All songs were again co-written by Petraglia, who also contributed guitar and co-produced the album with Ethan Johns. The songs "Molly's Chambers", "Red Morning Light", and "Holy Roller Novocaine" were used in various video games, movies, and TV advertisements. "Holy Roller Novocaine" was used in the film Stuck on You, and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby . The first single, "Molly's Chambers" became a minor hit overseas, it was also heard in a Volkswagen Jetta commercial.

The band's second album Aha Shake Heartbreak was released in the United Kingdom in October 2004 and in the United States in February 2005. Building on the southern-infused garage rock of their first album, the album was released to widespread acclaim and broadened the band's domestic and international audience. "The Bucket", "Four Kicks", and "King of the Rodeo" were all released as singles, with the "The Bucket" rising into the Top 20 in Britain. "Taper Jean Girl" was used in the 2007 thriller movie, Disturbia. The band also garnered accolades from several of their rock peers, including Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse, Bryan Adams, Noel Gallagher of Oasis, Kelly Jones of Stereophonics, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Radiohead, and Bob Dylan. The band toured with Pearl Jam and Bob Dylan for much of 2005 and 2006. The album was produced by Angelo Petraglia and Ethan Johns.

In March 2006, it was announced by NME that Kings of Leon were back in the studio, working on their third album. Drummer Nathan Followill told NME.COM: "Man, we're sitting on a bunch of songs right now that we wish we could let the world hear!". The band's third album was titled Because of the Times, which may be a reference to a large UPC ministers conference of the same name held in Alexandria, Louisiana that the brothers often attended.

The album was released on April 2, 2007 in the UK, and a day later in the US to virtually universal praise. NME said that the album "cemented Kings of Leon as one of the great American bands of our time" and Entertainment Weekly called Because of the Times "an epic wide-screen movie of a CD and the band's best to date.  Another reviewer described Because of the Times as, "an accomplished album of unbelievable beauty and familiar, loveable grit. Kings of Leon is maturing wonderfully and with patience, not forcing anything musically or lyrically that doesn’t sound natural.

After this album was released, Ed O'Brien of Radiohead admitted he was a fan, adding them to a list of Radiohead's favorite acts. He said, "I don't get jealous when I see other bands, but when I see them I think, 'Man, I'd love to be in that band'. They're young...they remind me of... the Bunnymen or something like that. They're growing, they're evolving... They're amazing players, the drummer, he's amazing. They're all great but he's really special.

The album debuted at #1 in the UK and Ireland and entered the US charts at #25, selling approximately 70,000 copies in its first week of release. The album was preceded by the single "On Call", which became a hit in Britain. The album showed a clear evolution from the band's previous work, as the band's trademark dirty, southern-fried swagger was replaced with a more mature, polished sound. This, however, did not stop the album from becoming arguably the band's most successful commercial and critical release. Other singles from the album were "Fans" and "Charmer." The album was produced by Angelo Petraglia and Ethan Johns.

In early 2008, frontman Caleb Followil confirmed to UK magazine NME that the band is working on tracks for the fourth album. In an interview Jared (bass) said the next album will "rock harder", and that they are "ready to tackle their southern roots...again." Recording began in February 2008, when the band completed its 2007 tour.

They are currently finishing their recording sessions in Nashville, Tennessee and the album is scheduled to be released on 23rd September 2008.

In the June 2008 issue of Rolling Stone Magazine, Caleb discussed how he believes his pain medication (which he took after a fistfight with brother Nathan) inspired him to write some of the "most beautiful" songs, so much that he's claimed he is "proud track-by-track."

The band have already debuted three new songs entitled "Crawl", "Sex on Fire" and "Manhattan", which can all be found on Youtube. Other titles to emerge include "Closer", "Notion To Say", "Seventeen", "Use Somebody" and "Cold Desert".

On June 23rd, NME.com added on their website confirmed details about the 4th album. "Kings of Leon have revealed the details of their highly anticipated forthcoming album. Only by the Night - the band's fourth studio album - is due out on September 23. The Followill clan have been working on the follow-up to 2007's Because of the Times in Nashville's Blackbird Studios." The album was produced byAngelo Petraglia and Jacquire King.

They have announced that they will be touring Great Britain with their new album material in December 2008. This is following headline sets at T In The Park in Perth and Kinross, Scotland and Oxegen Festival in Co. Kildare Ireland in July, V Festival in mid-August and the set they performed headlining the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury 2008.

The song "Crawl" from this album was released as a free download on the bands website on July 28th. It is available here: On August 5, 2008 the first single "Sex On Fire" was released on their MySpace page and subsequently released to radio.