Ted Leo


Theodore Francis Leo is an American singer and musician. He is the frontman and lead guitarist of the rock group Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, and in 2013, he and Aimee Mann formed the indie rock duo The Both.

Early life

Born in South Bend, Indiana, Leo grew up in Bloomfield, New Jersey, where his family was from and spent many formative years in the hardcore punk scene of New York City during the 1980s and early 1990s. He graduated from Seton Hall Preparatory School in West Orange in 1988 and the University of Notre Dame in the fall of 1993 with a degree in English.

Career

Leo was a founding member of the New York punk band Citizens Arrest in 1989. In the 1990s, Leo played in bands that included Chisel, Puzzlehead, and the Sin-Eaters.
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists was formed in 1999 in Washington, D.C. The group recorded six studio albums between 1999 and 2010. Leo has also maintained a consistent presence as a solo performer since the 1990s.
In 2011, Leo joined TV Casualty, a Misfits tribute band. They released a self-titled 7" with proceeds going to the Attic Youth Center in Philadelphia.
In early 2013, Leo and Aimee Mann formed a duo called The Both, after Leo had toured with Mann for several months as her supporting act. He and Mann began writing songs together, and in March 2013, the duo performed their first show together as the Both. Their self-titled debut album, The Both, was released in April 2014.
Leo released his debut solo album The Hanged Man on September 8, 2017. The album was inspired by several years of career and personal hardships, including the loss of a daughter in 2011 due to a late-term miscarriage in which Leo's wife was forced to go into premature labor.
For the 2019 animated television film Steven Universe: The Movie, Leo collaborated with Rebecca Sugar and Stemage to write the song "Independent Together". In the film, Leo voiced the role of Steg, a fusion of Steven Universe and Greg Universe. As Steg, Leo performed "Independent Together" alongside Aimee Mann and voice actress Deedee Magno Hall.
In January 2025, Leo was announced as the guitarist for Gang of Four on the band's "Long Goodbye" farewell tour.

Family and personal life

Leo grew up in New Jersey before moving to South Bend to attend Notre Dame, where he formed Chisel. He then moved to D.C., and briefly moved to Boston thereafter. Leo has lived in Rhode Island since 2005, and he also maintained an apartment in New York City until 2016.
Leo met his wife, musician, and visual artist Jodi Buonanno, in the late 1990s when both were touring in bands. She is credited with clapping, whistle, and background vocals on the Hearts of Oak album, as well as bass on The Tyranny of Distance.
His brothers, Chris and Danny Leo, are also musicians and have been members of bands such as Native Nod, The Lapse, The Van Pelt, The Vague Angels, and The Holy Childhood.
Leo is a vegan, and has served as a spokesman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. He has made frequent radio appearances as a contributor to programs on WFMU, such as The Best Show with Tom Scharpling.

Discography

with Citizens Arrest

  • Citizens Arrest cassette EP
  • Soaked in Others Blood 7-inch EP

    with Puzzlehead

  • See Thru 7-inch EP

    with Animal Crackers

  • Animal Crackers/Whipped split 7-inch EP with Whipped
  • Animal Crackers 7-inch EP

    with Chisel

  • Chisel 7-inch single
  • Sunburn 7-inch EP
  • Nothing New 12-inch EP
  • 8 A.M. All Day
  • ''Set You Free''

    with Hell No

  • Hell No 7-inch EP
  • ''Skin Job''

    with Trendinista 5000

  • ''Trendinista 5000''

    with Water

  • ''Aliens Born to Human Parents''

    with Ely Parker and the CIAs

  • Live 1993
  • ''Practice Demos''

    with The Sin-Eaters

  • ''Demo''

    with Ted Leo and the Pharmacists

  • Guitar for Jodi 7-inch EP
  • tej leo, Rx / pharmacists
  • Treble in Trouble
  • The Tyranny of Distance
  • Hearts of Oak
  • Tell Balgeary, Balgury Is Dead EP
  • Shake the Sheets
  • Sharkbite Sessions EP
  • Living with the Living
  • Mo' Living EP
  • Rapid Response EP
  • ''The Brutalist Bricks''

    with TV Casualty

  • ''TV Casualty''

    with The Both

  • ''The Both''

    with The Foreign Correspondents

  • "Lovin' You Ain't Easy/We're Dancin' "

    Solo

  • ''The Hanged Man''

    Collaborations

  • "Oh, Death" on the Game Theory album Supercalifragile
  • "Independent Together" in ''Steven Universe: The Movie''

    Compilation appearances

  • "I'm Looking Through You" on This Bird Has Flown – A 40th Anniversary Tribute to the Beatles' Rubber Soul
  • "Heroes" on Let All the Children Boogie: A Tribute to David Bowie
  • "In the Mean Times" as part of Kickstarter's "Election Issues" project