anywhere", calling himself as an "outsider" who hated conformity and rules, and "took any opportunity to break them." Ultimately, Jared helped him recover from drugs. Music career Leto formed the rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars in 1998 in Los Angeles, California with his brother Jared. Their debut album had been in the works for a couple of years and was recorded in rural Wyoming during 2001 and early 2002. Their work led to a number of record labels being interested in signing Thirty Seconds to Mars, which eventually signed to Immortal Records. The band worked with producers Bob Ezrin and Brian Virtue on their debut album 30 Seconds to Mars, which was released on August 27, 2002, in the United States through Immortal and Virgin. It reached number 107 on the US Billboard 200 and number one on the US Top Heatseekers. Upon its release, 30 Seconds to Mars was met with mostly positive reviews; 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. It took two years to record their next release A Beautiful Lie, with the band traveling to four different continents to accommodate Jared Leto's acting career. 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. The band heavily toured in support of the album and played at several major festivals, including Roskilde, Pinkpop, Rock am Ring, and Download. In August 2008, during the recording process of the band's third studio album, Thirty Seconds to Mars attempted to sign with a new label, prompting EMI (the parent label of Virgin), to file a $30 million breach of contract lawsuit. After nearly a year of legal battles, the band announced on April 28, 2009, that the suit had been settled following a defence based on the De Havilland Law. Thirty Seconds to Mars then signed a new contract with EMI and released their third album This Is War in December 2009 to critical acclaim. This Is War reached the top ten of several national album charts and earned numerous music awards.