The Plain White T's are an American pop rock band from Lombard, Illinois, formed in 1997 by high school friends Tom Higgenson, Dave Tirio, and Ken Fletcher, and joined a short time later by Steve Mast. The group had a mostly underground following in Chicago basements, clubs, and bars in its early years.[1][2]
The Plain White T's was formed in Lombard in early 1997. The group began as a trio, with Higgenson as singer and guitarist, Fletcher on bass guitar and Tirio on drums.[5][6] The group played mostly local punk shows in Chicago's suburbs, eventually having gigs at the Metro in Chicago's Wrigleyville neighborhood. As the band began to establish itself in the local scene, a fourth member, Steve Mast, was recruited. He played lead guitar and sang backing vocals.[7]
Higgenson broke several vertebrae in a car crash in 1999[8] while driving the band's van. He was in a back brace for three months and had to learn to walk again. Higgenson changed his songwriting process, choosing songs that were more meaningful to him, and the band began taking its music career more seriously.[9]
Come on Over, Stop and lineup changes (1999–2003)
In 2000, the band recorded its first album, titled Come On Over. In 2002, the band self-financed the recording of Stop, a full-length album that attracted the attention of Fearless Records. While the band toured in support for the album, both Fletcher and Mast left in 2003; they were replaced by Tim Lopez and Mike Retondo. Shortly after, Tirio decided to switch from drumming to rhythm guitar and new drummer De'Mar Hamilton was added to the line-up.
All That We Needed (2004–2007)
The 2005 release, All That We Needed, was the first studio album from the reformed line-up,[10] and featured the single "Hey There Delilah". In 2006 the band signed to Hollywood Records and recorded Every Second Counts, featuring a new version of "Hey There Delilah" with a string section. Every Second Counts was released in September 2006. That same year, "Hey There Delilah" reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks.[11] The song was written for the track star Delilah DiCrescenzo, whom Higgenson had met in 2002. The song received two Grammy nominations, and Every Second Counts was certified gold.[12] In early 2006, the band teamed up with Motion City Soundtrack for a winter/spring tour.[13]
Big Bad World (2007–2009)
In 2008, the group released the album Big Bad World. The album had two hit singles: "1, 2, 3, 4" and "Natural Disaster". Both were on the American Top 40 at numbers 1 and 2 for three consecutive weeks.[14] By late 2008, the band had joined the Rock Band Live tour with Panic! at the Disco, Dashboard Confessional and The Cab.[15] Later that year, the band played at the Give It a Name festival in the UK.[16] In 2007, the band performed the single "Our Time Now" on an episode of the Nickelodeon television series, iCarly. "Our Time Now" was also played in commercials for the ABC Family dramedy series, Greek.[17]
The Wonders of the Younger and Should've Gone to Bed EP (2009–2013)
American Nights, Parallel Universe, and Plain White T's (2013–present)
The band left Hollywood Records after creative conflicts with the label during the production of the American Nights album.[19]American Nights was released by Megaforce Records on March 31, 2015. The release date of American Nights was pushed back several times by their former record label, Hollywood Records. In 2015, they also appeared on Blues Traveler's album Blow Up the Moon, co-writing the song "Nikkia's Prom." On November 22, 2015, the band released a music video for "American Nights" featuring Higgenson's son, Lennon.[20]
In May 2017, Plain White T's released a music video for their song "Land of the Living".[21] The band, which had left their label Fearless in 2005, returned to the label. As of April 2017, the band has said that they are currently writing new music.[22] The band performed "Hey There Delilah" at the 2017 Alternative Press Music Awards.[23] In July 2017, the band closed the 2017 National Scout Jamboree, exactly 10 years after "Hey There Delilah" was number-one[24] on the charts.[25] In 2017, Plain White T's re-signed with Fearless Records. Their latest studio album, Parallel Universe, was released on August 24, 2018.
Tirio quit the band in October 2020, leaving Higgenson as the only remaining founding member.[26]
After releasing six singles through 2023, Plain White T's officially released their self-titled studio album on November 17.[27]
The following list includes a selection of television appearances made by the band and performances used by those and other shows:[29]
Greek – The band provides "Our Time Now" written by Mia Koo, Tom Higgenson and Mike Daly, as the theme for commercials and trailers for the show. The group appears playing the song as well as "Hey There Delilah" in the episode "The Rusty Nail". The group plays the songs "Friends Don't Let Friends Dial Drunk" and "Making a Memory" in the episode "Friday Night Frights", and the band also plays the songs "Come Back to Me", "You and Me" and "Let Me Take You There" in the episode "A New Normal". Tom and Dave also appear in the episode "The Great Cappie" as members of the Kappa Tau fraternity.
iCarly – The band appears as a special guest for the webshow in the episode "iRue the Day", performing "Our Time Now".
Hollyoaks – "Making a Memory" was featured in the final episode to feature Katy Fox (Hannah Tointon) in the UK soap opera, symbolizing what should be happening rather than what was happening.
