Scott Weiland (born October 27, 1967) is an American musician, lyricist, and vocalist, most notable for his work with Grammy Award-winning rock band Stone Temple Pilots. Weiland is also known for his five-year career with supergroup Velvet Revolver as well as his own solo career. His onstage persona is known as being flamboyant and chaotic; he is also known for constantly changing his appearance and vocal style, as well as his use of a megaphone in concert for vocal effect. Despite his success, his career has been plagued with drug addiction, as well as several arrests. However, according to MTV News, Weiland has been free from heroin since 2002.
Weiland was born as Scott Richard Kline at Kaiser Hospital in San Jose, California. His surname was changed after being adopted by his stepfather David Weiland at age 5. Around that time, Weiland moved to Chagrin Falls, Ohio, where he attended the Kenston School District. He moved to California as a teenager and attended Edison High School in Huntington Beach. In a 2005 interview with Esquire, Weiland stated that while performing in his first bands as a teenager, his drinking "escalated" and he began using cocaine for the first time, which he referred to as a "sexual" experience.
Early years
Stone Temple Pilots (1986–2003, 2008–present)
Weiland wrote the band's lyrics and performed vocals. In 1992, they released their first album, Core, spawning four hits ("Sex Type Thing", "Wicked Garden", "Creep", and "Plush") and leading them to becoming one of the most influential bands of the grunge movement, the music genre that was started in Seattle in the late eighties and became rock and roll's central movement in the early-mid 1990s. The band was widely accused of imitating bands such as Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Nirvana in an attempt to cash in on the scene's burgeoning popularity. Critics also pointed out that Weiland's vocal style at the time was very similar to that of Layne Staley's and Eddie Vedder's. Weiland has rejected such comparisons, however, citing Jim Morrison and David Bowie as more influential on his vocal techniques and sound. Despite negative reviews from critics, Core was extremely successful, eventually being certified 8x platinum by the RIAA.
In 1995, Weiland was caught and convicted of buying crack cocaine. He was sentenced to one year's probation. Issues with drug use did not clear up after his sentence. As his drug problems increased, Weiland moved into a hotel for two months with Courtney Love and claimed to have "shot drugs the whole time" with her. STP was forced to cancel most of their 1996-1997 tour in support of their third release, Tiny Music... Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop. Although Tiny Music... was certified 2x platinum, the canceled tour caused the album to fall quickly off the charts. STP went on a hiatus soon after the album was released, with Weiland focusing on a solo career before serving a stint in jail for heroin possession.In 1994, Weiland and STP released their second record, Purple, which saw the development of a more distinctive identity for the band. While still a clear continuation of their previous techniques, the album featured a more "classic rock" sound, and had a mixture of punk, bossa nova, and acoustic songs. Like Core, Purple was a big success for the band, spawning three hit singles ("Big Empty", "Vasoline", and "Interstate Love Song") and selling over 6 million copies. The year prior, STP toured with the Butthole Surfers and Weiland developed a heroin addiction, claiming Butthole Surfers singer Gibby Haynes introduced him to heroin, which Gibby denies.
In November 2000, Weiland was invited to perform on the show VH1 Storytellers with the surviving members of The Doors. Weiland did vocals on two Doors songs, "Break on Through (To the Other Side)" and "Five to One". That same month Stone Temple Pilots appeared on The Doors tribute CD, Stoned Immaculate with their own rendition of "Break On Through" as the lead track.His period in jail had apparently helped to wean him from his habit, and once released, he rejoined Stone Temple Pilots. In 1999, the band released No. 4. The album contained the hit single "Sour Girl" which featured a surreal music video with Sarah Michelle Gellar. That same year, Weiland also recorded two songs with the short-lived supergroup The Wondergirls.In late 2001, Weiland was arrested on domestic violence charges in Las Vegas, apparently for shoving his wife, Mary Forsberg. However, the charges were eventually deferred upon the couple agreeing to counseling. Soon after, Forsberg filed for divorce but the couple eventually reconciled. Weiland's career also took a hit, with an altercation between Weiland and Dean DeLeo on the final gig of STP's Shangri-La Dee Da tour, leading to the band's official demise with much of the speculation surrounding Weiland's inability to balance personal issues.
In 2008, Stone Temple Pilots announced a 73-date U.S. tour on April 7 and performed together for the first time since 2002. The reunion tour kicked off at the Rock on the Range festival on May 17, 2008. According to Dean DeLeo, steps toward a Stone Temple Pilots reunion started with a simple phone call from Weiland's wife. She invited the DeLeo brothers to play at a private beach party, which led to the reconciliation of Weiland and the DeLeo brothers. However, Weiland stated in a 2010 radio interview to promote the band's self-titled release that the reunion was the result of Dean calling him and asking if he'd be interested in reuniting the band to headline the Coachella Festival.
On April 28, 2008, Weiland was sentenced to 192 hours in county jail for his November 2007 DUI. He was also required to complete an 18-month alcohol program, as well as pay $2000 in fines, and will be on probation for four years. Weiland entered a Los Angeles County jail on May 12, but was released later that same day.
STP's reunion tour was a success, and the band continued to tour throughout 2009 and began recording its sixth studio album. STP's first album since 2001, Stone Temple Pilots, was released on May 25, 2010.
In September 2010, STP announced it was rescheduling several U.S. tour dates so that the band could take a "short break." This announcement comes a few days after Weiland said the following at a show in Houston, Texas: "I started drinking again. My brother died, I got divorced (from) my wife, and my whole world basically spun around. So you know what? I'm going to take care of myself because that's what I need to take care of. Instead of just having a few shows, I want to have a whole hell of a lot of shows."
The Magnificent Bastards (1995)
In 1995, Weiland formed the alternative rock band The Magnificent Bastards with session drummer Victor Indrizzo in San Diego, California.The band included Zander Schloss and Jeff Nolan on guitars and Bob Thompson on bass.
Only two songs were recorded by The Magnificent Bastards. "Mockingbird Girl", composed by Nolan, Schloss, and Weiland, appeared in the film Tank Girl and on its soundtrack, and a cover of John Lennon's "How Do You Sleep?" was recorded for the tribute album, Working Class Hero: A Tribute to John Lennon.
Weiland would re-record a longer version of "Mockingbird Girl" for his first solo album 12 Bar Blues in 1998, and he performed the song while promoting his second solo album, "Happy" in Galoshes.
Weiland rejoined Stone Temple Pilots in the fall of 1995, and The Magnificent Bastards quietly disbanded without releasing a full LP.
Solo career
While STP went on hiatus after the release of Tiny Music..., the other members of the band created the group Talk Show with lead singer Dave Coutts in 1997. Weiland, meanwhile, adopted an androgynous look and released a solo album in 1998 called 12 Bar Blues. Weiland wrote most of the songs on the album, and collaborated with several artists, notably Daniel Lanois, Sheryl Crow, Brad Mehldau and Jeff Nolan. The album was a commercial failure but it managed to achieve some critical acclaim. It was also during this time that Weiland was caught in Manhattan buying heroin, dressed like a pimp, ending his brief tour. A previous conviction in Los Angeles, coupled with numerous probation violations, earned Weiland jail time.
On November 25, 2008, Weiland released his second solo album, "Happy" in Galoshes, produced by Weiland and songwriting-producing partner Doug Grean. Weiland went on tour in early 2009 to promote the album.
On November 17, 2009, Weiland released a cover of the classic Christmas song "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" to iTunes.
Weiland has stated that he has plans for a third solo album.
Velvet Revolver (2003–2008)
After the breakup of STP, Weiland was arrested on his birthday on October 27, 2003 in Hollywood, California, after a traffic collision. He was charged with driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol. His charges were eventually dismissed after he successfully completed rehab and subsequent drug tests.Main article: Velvet Revolver
Around this time, Weiland was asked by former Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan to front a band with Duff and the former GNR members Slash and Matt Sorum, as well as Dave Kushner. The band used the working title "The Project". Slash initially suggested the name "Revolver". Weiland later suggested the name "Black Velvet Revolver", and eventually the name was shortened to "Velvet Revolver", after a suggestion by Slash.
Velvet Revolver's debut album Contraband was released in June 2004 to much success. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and has sold over three million copies worldwide to date. Two of the album's songs, "Slither" and "Fall to Pieces", reached number one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The song "Slither" also won a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance with Vocal in 2005, an award Weiland had won previously with STP for the song "Plush" in 1994. At the 2005 Grammy Awards, Weiland (along with the rest of Velvet Revolver) performed the Beatles song "Across the Universe" along with Bono, Brian Wilson, Norah Jones, Stevie Wonder, Steven Tyler, Billie Joe Armstrong, Alison Krauss, and Alicia Keys.
That same year, Weiland appeared on Last Call with Carson Daly and performed a new solo song, "The Man I Didn't Know", a country-style ballad that deals with his relationship with his father. "The Man I Didn't Know" would go on to appear on the deluxe edition of Weiland's second solo album in 2008.
Velvet Revolver released their second album, Libertad, on July 3, 2007. Libertad, along with Stone Temple Pilots's Core and Stone Temple Pilots, are the only albums Weiland has recorded sober. The album sold a little under 100,000 copies during its first week and has sold over 230,000 copies as of September 2007, which fell short of expectations in failing to even meet the first week sales of Contraband. In December 2007 Weiland was arrested and charged with DUI, his first arrest in over four years (since October 27, 2003). On February 7, 2008, Blabbermouth.net officially reported that Weiland checked himself into rehab. This resulted in the cancellation of Velvet Revolver's Australian tour (which had initially been postponed for two months already). The article does not mention why Weiland, who has claimed sobriety since 2003, entered the facility. He left rehab in early March, according to his lawyer.
On March 20, 2008, Weiland revealed at Velvet Revolver's show in Glasgow that this would be the band's final tour. Matt Sorum posted a message on his website the next day discussing the band's situation and said, "You could tell who was unhappy last night," and "some people in this business don't realize how great of a life they have." Weiland shot back by telling Blabbermouth.net, "Well, first of all, the state of my family affairs is really none of his business, since he is too immature to have a real relationship, let alone children. So don't attempt to stand in a man's shoes when you haven't walked his path." Slash hinted in an interview with Classic Rock magazine that, contrary to Weiland's assertions, Velvet Revolver will continue beyond its current tour. When asked "With Scott singing?", Slash replied "I have no comment on that", and laughed. On Tuesday, April 1, it was announced by a number of media outlets that Weiland would no longer be in Velvet Revolver. In 2007, Dean DeLeo discussed with Weiland an offer from a concert promoter to headline several summer festivals. Weiland accepted and said he had cleared the brief tour with his Velvet Revolver bandmates. He explained, "everything was cool. Then it wasn't", and stated that the rest of the band stopped talking to him.
In a Spin magazine interview Weiland revealed that he's also not ruling out a Velvet Revolver reunion. "Slash and I always got on pretty well," he says. "So who knows?"
In March 2010, Weiland revealed in an interview that "the wives and 'petty jealousies'" had led to the downfall of Velvet Revolver.
Other projects
In 2006, Weiland launched his own record label, Softdrive Records. Around the same time as Softdrive Records was launched, he announced plans for a second solo album, as well as plans to write an autobiography and start his own clothing line with Von Dutch. Weiland also re-recorded the STP outtake "Learning to Drive", for the 2007 horror film Bug. After an altercation at a hotel, Weiland's wife, Mary Forsberg, went home and torched $80,000 worth of her husband’s clothing in their front yard. Coincidently, Weiland had just announced that his label signed the up-and-coming rock band, Something to Burn.
Weiland and his son Noah were featured on comedian David Spade's The Showbiz Show with David Spade during a comedy sketch about discouraging music file sharing in 2005. Noah has a line during the sketch in which he asks a little girl, "Please buy my daddy's album so I can have food to eat".
Weiland has also confirmed he is writing his autobiography, Not Dead & Not for Sale, with David Ritz. The book, originally expected in February 2010, is now set for release on May 17, 2011.
On December 19, 2008 Weiland signed a publishing deal with Bug Music, allowing Weiland to "receive funding to pursue the development of creative projects and writers for Bug Music through his co-founded label, Softdrive Records." The deal includes Weiland's share of the Stone Temple Pilots catalog and future solo projects.
On January 21, 2009 Weiland announced the launch of his clothing line, Weiland for English Laundry, in partnership with designer Christopher Wicks.
It was announced in March 2009 that VH1 will begin airing new episodes of the popular documentary series Behind the Music, which originally ran from 1997 to 2006. Weiland, along with rapper Lil Wayne, have both signed on for their own episodes. However, for unknown reasons, Weiland's episode has since been indefinitely shelved.
On February 25, 2010, Billboard reported that Weiland will appear on Carlos Santana's album Guitar Heaven: The Greatest Guitar Classics of All Time, performing a cover of The Rolling Stones song "Can't You Hear Me Knocking." The album was released on September 21st of the same year.
Personal life
Weiland married Janina Castaneda on September 17, 1994, but the couple divorced in 2000. He married model Mary Forsberg on May 20, 2000. They have two young children, Noah (born 2000) and Lucy (born 2002). However, in late 2007, Weiland and Forsberg divorced. Despite this, both Scott and Mary have stated they remain friends. In a 2007 interview with Blender Magazine, Weiland mentioned that he is a practicing Catholic.
Weiland's younger brother Michael died of a drug overdose in early 2007. The Velvet Revolver songs "For a Brother" and "Pills, Demons, & Etc" from the album Libertad are about Michael. Weiland stated in an interview with MTV News in November 2008 that several songs on "Happy" in Galoshes were inspired by the death of his brother and his separation from Mary. In the same article, MTV News reported that Weiland has not done heroin since December 5, 2002. Weiland also admitted that he went through "a very short binge with coke" in late 2007.Despite Weiland's sobriety from drugs, he admits to still drinking alcohol.
Weiland has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, yet according to an interview with VH1.com, he is not under medication, consequently suffering from mood swings. Weiland had a brief friendship with Courtney Love around 1998 and he admitted they used drugs together.
Weiland is a Notre Dame football fan, as his stepfather is an alumnus. In September 2006, Weiland performed at the University of Notre Dame's Legends Restaurant on the night before a football game. He sang several of his solo songs, as well as "Interstate Love Song" and a cover of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here".
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