The All-American Rejects

All-American Rejects Go All Out For 'Beekeeper's Daughter' Video

03 Feb 2012 15:16:48 EST

Just-released clip has warring hipsters, a mariachi band ... and Wayne Newton.
By James Montgomery

Photo:

It's been a while — like, almost three years — since the All-American Rejects have made a music video, so it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that, when they got the go-ahead to shoot a clip for "Beekeeper's Daughter" (the first single from their upcoming Kids in the Street album), they decided to go all out.

"This was the first video where, when we got [the treatment], everyone said 'yes' and I said 'yes ... but could we please have some of this?' And I proceeded to sort of expel every fantastic idea I could think of," frontman Tyson Ritter explained. "From, like, a hipster fight — beards versus mustaches, a lot of plaid, had to be like 'West Side Story' — to some she-devils. Everything we could ever sort of think of for a video that was impractical is in this one. "And the whole thing is floating on a through-line of a man walking through his day, experiencing every random encounter from every random walk of life," he continued. "And at the very end, there's a big parade with Wayne Newton." And Ritter's not exaggerating either. Because the "Beekeeper's" video — which premiered Friday (February 3) — is most certainly jam-packed with every one of his notions and then some. It's a big, buzzy clip, brimming with dancing she-devils, cheerleaders, cops, ticker tape, a mariachi band and Mr. Newton (to name just a few). And while everything in the video elicits a thrill, it's Newton's cameo that takes the cake. "Yeah, I think [Tyson's] email ended with, 'Oh, and Wayne Newton.' And I thought that was to sum up that this video needs to have all kinds of outrageousness," guitarist Nick Wheeler laughed. "But two days before, we got this phone call: 'Hey, Wayne Newton's going to be in the video.' I have his business card in my wallet." Speaking of business, now that the "Beekeeper's Daughter" video has been released, there remains one rather sweet sponsorship deal AAR are very interested in securing — one that's a lot tougher to land than you'd imagine. "This song was dubbed 'Beekeeper's Daughter' because that was the brand of honey that we had in the cabin in the Sequoia Grove National Forest when we first wrote it," Wheeler said. "It's really just our desperate attempt at a honey sponsorship." "And those are not easy to get," Ritter laughed. "We still haven't gotten any of that honey." What do you think of the "Beekeeper's Daughter" video? Share your reviews in the comments!

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All-American Rejects: 'It's Ironic' Playing Winter Olympics In Canada

16 Feb 2010 18:30:00 EST

'Did anyone really know what our band name was?' frontman Tyson Ritter jokes about performing at opening medal ceremony.
By Jayson Rodriguez, with reporting by Sway Calloway

Photo: MTV News

The All-American Rejects are having too much fun at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. The Midwestern band is enjoying the fact that a collective with their moniker would be asked to perform — let alone appear — at the games' first medal ceremony.

According to frontman Tyson Ritter, this opportunity is as unique as they come. "[The organizers said], 'We wanted a band that rules live,' " Ritter told MTV News, joking about their selection. "I think it's ironic that the All-American Rejects are opening the medal ceremony ... that's so great. Did anyone really know what our band name was? In Canada, it's OK — but if this was Salt Lake City a few years ago, our name wouldn't even be on the list." But the alt-rockers are here and they impressed last Saturday with a medley of their hits, including "When the World Comes Down" and "Move Along." The Rejects were the first musical act to perform since the games started — their performance capped off the medal presentations for the ski jumping and women's biathlon events. Usher, British singer Estelle and the Roots are among the many acts slated to take the stage during the various medal ceremonies. While north of the border, the members of AAR stared in awe at the athletes. Ritter, with his famously lanky frame, confessed that the Olympic competitors leave him feeling less than buff. "Dude, that's why we gotta keep wearing layers," he explained. "As long as we wear layers no one can tell how big or small you are — [otherwise] it's like, 'Man, that dude looks like a flamingo.' " What do you think of All-American Rejects' performance? Who do you look forward to seeing take the stage next at the Winter Olympics? Let us know in the comments below, or upload a video to Your.MTV.com! MTV News is on the ground in Vancouver all week, so stay tuned for more coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

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All-American Rejects Call Twitter Breakup 'The Stupidest Thing We Ever Did'

29 Jan 2010 16:52:00 EST

'We're gonna try to write another record together — we'll see how it goes,' frontman Tyson Ritter says.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Larry Carroll

Photo: MTV News

In late December, the All-American Rejects broke up over Twitter. We think. See, it all started when songwriting partners Tyson Ritter and Nick Wheeler got into a rather nasty spat over dinner, then took to their respective Twitter accounts to post the details.

Both men wrote that they were done with AAR, which whipped their considerable fanbase into a frenzy — until New Years Eve, that is, when Ritter and Wheeler made up (and made out) at the stroke of midnight — while wearing party hats, nonetheless — and posted a Twitpic for proof. The message seemed clear: We're not breaking up. Still, we wanted to be sure. So when MTV News caught up with the Rejects recently in Los Angeles, we had to ask them what was up with the band — and just why Ritter and Wheeler decided to take their beef directly to Twitter. "It was the stupidest thing we ever did," Ritter laughed. "I think we got so mad at each other in that moment, that we ran to our security blankets, which is 20,000-ish people that sort of support you. It was a f---ed up day. ... So we're gonna try to write another record together — we'll see how it goes. This could be peace and out. It's over." "But, to answer your question about the Twitter thing, not only can I let all of our fans know what I'm doing, it immediately uploads to my Facebook too," Wheeler added. "And my mom follows me on Facebook, so I'm letting my mom know what I'm doing at the same time. So, two birds. She always just gets mad at me when I use foul language." So ... we're good? Apparently. Ritter and Wheeler said that they've already begun working in earnest on new Rejects songs and the band is very much looking forward to returning to the road this summer on the Warped Tour. So while peace seems to have returned to Rejects land, we still have to know: Just what was the big fight all about? "Nick and I got into a pretty serious fight. We fought over a woman," Ritter said. "We're still sort of working things out, so it's good. When you're with somebody for a long time, sometimes you have to go to therapists. Right now we're seeing two." "And as long as these two guys stand between us, we're cool," Wheeler said, motioning to AAR guitarist Mike Kennerty and drummer Chris Gaylor. "But we're working on it. Tyson and I are about to go on a retreat, a camping retreat, with said therapists."

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Tokio Hotel, Avril Lavigne Confirmed For 'Alice In Wonderland' Soundtrack

12 Jan 2010 14:31:00 EST

Owl City, All-American Rejects, Mark Hoppus and Pete Wentz also contribute to Almost Alice.
By James Montgomery

Photo: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images

Who ever knew Alice was so angsty? On Tuesday (January 12), after a month of solid speculation, the track list for the upcoming soundtrack to Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" was released, and boy, there's a lot of pop/punk on there. Avril Lavigne, All Time Low, Tokio Hotel and Pete Wentz and Mark Hoppus are just some of the acts confirmed to appear on the soundtrack, which is called Almost Alice and will hit stores March 2, according to MySpace Music. Joining them will be the All-American Rejects, Motion City Soundtrack, the Cure's Robert Smith and the Plain White T's. Lavigne's "Alice (Underground)" has been tapped as the first single and will go to radio in early February. Over the past month, names of artists scheduled to appear on the album have been popping up. On Monday, we learned of Lavigne's involvement. Last week, Pete Wentz spilled the beans about his and Hoppus' contribution. And last month, All Time Low told MTV News they had recorded a song for the album, though, sadly, they did not get to meet Burton. According to MySpace, Almost Alice features artists "re-imagining songs from the Disney classic" and, judging by some of the song titles ("White Rabbit," "Tea Party," "Fell Down a Hole"), well, they're not lying. Burton's take on "Alice" is scheduled to hit theaters March 5, just three days after the soundtrack is released. The track list for Almost Alice, according to MySpace Music: » Avril Lavigne - "Alice (Underground)"
» The All-American Rejects - "The Poison"
» Owl City - "The Technicolor Phase"
» Shinedown - "Her Name Is Alice"
» All Time Low - "Painting Flowers"
» Metro Station - "Where's My Angel"
» Tokio Hotel and Kerli - "Strange"
» 3OH!3 featuring Neon Hitch - "Follow Me Down"
» Robert Smith - "Very Good Advice"
» Mark Hoppus with Pete Wentz - "In Transit"
» Plain White T's - "Welcome to Mystery"
» Kerli - "Tea Party"
» Franz Ferdinand - "The Lobster Quadrille"
» Motion City Soundtrack - "Running Out of Time"
» Wolfmother - "Fell Down a Hole"
» Grace Potter and the Nocturnals - "White Rabbit" Are you excited for the "Alice in Wonderland" soundtrack? Will these artists match Tim Burton's vision? Let us know in the comments below or upload a video to Your.MTV.com!

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All-American Rejects Break Up, Make Up On Twitter

04 Jan 2010 12:57:00 EST

Bandmembers tweet that they're leaving, then say they've made up just minutes after ringing in 2010.
By James Montgomery

Photo: twitter.com/tysonritteraar

How did you spend the holidays? Well, if you were All-American Rejects frontman Tyson Ritter, you feuded with your longtime bandmate (and songwriting partner) Nick Wheeler, created a wave of breakup panic that shook your fanbase to the core, then assuaged all those fears with a sloppy New Year's Eve snog. And you did all of this via Twitter. It all started on December 22, when Ritter tweeted that he had "just walked out on dinner" with Wheeler — with whom he started AAR way back in 1999 — and that he was "over this sh--." No reason was given, but the same sentiment was echoed by Wheeler, who took to his Twitter account soon after, to write that he was "Fed up with Ty and his B.S." and was apparently leaving the Rejects "forever." Neither Ritter nor Wheeler addressed the matter in any of their subsequent tweets, but their little spat quickly became the subject of much consternation on AAR's fan forums, and started to make the rounds on various news sites, leading to reports that the band was calling it quits. The speculation persisted for about a week, until — just minutes after ringing in 2010 — Ritter put the break-up rumors to rest, Tweeting a photo of himself and Wheeler sharing a New Year's smooch (party hats and all), with the caption "Nick and I made up. I mean made out." So it appears that all's well in AAR-land. What's not so clear is whether Ritter and Wheeler actually had a legitimate falling out, or if they were both just pulling a prank on the band's fans. At press time, MTV News' requests for comment had not been returned by the band's label, and our attempts to contact Ritter via e-mail proved unsuccessful. Although, according to his Twitter, he is currently moving from Florida to Los Angeles.

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All-American Rejects' Tyson Ritter Confirms Rihanna Collaboration

15 Sep 2009 12:27:00 EDT

Band's frontman says he'll try both aggressive rock songs and 'fun, clubby ideas' for the pop star.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Steven Roberts

Photo: MTV News

For months now, rumors have been swirling that All-American Rejects frontman Tyson Ritter was working with Rihanna on her upcoming album in a partnership made in hitmaker heaven. After all, Ritter already has an impressive string of radio smashes to his credit ("Swing, Swing," "Dirty Little Secret," "Move Along" and, most recently, "Gives You Hell,"), and Rihanna, well, she's Rihanna. The only problem was, neither party had actually commented on those rumors. Until last Friday, that is. As Ritter and AAR guitarist Nick Wheeler rehearsed with Wale and UCB for their performance on Sunday's VMAs, MTV News asked him about working with Rihanna. And he was more than willing to talk about the collaboration.

"I actually met with her a couple of weeks ago and the funny thing is, I actually don't remember half of it," Ritter laughed. "I remember the first half of meeting her, but then, as the night progressed, somebody decided to drink too much Jameson." "But seriously, she's such a sweet girl that I'm gonna try to give her a little piece of my heart," he went on. "I wanna get in a room with her, and I wanna see what flies. I've got some songs for her, like, little things written, and I wanna see what she wants. See if she wants something aggressive and rock, and I've also kinda got some really fun, clubby ideas." But that's not the only bit of collaborating Ritter and Wheeler have been doing as of late. They apparently also wrote a song for Weezer's upcoming album, Raditude, due October 27. "We also just did a track with Rivers [Cuomo] for the new Weezer record!" Ritter announced. "When he asked us to do it, I fell on my knees and cried. We were playing this guy's songs when we were 13 at parties." "A few weeks ago, we [went] to his house — so that was cool — sat in a room with three guitars, and just kinda, Ty had a little idea, and we kind of riffed on it," Wheeler added. "And then we never heard anything. So we're shooting our video for our next single, 'I Wanna,' yesterday, and our A&R guy comes to the shoot with a CD of the finished version, and I was like, 'Oh, so that happened!' "And so I shot [Cuomo] an e-mail saying what a privilege it was working with him, and this sounds great, you guys did a great job with the song, you know, stuff like that," Wheeler continued. "And he replied back, and at the end, it said, 'Definitely miss your guitar playing on the final version.' So, I saved that e-mail, and it's probably gonna stay in my star file for quite a while."

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Green Day, All-American Rejects Respond To Kanye West's VMA Tirade

14 Sep 2009 15:36:00 EDT

'Kanye's always unpredictable,' Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong tells MTV News.
By James Montgomery

Photo: Christopher Polk/ Getty Images

As if Kanye West already didn't have enough people giving you flak following his onstage antics at Sunday night's Video Music Awards, well, allow us to toss a couple more names onto the pile: Green Day and the All-American Rejects, both of whom witnessed West's hijacking of Taylor Swift's acceptance speech. Both had about the same reaction immediately afterward — they were dumbfounded. "I don't know ... it was just kind of a bizarre moment. Kanye's always unpredictable," Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong told MTV News backstage. "But you can't be responsible for every dumb thing you say."

"Someone always does something crazy at the Video Music Awards," bassist Mike Dirnt added. "It's kind of a shame for a young gal and her moment, but at the end of the day, anything goes here." The Rejects were a bit harsher with their criticism when we spoke to guitarist Nick Wheeler and frontman Tyson Ritter immediately following their performance with Wale and the VMA house band. "That was just plain rude," Wheeler snorted. "But there are a lot of rude people out there. People in general are rude. I think everyone has rude moments, and I think he's gonna be really apologetic," Ritter added. "I mean, Jesus, she's like 15! Who picks on 15-year-olds?!? I mean, God knows I have, but I always say I'm sorry, so I'm sure he's going to apologize." (Swift is actually 19, but we get his point.) And, of course, West ultimately did just that, posting an ALL CAPS (so you know he meant it) mea culpa on his blog following the VMAs. The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards might have wrapped, but the party is far from over. Stay tuned for behind-the-scenes updates, party reports and much more.

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Kid Cudi, All-American Rejects Rave About VMA House-Band MC Wale

11 Sep 2009 20:43:00 EDT

Solange also had nothing but praise for the 'phenomenal artist' she's collaborating with at Sunday's show.
By Jocelyn Vena, with additional reporting by MTV News staff

Kid Cudi
Photo: MTV

Along with UCB, Wale is brining along a whole bunch of artists along for his VMA house-band ride. The Washington, D.C., rapper and his crew will be performing a series of originals and covers that will definitely keep the Video Music Awards crowd rocking all night. One of his collaborators, Solange Knowles, gushed to MTV News, "Wale is a good friend of mine. And he's a phenomenal artist."

Meanwhile, Kid Cudi — who revealed that he'll use his VMA performance to "celebrate" last year's house turntablist, the late DJ AM — said he looks forward to working with his "homie" Wale. "Wale is one of those innovative artists," he said. "This is like a big deal, so you know I'm glad to be a part of it, man. That's the homie." Two members of the All-American Rejects are looking at this as an opportunity to mix their pop/punk with Wale's hip-hop sensibilities. "They are incredible musicians, and it's actually really cool to get to do this," guitarist Nick Wheeler said. The band's frontman, Tyson Ritter, added: "Every time you sort of get to cross the streams of rock and anything else, I think some cool fusion happens." Like all the hot performances set to go down on Sunday, when the show goes live from New York's Radio City Music Hall, Wale's house-band set is all very top-secret. Butt, if Wale's VMA rehearsal Thursday was any indication, those covers could include songs by Britney Spears, Coldplay and Kings of Leon. The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards air live this Sunday, September 13, at 9 p.m. ET, but New York is celebrating the VMAs all week long! Stay tuned for party coverage, concert reports, behind-the-scenes updates and more.

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Kelly Clarkson, Black Eyed Peas Party Jersey-Style For Zootopia

17 May 2009 12:02:00 EDT

Flo Rida, Soulja Boy Tell'Em, Ciara, Jesse McCartney and the All American Rejects bring crowd-pleasing sets to Saturday's show.
By Jocelyn Vena

Kelly Clarkson at Zootopia in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Saturday
Photo: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey — At the Izod Center on Saturday (May 16), fans gathered for a night filled with pop music from Kelly Clarkson, Ciara, Jesse McCartney and the Black Eyed Peas, rock from the All American Rejects and hip-hop from Soulja Boy Tell'Em.

Hometown boy Jesse McCartney got the party started with "Leavin'," but it was when he took off his sunglasses and sang "Beautiful Soul" that the sing-along really began. Jesse slowed it down for "It's Over," which he called his favorite song off his album depature. But it was clear the fan fave was "How Do You Sleep?" Soulja Boy Tell'Em played a very short set, which included "Crank That" followed by "Turn My Swag On." Then he requested all cell phones out as he took off his shirt to perform "Kiss Me Thru the Phone." "Gossip Girl" star Taylor Momsen surprised the crowd, coming out to introduce the All American Rejects — while also plugging her band, the Pretty Reckless. AAR rocked the show with "Dirty Little Secret." Lead singer Tyson Ritter wanted to hear everyone scream for "Swing, Swing," and he showed some love for kids in the cheap seats before "Move Along." Then he broke into a spoken-word version of "Gives You Hell" before the band kicked in. After doing their new single, "The Wind Blows," Tyson did his best Nixon impression and walked out. Ciara brought some girl power with ironically titled "Like a Boy." Then she showed everyone how limber she is by doing splits as she went into "Goodies." Unfortunately, her "Love Sex Magic" collaboration was left Justin Timberlake-less, but the sexy moves she performed along with her dancers (which included a Lady Gaga lookalike) more than made up for it. Keeping the girl power alive, Kelly Clarkson's killer voice rocked the room with "Since U Been Gone." The set included lots of new songs off her new album, All I Ever Wanted, peppered with older hits, like "Miss Independent." Before "I Do Not Hook Up," Kelly listed her exceptions to that rule: Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe. "Walk Away," "Already Gone" and "If I Can't Have You" also were fan favorites leading up to her finale "My Life Would Suck Without You." Sean Paul graced the stage to introduce Flo Rida, who then made everyone dance to "In the Ayer." Flo asked the crowd to sing along for "Jump." He brought some female fans onstage for "the record that made him international," "Low," and dedicated "Right Round" to all the single ladies. The Black Eyed Peas were the night's final act. Their set was filled with hits like "Don't Phunk With My Heart" and "Let's Get It Started." Their theme of the night was all about finding the party people in the house, and "Pump It" helped in the search. After determining the "Humps" were controlling the room, they sang that song. Calling their L.A. crowd at last week's Wango Tango "wiggity wiggity wack," the Peas dedicated "Where Is the Love?" to the room, just before bringing the "Boom Boom Pow.

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All-American Rejects To Tour With Reunited Blink-182?

11 May 2009 16:59:00 EDT

'We will be going out with a nondescript band that is rumored to be reuniting,' frontman Tyson Ritter coyly says.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias

All-American Rejects
Photo: MTV News

We're still not really clear if the long-rumored Blink-182/Weezer tour is happening or not, and now there's another band to add to the (so far) hypothetical bill: the All-American Rejects.

Or, at least, that's what AAR were hinting at when we spoke to them this past weekend at KIIS-FM's Wango Tango festival in Irvine, California. "We will be going out with a nondescript band that is rumored to be reuniting ... that's about all we can say about that," Rejects frontman Tyson Ritter smiled. "But it's going to be a big deal, and everybody's going to be there, so, 'Hey,' in advance." When we pressed him for more details about the mysterious reuniting band — like, you know, is it made up of three dudes named Mark, Tom and Travis — he played coy. "There's at least three ... I think it's a ska band, so it might be 20. I don't know," he laughed. "It's not Sum-41. They're on hiatus." Dang. So are the Rejects joining Blink and Weezer for a summer jaunt? Well, all three acts are signed to labels under the Universal Music Group umbrella, so it would make sense (a spokesperson for Blink's label, Interscope, could not be reached for comment by press time). And it would fill AAR's summer schedule, which became rather empty when a headlining slot on the long-running Honda Civic Tour fell through — a process Ritter was more than happy to fill us in on, in his own, uh, unique way. "It was supposed to be the Honda Civic Tour. We were actually supposed to get a Honda Civic car ...[but] Old Man Civic calls me up and goes, 'Hey, I can't foot the bill.' I go, 'Click' — hung up on him. So, whatever, we're not doing that tour anymore. Gimme some Ford. Gimme some Chrysler," he laughed. "Maybe we can do a tour with Coffee-Mate, because everybody uses creamer."

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