Kings of Leon originally embraced country music. While there, they met songwriter Angelo Petraglia, who helped the siblings hone their songwriting skills and introduced them to the musical influences of Thin Lizzy, the Rolling Stones and the Clash in particular. Their youngest brother, Jared, who had briefly attended public school, was more influenced by the music of the Pixies and the Velvet Underground. When he and their cousin Matthew also moved to Nashville in 1999, Kings of Leon was formed. They named the band after their grandfather Leon, who died in January 2014. By 2002, Nathan and Caleb had received interest from a
Matthew and the Mandarins Matthew and the Mandarins Matthew and the Mandarins are a country music band in Singapore who made a name for themselves during the 1970s. Among their singles were "Singapore Cowboy" (1978) and "Let's Put the Sing in Singapore" (1979). Mathew Tan is the leader of the group. The group came into being as Matthew Tan formed Matthew Tan and The Mandarins in 1961. By the mid 1960s they were appearing in the hotels. By the 1970s as Matthew and The Mandarins, they had achieved a large following. Following their signing to EMI Singapore in 1978, they performed in Canada, Hong