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Will Toledo

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Will Toledo
Will Toledo in 2019
Will Toledo in 2019
Background information
Birth nameWilliam Barnes
Also known as
  • Mortis Jackrabbit
  • Trait
  • Nervous Young Men
  • Car Seat Headrest
Born (1992-08-23) August 23, 1992 (age 32)[1][2]
OriginLeesburg, Virginia, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • singer
  • songwriter
  • producer
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • Guitar
  • Keyboards
  • Bass
  • Drums
Member of
Formerly ofMr. Yay Okay
Websitecarseatheadrest.com

William Barnes[3] (born 23 August 1992), known professionally as Will Toledo, is an American musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and founding member of the indie rock band Car Seat Headrest. He takes his professional name from his mother's maiden name.[4][5]

Early life

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Toledo grew up in Leesburg, Virginia. As a child, he was taught piano by his father, recounting a story with Vice of how his father thought he knew how to read sheet music, but Toledo had instead only been imitating how his father played.[6]

While attending Loudoun County High School, Toledo was involved in marching band, and played trombone.[7] During this time, Toledo would also begin pursuing music on his own, being involved with the band Mr. Yay Okay, as well as under his own solo projects, The 63rd Fret and Nervous Young Men.[8] Toledo would begin sharing his work through the online music distribution platform Bandcamp after learning about the success the band Cults had been able to acquire through the platform.[6]

Car Seat Headrest

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Main article: Car Seat Headrest

Toledo began Car Seat Headrest as a solo project shortly after graduating from high school, choosing the name as he would frequently record his vocals in the back seat of his family's car for privacy.[9] However, as he had struggled to establish an audience through his previous projects, he chose to try to release more experimental songs anonymously.[10]

He released eight studio albums, three extended plays, and two outtakes' compilations as a solo act under the alias Car Seat Headrest between 2010 and 2014. In September 2015, upon signing to Matador Records,[11][12] Toledo would recruit drummer Andrew Katz and bassist Jacob Bloom, turning Car Seat Headrest into a band.[13]

An image of the band Car Seat Headrest performing a live show at a venue called "The Showbox", with frontman Will Toledo prominently visible, and bassist Seth Dalby visible in the background. This image has been cropped into a square. Will Toledo is a white man with shaggy black hair and black frame glasses. He is holding a microphone on a stand and wearing a black t-shirt. There are stagelights in the background. This photo was taken 12 October 2018.
Toledo performing with Car Seat Headrest at The Showbox in 2018.

In Car Seat Headrest, Toledo provides vocals, guitar, piano, and synthesizers. Toledo's songwriting often combines influence from literature with personal, 'confessional' lyricism.[14][15] Toledo is also one half of music duo 1 Trait Danger with Katz. They have released three albums.[16][17]

Personal life

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Toledo graduated from Loudoun County High School in 2010,[18] and subsequently enrolled at Virginia Commonwealth University. After a semester, Toledo would transfer to the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he majored in English and minored in religious studies.[19] He graduated from William and Mary in 2014 and moved to Seattle, Washington to pursue Car Seat Headrest professionally. Toledo is a member of the furry fandom.[20] He is one-fourth Mexican.[21]

Despite themes of mental unrest in his songwriting, Toledo does not consider himself depressed or mentally ill.[22] He has previously faced autoimmune complications since early adulthood, and developed histamine intolerance after testing positive for COVID-19 while on tour in 2022.[20][23] He has since used social media to raise awareness for long COVID.[24]

Discography

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Car Seat Headrest

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Main article: Car Seat Headrest discography

As Nervous Young Men

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  • The Bell Jar (2008)
  • Boxing Day (2009)
  • Katzenjammer (2009)
  • The Loudness War (2009)
  • Nervous Young Men (2010)

Mr Yay Okay

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  • Mr. Yay Okay (2008, EP)[25]

1 Trait Danger

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  • 1 Trait High (2018)
  • 1 Trait World Tour (2019)
  • 1 Trait Bangers (2021)

Production

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Year Release Artist Ref
2011 D'Urberville The Whiting Brothers [26]
2012 Sleeping in Herndon Naked Days
2014 Chai Knees Naked Days
Tie Yourself to Me Katie Wood [27]
2015 Four Ways To Say Goodbye Forever American Holly [26]
2017 Gold Connections Gold Connections [28]
2019 Midnight Stef Chura [29]
2021 My Head Hz Naked Days
How To Drive A Bus I've Made Too Much Pasta [30]

References

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  1. ^ Person, Some. "Will Toledo". WeBlogy. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  2. ^ Glide. "Happy 30th Birthday - Will Toledo of Car Seat Headrest". Glide Magazine. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
  3. ^ Martin, Robey (June 27, 2017). "Q&A: Car Seat Headrest". richmondmagazine.com. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  4. ^ "Q&A: Car Seat Headrest". June 27, 2017.
  5. ^ "Car Seat Headrest: Dorm-Room Prodigy to Indie-Rock Sensation". Rolling Stone. November 24, 2015.
  6. ^ a b McGehee, Cate (September 11, 2015). "Adult of Style: Car Seat Headrest's Teen Confessions Took Him from Bandcamp Stardom to a Real Band". VICE. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  7. ^ Vozick-Levinson, Simon (November 24, 2015). "Car Seat Headrest: Dorm-Room Prodigy to Indie-Rock Sensation". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  8. ^ carseatheadrest. "car seat headrest". Tumblr. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
  9. ^ Hsu, Hua (November 2, 2015). "How Musicians Get Famous Today". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  10. ^ carseatheadrest (June 29, 2018). Car Seat Headrest - I Haven't Done Sh*t This Year (TIDAL Documentary: Part One). Retrieved July 24, 2024 – via YouTube.
  11. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  12. ^ "Bandcamp Got Car Seat Headrest Signed. Your Favorite Indie Act May Be Next". Inverse. December 10, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  13. ^ Ingegneri, Katie (April 22, 2020). "An Interview with Andrew Katz of Car Seat Headrest". houseshow magazine. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  14. ^ Ingegneri, Katie (November 22, 2019). "A Conversation with Will Toledo and An Appreciation for Car Seat Headrest".
  15. ^ "The Sound of Music: Will Toledo Writes from the Heart of Depression". afterglow. March 25, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2024.
  16. ^ "1 Trait Danger". 1 Trait Danger. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
  17. ^ "Meet Car Seat Headrest's Comedic Side Project 1 Trait Danger". Hard Noise. September 7, 2019. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
  18. ^ Dellinger, Hannah (February 11, 2016). "Featured by Rolling Stone and NPR, Leesburg native Car Seat Headrest is having one heck of a year".
  19. ^ "Car Seat Headrest on Kanye West: 'It's the Latest Example of…People Not Listening Enough to the Other Side'". Billboard.
  20. ^ a b "Car Seat Headrest's Will Toledo Takes Off the Mask". Paste Magazine. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  21. ^ https://carseatheadrest.tumblr.com/post/32594589484/are-you-mexican
  22. ^ Domanick, Andrea (July 1, 2016). "A Long Drive with Car Seat Headrest". Vice. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  23. ^ https://x.com/carseatheadrest/status/1565410487105454082
  24. ^ https://x.com/carseatheadrest/status/1768748179384864944
  25. ^ https://www.discogs.com/artist/8218378-Mr-Yay-Okay
  26. ^ a b carseatheadrest. "car seat headrest". Tumblr. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  27. ^ carseatheadrest. "car seat headrest". Tumblr. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  28. ^ "Gold Connections, by Gold Connections". Gold Connections. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  29. ^ "Midnight, by stef chura". stef chura. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  30. ^ "How to drive a bus, by I've Made Too Much Pasta". I've Made Too Much Pasta. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
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