Thirty Seconds to Mars frontman Jared Leto really wants you to see him on tour, so much so that he scaled the Empire State Building to just tell you about it.
On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Thursday, Leto explained the reasoning behind his latest—and somehow least offensive—stunt that’s since gone viral on the internet. And if you thought his climbing was some kind of movie magic, he even has the scars to prove you wrong.
“We have a huge announcement today,” Leto told Fallon. “And this is the reason I climbed the Empire State Building—because Thirty Seconds To Mars, after six years, we’re going back on the road. We announced a world tour.”
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The SEASONS World Tour is in support of the band’s sixth album, It’s The End of the World, But It’s a Beautiful Day, which was released in September. It’s not shocking that Leto chose to go all out to announce the tour rather than the album, though, given the group’s success on the road.
Still, Fallon joked that Leto could’ve just come on his show to discuss the tour without risking his life. The late-night host then attempted to grab the miniature Empire State Building from his show’s set, which, Leto pointed out, was actually the Chrysler Building. (Perhaps the most rewarding part of this interview is learning that Fallon, a New York staple, cannot recognize its signature landmark.)
It turns out that climbing the Empire State Building has been a longtime dream of Leto’s, who’s had a strong affinity for New York.
“Ever since I was a kid, I was fascinated with the Empire State Building,” Leto explained. “To me, it was a symbol of New York City. And New York City was a place that you go to make your dreams come true. I love this city, and I always wanted to live here.”
Leto said he started climbing at 3:15 a.m. on Thursday to catch the sunrise. He said the building’s authorities arranged the early time so he wouldn’t potentially fall on anyone on the observation deck. According to the Oscar winner, he only got the go ahead to climb the building very recently.
“I love to climb, and it seemed like one of those impossible things,” he said. “And it was very impossible when we started. We got 10,000 ‘no’’s before we got a single ‘maybe.’ And even then, we really just got the final word a couple days ago.”
Regarding the SEASONS tour, he claimed that the stunt fits into the overarching theme of Thirty Seconds To Mars’ concerts.
“We haven’t toured in six years, and I wanted to do something special,” he said. “And our concerts are about spontaneity. They’re aspirational in some ways and really about just living dreams. And this, to me—it’s been a longtime dream of mine. So it was great to do it.”
