Billy Talent (formerly known as Pezz) is a Juno award-winning Canadian band formed in 1993 in Streetsville, Ontario. The band consists of Ben Kowalewicz (lead vocals), Ian D'Sa (lead guitar and vocals), Jon Gallant (bass guitar and backing vocals) and Aaron Solowoniuk (drums and percussion).
The band existed for almost a decade before mainstream success. The members met and played in high school under the name Pezz and remained underground in Toronto's indie music scene until 2001. The band renamed itself Billy Talent after running into legal trouble with the old name. It was then that Kowalewicz's connection with an employee of Warner Music Canada's A&R department landed the band a record deal and launched them into mainstream success. Since then, Billy Talent has made two multi-platinum records in Canada, and continues to expand their success overseas, this included touring for 20 months supporting their third album. They released their fourth album Billy Talent III on July 14, 2009.
Pezz began writing, performing songs, and gaining attention and credibility at first locally, and soon in Toronto's broader indie music scene. Their first recording was a cheap 4-track demo.
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