MKTO is an American musical duo consisting of Malcolm Kelley and Tony Oller. Their debut single, "Thank You", was released in January 2013. The follow up single, "Classic", was released in June 2013. MKTO's self-titled debut album was released on January 31, 2014.
Career
2010: Formation and debut single
Malcolm Kelley and Tony Oller met in 2010 while filming the Nickelodeon television series Gigantic, in which their characters played best friends. They later formed together as a duo and came up with the name MKTO, which represents their combined initials. They elaborated upon the inspiration for their group name, saying: "It also stands for what our album kind of is: Misfit Kids and Total Outcasts – just like the kids we were in high school".
The group signed to Columbia Records and released their debut single "Thank You" on January 15, 2013. "Thank You" is a crossover between pop and hip hop. The song's music video was released onto YouTube via VEVO on January 4, 2013, and garnered over 500,000 views in two days. The song has attained commercial success, reaching the top ten on the singles charts of Australia and New Zealand.
In the music video, Harold Perrineau, who played the father of Malcolm Kelley's character on Lost, appeared as a reference to the show.
MKTO released their second single, "Classic" along with the music video on June 20, 2013.
In July 2013, they served as the opening for Emblem3 on their summer tour across the United States.
Their self-titled debut album will be released on April 1, 2014. The music video for third single and first track on MKTO, "God Only Knows", was released on November 29, 2013 on YouTube and Vevo.
They also served as the opening for Emblem3's #bandlife Tour in 2014.
In February 2014, their debut album went to #1 in Australia and #6 in New Zealand.