Did You Know...

Jack Black and Kyle Gass met in an acting class in 1994, and they decided to form a humorous rock band. They began playing at local clubs, and their debut consisted of one song, 'Tribute' at an open mike night. When they were playing at one such club, Al's Bar, comedian David Gross approached them about playing with him in some comedy shows. Tenacious D toured with him around the LA circuit. They appeared with him in several comedy shows alongside comedians such as Ben Stiller and Janeane Garofalo. With all this touring, the band gained popularity and garnered a considerable fan base in the Los Angeles area.

Tenacious D's popularity continued to grow. The band appeared in the 1996 film, Bio-Dome, the movie that created their nationwide fan base. Along with David Gross, they appeared on the HBO comedy special Mr. Show with Bob and David. In 1998, Tenacious D entered the mainstream media when they were featured on Saturday Night Live. They were so successful that HBO gave them their own series. Although it ran for only three episodes, the band aired most of their first songs.

With all these television appearances, many record companies started a bidding war over who was going to sign them. Epic finally signed the group in 1999, and they recorded their first album, Tenacious D. On their first album, they collaborated with artists like the Dust Brothers, Phish, Red Kross, and Dave Grohl.