During his childhood, Pete watched the music video for “November Rain” on TV, which started his interest in rock music. Listening to Metallica in the back of his parents’ station wagon also inspired him to start making music. Pete has expressed that he didn’t feel like he fit in growing up until he discovered punk music, where no one fits in. “From there I think I realized that in Chicago, in that scene specifically, there were so many different kinds of people that it felt like, OK, maybe you didn’t fit in, but maybe we could all not fit in—in the same place.” *

Wentz started taking guitar lessons when he was 13, after getting his first guitar for Christmas in 1992. * He also played piano at this time. In high school, he wanted to join a band that only needed a bass player, so he took a bass guitar from his friend’s brother and learned the instrument.

Pete had a history of skipping classes and delinquency in school, which got him sent briefly to a military camp when he was 14 or 15-years-old. Pete has fluctuated in his opinion about his time at the military camp; sometimes he claims that his childhood was trauma-free, while in other instances he acknowledges the harrowing experience. * His father has gone on record that he expresses regret in sending Pete to a military camp, but that there are no hard feelings over it between the two of them. * Wentz then started attending North Shore Country Day School in his sophomore year, where he was a star soccer player. * He then got promoted to being a captain his senior year. Wentz has said although he was better at soccer, he felt incredibly connected with the hardcore scene. Additionally, Pete was involved in clubs such as the school newspaper.

Career

Pete began playing in bands when he was in high school. Pete decided to become straight-edge when he was 15, * and he became involved in the Chicago hardcore scene. He has also done various side projects since Fall Out Boy as well.

xfirstbornx and Frontline (1994-1999)

Frontline was Pete’s first ever band that he played in. It was a death metal band; At this young age, Pete was into bands such as Napalm Death and Cannibal Corpse. Firstborn (also stylized as xfirstbornx) was Pete’s first straight-edge hardcore band, originally named Justice Coming. * This is when he switched from playing guitar to playing bass. This band never produced any releases, as was typical for bands with members so young. Firstborn only has one album, featuring Pete on the cover. Wentz also played bass in this band.

xBirthrightx (1997)

Birthright (also stylized as xbirthrightx) was the next band that Pete was an active part of. Birthright, similarly to Firstborn, was a straight-edge hardcore band. Pete was seen playing a few shows with Birthright in 1997, though the band had been active since ’96 before his joining. Birthright originated in Indianapolis, where Pete recalls traveling often to for shows.

Extinction (1997-2000)

Extinction was a hardcore band active from 1996-2000, with Pete joining the band in ’97. Pete played bass on their record Hypocrisy Breeds Traitors which was released in 1999. Extinction was often credited for reviving the Chicago hardcore scene by fans. * Members of this band would later be seen playing in other music projects alongside Pete.

Racetraitor (1997-1998)

Pete played in Racetraitor alongside Andy Hurley, who would later become Fall Out Boy’s drummer. Racetraitor is still active and touring today with a different lineup. Pete and Andy would meet each other for the first time at various hardcore shows in 1997 before joining the band together. * Pete was known for floating in and out of all of his bands, but this was especially true for Racetraitor. “But you know that dude, he was in and out of bands. Like, he would come up like, ‘I was in this band for three weeks.’ I’m like, ‘Wait, what?’ And then he’s like, ‘Oh, yeah, we played a couple basement shows.’” *

Racetraitor was arguably the most controversial and political band Pete was in, mainly for being open about their political takes that were ahead of their time, like speaking out against systemic racism. *

Arma Angelus (1998-2002)

Arma Angelus was the first band Pete’s that he led that truly saw success. They had a revolving door of members- Patrick and Joe even played in for Arma Angelus during their last show. * Pete was Arma’s frontman, doing unclean vocals and writing lyrics. They started off practicing in basements in 1998, before playing their first show as Novena in 1999. Andy was on bass for this show, even though he was inexperienced on the bass. * Their first EP was titled The Grave End Of The Shovel and released on Happy Couples Never Last Records. Pete was seen by his peers as the driving force of this band, working tirelessly on getting them record deals. He recounts having his lawyer father read over their record contracts to ensure they weren’t getting scammed. *

At this time, Pete was a very active contributor to the Chicago Hardcore website * along with Chris Gutierrez, who was also an Arma Angelus member. Notably, Arma Angelus played at the iconic CBGBs venue in New York City. * Their first official album, Where Sleeplessness is Rest From Nightmares was released in 2001 off of Eulogy Records. While Fall Out Boy was just beginning, Arma Angelus came to an end and played their last show in 2002 with Patrick on drums and Joe on guitar. Andy was uninterested in joining during the set. *

Black Cards (2010-2012)

Black Cards was Pete’s band during the Fall Out Boy hiatus. He started this band with now-successful pop star Bebe Rexha. Their music was influenced by pure pop and dancehall music. * Their first single is titled “Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Fame” followed by an EP called Use Your Delusion which was released in 2012. Pete wrote the lyrics, like in Fall Out Boy, but with a female vocalist this time.

Fall Out Boy

2001 and Take This To Your Grave

Fall Out Boy originally started as Pete and Joe’s side project to Arma Angelus. * Pete had become fed up with the Chicago hardcore scene; In his eyes, it was littered with homophobia, misogyny and racism. Essentially, it became less about politics and more about moshing, and Pete wanted a change of pace. * Wentz had become inspired by bands like Lifetime and Green Day, and wanted to make something more “girls liked”. *

Fall Out Boy truly began when Joe first ran into Patrick at a Borders bookstore, forming a friendship and asking Patrick to try out for the band. Pete started as the bassist, while Patrick initially wrote all of the lyrics. After producing two demos, a split EP, and Evening Out With Your Girlfriend, they came upon the release of their first official album, Take This To Your Grave. Pete did write some lyrics here and there on Take This To Your Grave, however, it is unclear which exact songs Pete wrote. * During this time, Pete was still adhering to a vegan and straight-edge lifestyle. They soon recruited Andy to become their permanent drummer in 2003 after he decided to help the band record the drums for Take This To Your Grave. *

During this time Pete had been attending DePaul University, however, only a semester shy of graduation, he dropped out in 2002. * Fall Out Boy had begun to see some acclaim, with the band getting signed by Fueled By Ramen for Take This To Your Grave.

From Under The Cork Tree

From Under The Cork Tree, Fall Out Boy’s sophomore album, is what set the band off into stardom. This album is where Pete fully took over writing the lyrics. It is also one of Fall Out Boy’s most vulnerable albums. Pete’s mental health was largely in decline during 2004 and 2005. * Pete would send Patrick his lyrics, and Patrick would “stitch them together” to write with them. *

Pete has told stories of being unable to leave their shared apartment due to anxiety and depression. He has also expressed that he would often hide under blankets and “think about the feeling of death.” * He was especially paranoid about flying on planes, to the point where the band almost could not finish recording From Under The Cork Tree. *

In February of 2005, Fall Out Boy was set to go on tour in the United Kingdom. However, Pete was unable to attend due to supposed food poisoning, and Spitalfield bassist TJ Minch filled in for him on tour. * Pete later admitted that he was not suffering from food poisoning. He had overdosed on Ativan, an anti-anxiety medication, in a Best Buy parking lot, having to call his manager for help; the rest of the band was unaware of this until a few years later. * Wentz was able to recover, and the band went on to finish recording the album, now including the songs “7 Minutes in Heaven (Ativan Halen)” and “I’ve Got a Dark Alley and a Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Song)” which Pete wrote about his experience with overdosing. * It was also at this time, that he added a spoken word ending to “Get Busy Living Or Get Busy Dying (Do Your Part To Save The Scene And Stop Going To Shows”. Wentz claims that he recorded this spoken word part in a bathroom stall, as he was too scared to perform it in front of anyone, even the band. * To date, he still hasn’t ever performed it live in full.

Pete also moved back home with his family during this time. Previously, he had lived with Joe and Patrick in an apartment while they recorded Take This To Your Grave. In late 2005, Pete did a tour of his bedroom with Fuse TV. * His bedroom was populated with items from his childhood, such as action figures and two twin beds. In his basement, he kept extra Fall Out Boy merch. Fans would often show up at his family’s house, as it used to be used as the “Fan Club Address” for Fall Out Boy fans. * Pete’s mom would occasionally sell merch on their lawn.

At this time, Pete also started two of his longer lasting side ventures. First was Clandestine Industries, which is a clothing brand. The “Bartskull” from his childhood nightmares was used as the logo for his brand. Secondly, Wentz started a new record label imprint under Fueled By Ramen called Decaydance Records (later rebranded as DCD2). Decaydance signed bands such as Panic! At The Disco, Gym Class Heroes, and The Academy Is…

Infinity On High and Folie A Deux

In 2007, Pete moved to Los Angeles. * He was dating Ashlee Simpson whom he met at the 2005 VMAs. * The couple was married on May 17th, 2008. * Pete also owned his dog Hemmingway, and later on another dog of the same breed, Rigby. At this point in time, Fall Out Boy hit their first peak in popularity, mainly at Pete’s expense. Nude photos of Pete’s were leaked in 2006, which made him the top Google search that week, causing him a great amount of stress. * In the aftermath of this, he expressed that he wanted to quit Fall Out Boy, but ultimately did not. *

After the release of Infinity On High, Fall Out Boy came under fire for using lyrics that were not solely penned by Pete without credit. “The Carpal Tunnel Of Love”, “Golden” and “Bang The Doldrums” were poems originally co-written with Wesley Eisold of American Nightmare. * Wentz is good friends with Eisold, and the band and Eisold’s record label ultimately settled out of court. * In reissues of Infinity on High, Eisold is properly credited on the album.

Infinity On High features a bonus track: “G.I.N.A.S.F.S” which stands for “Gay Is Not A Synonym For Shitty”. * Wentz spoke out in interviews about being “gay above the belt” and fighting against the rampant homophobia of the 2000s, most notably in the Out magazine where he was featured on the front cover. * Because of his reputation for flouting gender norms by wearing eyeliner and wearing women’s jeans, Wentz was also the target of homophobic jokes from fans and non-fans alike. Fall Out Boy were condescendingly referred to as effeminate rockers in a derogatory manner by the media, and constantly harassed on the basis of their sexualities. Pete and Ashlee participated in the “No H8 Campaign” in 2008. *

The band wrote their album Folie A Deux while they were on tour for Infinity On High. Folie A Deux was originally set for a release on Election Day of 2008, but it was later postponed. * Pete and Ashlee had their first and only son, Bronx, who was born on November 20th, 2008, right before Folie A Deux was set to release. * This album had an initial poor reception among fans and mixed reception among critics. Additionally, the band members were all experiencing varying levels of burnout. * The band claims this is what sparked their hiatus in 2009.

FOB Hiatus

At the end of 2009, Fall Out Boy announced that they would be going on hiatus. This was a particularly hectic time in Pete’s life. Pete and Ashlee were divorced in 2011. Wentz began working on his new musical project, Black Cards, but it did not see much success. * The first iteration of Clandestine Industries also came to an end in 2012 as Pete was feeling uninspired. * Still, Pete did do some lyrical writing for Panic! At The Disco’s album Vices and Virtues, The Cab’s album Symphony Soldier, and continued both A&R work and executive production for Decaydance. * He met his current girlfriend, Meagan Camper in 2011. *  Pete also started hosting a reality show- Best Ink -which focused on tattoo artists competing for money. *

Save Rock And Roll and American Beauty / American Psycho

Fall Out Boy triumphantly came back from hiatus in 2013 with their album Save Rock and Roll. * Pete’s label Decaydance also rebranded as DCD2 during this time. Pete returned to write the lyrics for the band. That same year, Fall Out Boy released a hardcore punk EP titled PAX AM Days.

Fall Out Boy won Artist of the Year in 2014 at the Alt Press Music Awards. * On August 21st, 2014, Pete and Meagan had their first child together, Saint.
Fall Out Boy wrote and recorded American Beauty / American Psycho while on tour for Save Rock and Roll. They did not fully dedicate a tour to this album, even though it is their most popular album. * During these years, Pete was seemingly working hard on his unreleased sitcom Punk is Dad. A pilot for Punk Is Dad was filmed that both Pete and Patrick Stump worked on, and Pete starred in, produced by MTV. Unfortunately, this show was never greenlit, and the pilot has never been officially released. *

M A  N   I    A

M A  N   I    A is an album that was a sonic turn for Fall Out Boy. Pete put a great deal of effort into the writing of this album. The title references the mania that is experienced with Bipolar disorder. Many of the songs on this album were written from Pete’s personal experiences dealing with mania. * He also cited that “we live in manic times”. *

This album was extremely experimental for the band themselves. Like Folie a Deux, M A  N   I    A was also postponed before the initial release date, since the band was unhappy with the final product. Pete’s personal touch is evident: the “Young and Menace” music video strikingly mirrors Pete’s own story of coming from a mixed family and discovering punk music. *

Also during this time, Pete created more side projects. He worked as a music director on a Snapchat show, Everything’s Fine. This show is about a college student with Bipolar disorder. He worked with Hannah Klein who created the show. Klein now serves as the creative director for DCD2 band Daisy Grenade. She introduced Wentz to the band initially.
Pete also was the driving force behind “The Mania Experience” which was an immersive project built to promote the new album. It was first hinted at in 2018. * Pete claims he wanted to “create an analog space that’s physical and has texture” in contrast to online culture. *

M A  N   I    A was criticised upon release, and did not do well in the charts. Although both Patrick and Joe have expressed complicated feelings relating to the record’s initial reception, Pete has not commented much on it himself.
Pete and Meagan had their first daughter, Marvel, on April 20th, 2018. *

Hella Mega and So Much (For) Stardust

In 2019, Fall Out Boy announced their Hella Mega Tour with Green Day and Weezer. Pete also started a new jewelry brand called Ronin. According to their old website, Ronin was “Born out of the idea of wandering, a samurai without a master, and the free dreams that accompany facing the world on your own, Ronin is a jewelry line built for modern times.” *

Around this time, Pete started to play tennis. It was a sport that he played a bit as a kid, but as he grew older, it was something he became interested and fixated on. He acquired a personal trainer, Christopher Crabb, and since 2024, has hosted multiple tennis events under the Clandestine brand. He has recently been featured in celebrity tennis matches as well. *

The Hella Mega tour had to be postponed due to Covid-19 in 2020. * During this time, Fall Out Boy had been on and off writing music for their upcoming album, So Much (For) Stardust. 

Similarly to the Mania Experience, Pete wanted a tangible element surrounding the band’s new album. The cover for So Much (For) Stardust was made out of clay and paper mache to reflect this. * The band took plenty of time to write this album in the five years that they took. They wanted the album to be very intentional.

Pete specifically was focused on the idea of morality while writing this album. It has similar themes to From Under the Cork Tree, such as a looming fear of death and growing older. This time around, he says that he did not want to let his fears paralyze him. * The album So Much (For) Stardust oscillates lyrically between his paralyzing fear of death and otherwise trying to make the most of his life. It is an album that comes from a much healthier place than From Under The Cork Tree did. * The album features an Ethan Hawke interlude, inspired by the movie Reality Bites. *

Fall Out Boy then went on one of their biggest tours yet, So Much for (Tour) Dust, and even added a second leg after receiving a bigger reaction and attendance than expected. * They toured this second leg, So Much for (2our) Dust, with direct support from one of their early musical influences Jimmy Eat World. The band took it upon themselves to do surprise songs at every show using the “magic 8-ball” to decide which. Pete made efforts to more healthily connect with the audience, like going into the crowd during “Dance, Dance”. He would also perform his spoken word interlude from So Much (For) Stardust track, “Baby Annihilation”, sometimes combining the spoken word ending of “20 Dollar Nosebleed”, live on stage, which is a stark difference from the days of recording From Under The Cork Tree, where he could only record his poetry in a closet alone.

During touring So Much (For) Stardust, Pete brought back his clothing line Clandestine Industries. Pete said he aimed to make clothing designs that he, himself would wear, rather than what he thought would sell, which brought back the element of fun to running Clandestine. *

Pete also co-wrote a graphic novel, Dying Inside, released in September of 2024.

Equipment

Other Projects

Decaydance Records

Pete launched Decaydance Records in 2005 as an imprint of Fueled By Ramen. It was later rebranded as DCD2. The first bands signed were Gym Class Heroes and Panic! at the Disco. * These bands saw major success, in part thanks to Pete’s influence. Spencer Smith, formerly of Panic! at the Disco, later joined the DCD2 staff. * To promote their bands, they put on events such as the Decaydance Festival. * Fall Out Boy has, and continues to take artists signed to DCD2 on tour to promote new artists such as Carr and Daisy Grenade.

Clandestine Industries and related projects

From the Clandestine Industries website:

“Since I was a little kid, I loved dressing up – creating armor to wear out in the regular world past my imagination… In 2005, Clandestine began kind of out of sheer boredom. I never really felt like there was a brand at the time that captured what I felt like. It was a mix of punk rock and streetwear and skateboarding and film. Soon enough, it grew beyond just bleaching clothes in my parents’ attic as uniforms for Warped Tour… to a capsule collection with DKNY Jeans, and then Nordstrom, to a brick and mortar store in Chicago and even walking- or rather being wheeled down the catwalk of our first fashion show in a straight jacket with a Hannibal lector mask on… Clandestine was born out of fun, and when it stopped being fun I let it ride off into the sunset. And let it go dormant, after a lack of inspiration and feeling a bit lost. Sitting at home during the pandemic, I went through the archives in my storage and really missed so much of the energy. I remembered wanting to wear that armor out in the world. Now after a few trips around the globe – in and out of second-hand clothing shops on the other side of the planet – we’re back…”

Pete has had ventures in tandem with Clandestine Industries. Bartskull Films, Pete’s film company, released a movie in partnership with Clandestine titled Release The Bats. Bartskull Films is also affiliated with the unreleased show Punk Is Dad. * 

In addition to film and clothing, Pete opened the bar Angels and Kings. Angels and Kings had four locations in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City and Spain. Angels and Kings was shut down in New York City for serving alcohol to people who were underage.

Ronin and Agony/Ecstacy

Ronin is the higher-end companion brand to Clandestine that Pete started in 2019. It features jewelry with real metals such as silver and gold, and higher quality goods. It is distributed through Manhead.

Pete also worked with Nothing, Nowhere. on a brand called Agony/Ecstacy. It was an alternative clothing wear brand that made athletic clothes for golfing. The two of them wanted to be able to wear alternative fashion while playing the sports that they enjoyed. *

Solo Music

Notably, even with a strong history of collaborations and involvement in bands, Pete Wentz has never released solo music under his own name.

Books

Pete’s first book was titled A Boy With A Thorn In His Side. It is a graphic novel inspired by the nightmares he experienced as a kid. It was illustrated by Joe Tresauro and published in 2005. * Pete has dealt with insomnia his whole life, and the nightmares were a major reason why he could not get proper sleep growing up. Pete says that he draws himself as a monster, which can be seen in the main character who shares a resemblance with him. * Some of the afterwords in this book were reused as lyrics on From Under The Cork Tree.

In 2005, Pete started a project titled “Rainy Day Kids”. * He fell out of interest in writing the book. Eventually, several years later and with the assistance of James Montgomery, this project became a different book titled Gray, which came out in 2013 shortly after Save Rock and Roll. Though at the time of release he claimed it was purely fiction, the book seems to be inspired heavily by various stories from Pete’s life, including excerpts from his old social media posts. * The characters in Gray are strikingly similar to influential figures in Pete’s life, such as the other members of Fall Out Boy, but they all have different names. Pete also briefly worked on a book with William Beckett, but it was never finished, and details about the book are scarce. *

Pete’s co-written comic Dying Inside is about a teen girl Ash, who has a fascination with the suicides of Ian Curtis and Elliot Smith, and plans to take her life in a similar fashion. However, she is prevented from death by a spell of protection which was cast by another teen girl, Liv. The main writer for this comic was Hannah Klein, who previously worked with him on the Snapchat mini-series, Everything’s Fine. The book’s artwork was made by Lisa Sterle. The story is likely inspired by Pete’s own experiences, as he has admitted in the past that he too had fascinations with Elliot Smith and Ian Curtis- their initials are in the dedication for Pete’s first book, The Boy With the Thorn in His Side.

Trivia

• When Pete was a kid, he used to eat hot chocolate packets uncooked. (7)
• His nursery was painting the color yellow. (1)
• Pete and Joe used to share passwords for adult film subscriptions around 2007. (8)
• Pete chose to major in political science because of his high school history teacher. (4)
• Pete was no stranger to wearing girls’ clothes- he used to steal his sister’s jeans. (9)
• Pete has a large collection of 80’s toys that he’s kept since his childhood.
• Pete’s first tattoo was not the “eco-sign” that he mentions in an interview with GQ, but rather a stick-n-poke that he gave himself when he was 14. (10)

References

(1) https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pete-wentz/id1316200737?i=1000463451688

(2) https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/fall-out-boy-this-is-hardcore-475858.html

(3) https://fatheringexcellence.com/episodes/ep-9-father-of-pete-wentz-fall-out-boy-pete-wentz/

(4) https://www.kerrang.com/pete-wentz-on-fall-out-boy-fatherhood-and-fragility

(5) https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/soundtrack-of-my-life-fall-out-boys-pete-wentz-on-slayer-metallica-and-major-lazer-16151

(6) https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/music/2017/11/09/pete-wentz-interview-fall-out-boy-new-album-mania-growing-up-pun/845127001

(7) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0AEBXwfaUA

(8) https://archive.org/details/loveline_20070207

(9) https://youtu.be/hj76zlPI8hw?si=V040EI-vXz_gLNKv

(10) https://www.amazon.com/Fall-Out-Boy-Wouldnt-Biography-ebook/dp/B01KXTIN6U