Alternative metal band Future Leaders of the World was led by singer/guitarist Phil Taylor, a Buffalo native who relocated to San Francisco after high school. At a Puddle of Mudd gig, he befriended Mike Flynn, who would later serve as the group's manager and financed Taylor's first three-song demo tape. Upon returning to Buffalo, Taylor formed the first incarnation of Future Leaders of the World with bassist Toby Cole and drummer Carl Messina.