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Nov 16, 2007 · I heard bands are always plural (which is how we usually say it to) but I'm not sure if this would be plural or not. I also heard American bands are always plural, even if an Italian band in the same situation would be singular, so please put an Italian band in for "Red Hot Chili Peppers", I just couldn't think of any Italian bands ...
As far as I can tell, band names are typically treated as a plural if the name of the band starts with "the" and is a plural noun or based around a plural noun -- or more generally, if it seems to be referring to its members as a collection of entities -- and a singular otherwise.
I'll let the real experts weigh in on what's correct below, but it does seem extremely common to conjugate the verb based on whether the band's name sounds singular or plural: The Bangles ARE awesome, but Def Leppard IS the best.
A plural verb is used in "The Who are a rock group/are on stage/are coming to town" because here "The Who" refers to the members of the band. When the band as an entity is referred to, a singular verb is used: "The Who is listed alphabetically under 'W', not 'T'."
According to American English rules, when you’re referring to a band as a collective whole, treat it as a singular noun. When you’re referring to individuals within the band, you’re talking about something plural.
According to Wikipedia, bands like Queen, U2, Fleetwood Mac, The Beatles, and Kodaline are plural. However, bands like Blink-182, The Revolution, Marianas Trench, Twenty One Pilots, and Linkin Park are singular.
Oct 21, 2015 · Those writing for BrE audiences can treat all band names as collective nouns and therefore as plurals. (In BrE, most collective nouns are treated as plurals.) This answer is not an absolute—this is a style issue, after all.
