
Twenty One Pilots is an American musical duo from Columbus, Ohio, built around frontman Tyler Joseph and drummer Josh Dun. Formed in 2009 by Joseph alongside bassist Nick Thomas and drummer Chris Salih, the project started as a three-piece playing clubs and basement venues across central Ohio. After Thomas and Salih departed in 2011, Joseph and Dun continued as a duo and signed with Fueled by Ramen in 2012. Their label debut, Vessel (2013), reached No. 21 on the Billboard 200 and became the second album in history to have every track certified at least gold. The duo's sound defies easy categorization, pulling from alternative rock, electropop, hip-hop, pop, reggae, and more, with Joseph shifting between rapping, singing, and screaming over Dun's high-energy drumming.
Blurryface (2015) launched the duo into mainstream dominance, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and becoming the first album ever to earn at least a gold certification on every track from the RIAA. The single "Stressed Out" peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned a 13x Platinum certification, while "Ride" and "Heathens" each achieved Diamond status. With "Heathens" and "Ride" both charting in the top five of the Hot 100 simultaneously, Twenty One Pilots became the first alternative act and only the third rock act in chart history to accomplish that feat, joining the Beatles and Elvis Presley. The duo has released eight studio albums to date and tallied 14 number-one songs on the Alternative Airplay chart, tying with Linkin Park for the second-most all time.
Live, Twenty One Pilots shows are a full-body experience. Joseph performs in masks and body paint while Dun launches into backflips off his drum kit. The duo's set pieces have included vertical crowd-surfing, suspended bridge walks, and scaffolding climbs that turn arenas into obstacle courses. That theatrical energy, layered over a catalog spanning concept albums about the fictional world of Trench and the city of Dema, gives every show a narrative weight that goes beyond a standard concert.