Do you ever have that one thing that completely and utterly changes your life? Maybe it comes in the form of a favourite song or book. Or maybe it’s a person who just happens to be something so beautiful that it literally changes you. Whatever it may be for you, I can proudly say that I’ve come to my epiphany through a band. My favourite band is Twenty One Pilots because they help me feel something. If you take a good look at their background, their lyrics, and the way people have been affected by their music and their stories, maybe you’ll see how I’ve been able to use their music as an outlet.

One of the main reasons I like Twenty One Pilots is that ever since the beginning, they’ve been about turning negative feelings you may have, towards yourself or the world you’re living in, into something that’s not destructive. This idea found favour with many teens struggling to express themselves or their feelings in a healthy way, including myself. This solid fan base has helped Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun to grow out of their hometown of Columbus, Ohio, and on to play much bigger shows to many more people, thus allowing the idea of conveying your ideas and feelings in a way other than violence or anger to spread and catch on with other people. Back on their first CD, there are many songs hinting towards Tyler, the lead singer of said band, was suffering/is suffering from depression and anxiety. Although you can never exactly understand how someone is feeling, or what they’re going through, it’s still nice to have someone who is singing about something you are struggling with. It adds a sense of comfort, a little bit of proof that no matter how bad things get, you are genuinely not alone.

Another reason that Twenty One Pilots is my favourite band is that the lyrical content of their songs are unlike any I’d ever heard before – very blunt yet gentle; very thought-provoking and just scraping the surface of the things they’re aiming to talk about. One of the songs that really made me think was a song off of the new album, Blurryface. The song is called “Goner”, and it genuinely changed my life. “Goner” is nothing extravagant at first glance, and maybe someone will listen to it and not get a single thing out of it. However, it never fails to bring me to tears every time I hear it. The song is about depression, like many of their other ones, however, it’s taken to a minimalist extreme. It repeats simple phrases, two of which are, “I’m a goner, somebody catch my breath,” and “Don’t let me be gone,”. The song is very slow and drawn out, until the end where Tyler is literally screaming and Josh, the drummer, is banging on the drums so hard it’s scary. The thing is, it’s not even the song, but the meaning behind it, and how it ties into not only my life, but theirs, and other fans.

Probably the biggest reason that this band is my favourite is because of what they’re aiming to achieve. The Stay Alive Project is a good example of this. It’s a foundation that Tyler and Josh worked with their fans to start, but it’s found favour with many of their fans. People donate to it, as well as contribute in the best ways they can, whether by painting a picture or writing a song. Whatever it may be for you; it’s all about doing something that makes you happy. The Stay Alive Project is working to raise $10,000 to help unite Twenty One Pilots with their fans, in order to keep the fire burning. On June 18th, 2015 (Josh’s birthday), they donated $3,055 to “To Write Love on Her Arms”, an organization that raises awareness for people struggling with depression, self harm, eating disorders, or any other mental illness. So far, there are almost 7,000 declared supported of TWLOHA.

In conclusion, there are many reasons that Twenty One Pilots is my favourite band, but the everlasting impact their music has made on my life has to be the biggest one. I am very thankful for them in the sense that through their music, lyrics, the fan base behind through which I have met many friends, and the conversations I’ve had about how their music affects me personally, I have come to epiphanies and experienced things I’d never before experienced. My favourite band is Twenty One Pilots because they help me feel something.