Like many bands founded and localized on the western fronts, the “Pilots” began their creative activity within the walls of college. Three friends Tyler Joseph, Chris Salih, and Nick Thomas ame together under the name twenty one pilots in 2009. The idea of forming the band originally came from Tyler; he also came up with the name. By the end of the year, the “Pilots” released their first record and went on tour across their home state of Ohio.

Despite the band’s initial lineup of three people, the name, translated literally as “Twenty One Pilot,” has nothing to do with that fact. In a sense, with such a name the musicians pointed out a question of morality, since twenty one pilots refers to 21 soldier-pilots who perished during the Second World War in the plot of a play by the playwright Arthur Miller.

Two years later, most of the lineup left the band: Nick and Chris quit the “Pilots.” In their place, Tyler was joined by Josh Dun, a session vocalist from House of Heroes. Tyler was very impressed by Josh’s playing and later suggested collaboration.

It was in the duo of Josh and Tyler that the group gained incredible momentum and wild popularity. This is how we know them today: two nice guys stirring up young girls and blowing up concert halls.

In the summer of 2011, the second album of the renewed lineup of twenty one pilots was released, titled “Regional at Best.” One of the key episodes in their biography was the performance at “Columbus’ Newport Music Hall,” after which a huge number of music labels became interested in the guys, and the “Pilots,” in turn, settled on the company “Atlantic Records.”

The collaboration with the renowned producer Greg Wells turned out to be fruitful for the musicians. In California, the “Pilots” recorded their full-fledged studio album “Vessel.” At the same time, according to Tyler himself, they were not sure of its eventual successful release.

The record was approved by many critics, but it did not escape accusations of plagiarism: a reviewer from the authoritative magazine “Rolling Stone” identified the musicians’ inability to develop their own individual style, their copying of Linkin Park, and the presence of echoes from a whole series of unsuccessful elements of the previous decade. In addition to the album, the musicians recorded singles released as bonuses separately for the Japanese-Korean and the British-European editions.

During their world tour in support of “Vessel,” the band twenty one pilots, along with concerts, were inspired and brought fresh ideas to life. With a portable studio always at hand, the musicians tried recording right on the road. Step by step, this led to the birth of their fourth studio album “Blurryface,” which absorbed all that mainstream mood (in the very best sense of the words), thanks to which audiences recognize the “Pilots.” The release took place in May 2015. Sales were so successful that twenty one pilots deservedly took the top spot on the “Billboard 200,” and their world tour included more than 40 concerts. The record “Blurryface” was awarded platinum album status in the USA, Britain, and other countries. Moreover, the track “Stressed Out,” which went gold in several Western charts, earned the musicians a Grammy.

The “Pilots” firmly secured themselves in the indie pop industry, proving themselves musically. Good PR for the band was the soundtrack album of David Ayer’s widely discussed action-comedy “Suicide Squad,” which premiered on August 1, 2016. It included the song “Heathens” along with tracks from 13 other performers.

In July 2018, twenty one pilots “changed” their color from red to yellow this was how the musicians drew the attention of fans before the release of their fifth record “Trench.” A trilogy of singles from the upcoming album was released, consisting of the tracks “Nico and the Niners,” “Jumpsuit,” and “Levitate.” The official release of the album was scheduled for October 5, but just a couple of days before that, it was leaked.

The “Pilots” are representatives of reggae, alternative hip-hop, and rock. Today, the musicians share their creativity through five full-fledged albums.