Religion and prayer in the band Twenty One Pilots
If you’re not familiar with Twenty One Pilots, at first glance you might think they’re just another punk rock band. However, the music of Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun’s eight studio albums is deeply rooted in Joseph’s relationship and struggles with religion.
Twenty One Pilots’ first self-titled album in 2008 is hard to define in terms of genre. It’s mostly composed of piano melodies, but it also includes some electronic and pop resemblances. This album features many songs that convey a direct conversation with God, or that reference Him or religious belief.
“Implicit Demand for Proof,” the first song on the album, is addressed to God, saying “I mean no disrespect / I am simply very perplexed by your ways / Why won’t you let us use your name?” In the same album, “A Car, A Torch, A Death” tells the story of Joseph coming to terms with the sacrifice Jesus made for us, using the whole song as an allegory for the Christian life.
The end of their self-titled album is the song “Isle of Flightless Birds,” which carries the messages that the human race needs something deeper to live for and believe in than earthly constructs. The song says, “But if we wake up every morning and decide what we believe / We can take apart our very heart and the light will set us free.” Later in the song, Joseph talks about how God is waiting for us, saying “His time, we’re wasting / As time will fly by and the sky will cry as light is fading / And He is waiting, so patiently.”
The duo’s second studio album, “Vessel,” continues in this vein with the song “Screen.” The song opens with Joseph singing, “I do not know why I would go in front of You and hide my soul, ‘cause you’re the only one that knows it… And I will hide behind my pride / don’t know why I think I could lie”. This continues the honest theme of recognizing God’s power and kindness.
“The Run and Go,” from the same album, talks about being torn between needing God and being hesitant to open up to Him. The chorus reads, “Don’t wanna call You in the nighttime / don’t wanna give You all my pieces / don’t wanna hand You all my trouble / don’t wanna give You all my demons / You’ll have to watch me struggle / from several rooms away / but tonight I need You to stay.”
A defining feature of Twenty One Pilots’ music – although their albums vary in genre and style – is that it is never written to cater to an audience.. Every song, album and lyric is honest and genuine. “Blurryface,” the band’s most widely known album, which contains the global hits “Ride” and “Stressed Out,” still contains religious songs.. The chorus of “The Judge” reads, “You’re the judge / Set me free / I know my soul’s freezing / Hell’s hot for good reason / So please take me”.
The closing song in “Blurryface,” “Goner,” is once again a direct prayer to God, revealing Joseph’s confession of being weak and needing help. Joseph pleads to God: “I wanna be known by you… don’t let me be gone.” This is a beautiful reminder of how God’s love can reach us in our darkest moments.
“Breach,” their album released last September, contains the song “Downstairs” as a prayer of surrender to God and trust in Him. The lyrics read, “You can have all I’ve made and all I’ve ever known / You can have both my lungs if you ask me so.” These lyrics are especially poignant because they show how Joseph gives himself to God by devoting his music to Him.
When we think of Christian music, what usually comes to mind is the Christian contemporary music (CCM) of praise and worship. Twenty One Pilots’ music goes much deeper than any conventional CCM because their songs are not only in service of worshiping God, but reveal a deep connection and conversation with him. The Christian element of the songs comes from direct addresses to God, asking about His presence or wondering about His existence. These are examples of raw and honest struggle with religion and sharing that struggle with God, something no other rock band does.
Twenty One Pilots shows that Christianity can transcend music genres. Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun are a perfect example of how genres in Christian music are not as essential as the lyrics and what they say about and to God.