ISSUE #8 | JUNE
Travis Clark OF WE THE KINGS
Twenty One Pilots, Enter Shikari, and more! ISSUE 8, JUNE 2016 | 1
Table of Contents Staff Editor & Founder Acacia Evans Editor-in-Chief Kara Johnson Design Alyson Coletta Andi Rogers Photographers Acacia Evans Kelsey Giesbrecht John Curtis Hughes Hannah Jones CJ Moy Sean Sheetz Writers Acacia Evans Lexy Fields Kara Johnson Tyler Price Rasha Shaker
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Interview with Tryon
Social Media & More Website: bigcitythoughts.com Insta: @bigcitythoughtspress Twitter: @bctpress Facebook: facebook.com/bigcitythoughts Email: acacia@bigcitythoughts.com
18 Interview with Enter Shikari BIG CITY THOUGHTS | 2
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Interview with AJ
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Interview with Magic Man
Live Photos: Brand New
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Live Photos: Twenty One Pilots
04 - Tryon 08 - AJ 12 - Travis Clark of We The Kings 18 - Enter Shikari 20 - Magic Man 24 - Live Photos: Brand New 26 - Live Photos: Twenty One Pilots
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words by lexy fields + photos by sean sheetz
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If you haven’t heard the pop jam “Somebody To Love Me,” then you have been seriously missing out. The brother duo Tryon, consisting of Stephen and Justin Kirk, has been working over the past few years to figure out their sound. Recently, they hit Top 40 with their single “Somebody to Love Me.” When asked how the two became interested in music, Stephen answered that he was twelve and Justin was about thirteen when they got their first instruments. They learned together and started a band in their hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina. Members slowly dropped out due to personal reasons until only the brothers remained. They began to experiment with other instruments as well - Stephen became a drummer, Justin a guitarist. By learning how to use different elements for the band, Stephen said it drove them to their desire to be frontmen. “Nothing against drummers or anyone else in the band, but when you are a front man, you can connect with each person. It makes everything that led up to the show, rehearsals and everything, totally worth it. That’s why we’re in music – to connect.” After moving to Nashville to kick-start their career, Tryon has been performing with big names left and right. One of their favorite experiences was having the opportunity to open up for the band Safety Suit. “It was a total full-circle moment,” Stephen says reflecting back on the memory. In many ways, Safety Suit has been an inspiration to the brothers for years. Their music, in particular, motivated them to move to
Music City. After opening Safety Suit’s album release party, the lead singer fell ill and had to leave after two songs. Their manager then offered to let Stephen and Justin fill in to help finish out the show. Both brothers agree that it was an absolute dream come true and that it’s something they think about every day. Another amazing experience they admitted getting giddy over was receiving the phone call from their radio promoter and manager to congratulate them on their first Top 40 single. After we asked how the two felt in that moment, Stephen answered, “It’s really emotional. You know, being brothers, there are no secrets. I’ve seen every struggle he has gone through, and vice versa. We’ve mostly struggled together. It feels like you’re underwater and you are just swimming and swimming but every time you get a call with progress, you get to come to the surface and take a breath before diving back in.” Tryon is involved with writing or co-writing each song that they put their name on. The brothers say that maintaining a sort of thumbprint, or influence, in their music is very important to them. After meeting an amazing producer in Toronto, the duo heard the beginning of the song “Somebody To Love Me.” Justin commented that they simply loved the groove and rhythm and they knew immediately that the song was what they wanted to start their career with. “It just felt so natural to us,” Stephen agreed.
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Tryon said that it’s not always easy to write and work on a song, but this session was all about the vibe. This one sitting changed the game for them, realizing they finally found their sound, giving them a good idea of how they wanted to continue. “As this song grows and progresses, so do we. Our standards and dreams grow with it and we know what we have to do. Every day we’re trying to get one more rung up the ladder.” The duo says that they never get tired of hearing it on the radio. “It’s so cool to be a shaper in the industry – to know that you’re helping shape the future of music and the
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industry,” Stephen gushed, the two still obviously thrilled by their newfound fame. The Tryon brothers are genuine in their love for fans and appreciation for the hard work others have put in to help them along their musical journey. “Fans made us. We know how it is, working small jobs to earn money just to go see a show. It makes us appreciate our fans and what they sacrifice to support us so much more.” After getting a little sappy with the brothers, we asked them what their dream tour would be. Having to choose any three acts, dead or
alive, the brothers put their own spin on the question, creating two different dream tours. After explaining that all the artists they chose had inspired their own music, Stephen and Justin revealed that Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Jon Bon Jovi would make up one of the tours, and Taylor Swift, Tori Kelly, and OneRepublic would comprise the other.
“Fans made us. We know how it is, working small jobs to earn money just to go see a show. It makes us appreciate our fans and what they sacrifice to support us so much more.”
We know you’re curious about their favorite jams. For Justin, it’s the new OneRepublic song and of course, Drake’s new album. For Stephen, Drake, Demi Lovato, and Ariana Grande have been the top three artists on his playlist as of late. Tryon is utterly impressive. Not only are the brothers extremely talented, between singing, writing, and playing multiple instruments, they are absolute sweethearts. The two show authentic love and appreciation for their fans, showing affections by taking the time to meet every single person that attends a show. After struggling to find their signature sound and create a song that genuinely showcased the band, Tryon has taken nothing for granted. “We have never let the impossible stop us.” Keep an eye on Stephen and Justin Kirk as they begin their journey to shape the future of pop music.
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J A
Singer-songwriter AJ’s love for music began early. Growing up in NYC, he sang at talent shows, school functions, and camp. For the past 4 to 5 years, he’s been writing his own music and writing for crowds. The catch? He’s only 17. Despite his age, AJ has already toured worldwide with other famous acts, including the groovy R&B a capella group Pentatonix, just last month at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. That’s where BCT got the chance to chat with AJ and hear his story.
words by rasha shaker + photos by acacia evans
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Tell us about your background in music? I’ve been doing music my whole life. First and foremost, I’m a writer. I love songwriting, I love the whole creative process and engaging with the audience. What’s it been like so far to tour with Pentatonix, and what have you learned from it? It’s been an amazing experience. I’ve toured in the past but this audience has been the best. The Pentatonix audience are huge music lovers. They’re very supportive of me. Something I learned from this experience is that music can reach so many people in so many ways. If you were to describe your sound, what would it be? I’d say my music is a mixture of R&B and singersongwriter. My major influences are more like Stevie Wonder and the acoustic style of Ed Sheeran. I’d like to call it “Urban Acoustic.” Is Nashville your favorite city for songwriting?
they all freak out. It’s amazing that I’ve been doing this all at 17 but I think experience matters more. Was there anything specific that inspired your song ‘Tongue?’ I wrote it in the perspective of people saying they’re going to be there with you with empty promises. I’m sure everyone in the music industry can relate to people saying that they’re going to help you, but never really following through. Is there an EP or album on the horizon? Yeah, I’m definitely working on it, and I have it all solidified, but I want to push this single and see how far it goes. You work with various organizations to give back. Why do you think it’s important to give back? I think it’s important that I’m using this platform to give back and better people instead of becoming a star. If I can help someone else, why not help them?
I’d say Nashville is my favorite for storytelling. I think the writers here are very descriptive. I think everywhere else, like L.A, it’s more about the catchy hook. In Nashville, it’s more about what can you say and how can you make the audience emotional.
If you were to tour with anybody (dead or alive) who would it be?
From a professional standpoint, have you faced any challenges in your career?
I think education is important for everyone, so I definitely see myself going to college in the near future.
I think ageism is an important thing. People take you more seriously when you’re older. I’ve toured so much in the past couple of years, that if I don’t tell them that I’m only 17 years old, they’ll put me on a pedestal as some 25 year old trying to make it big. As soon as I say I’m 17
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Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, and Rihanna. Do you see college in your future?
Lastly, what would you like to say to your fans? Thank you so much for your support. This is us together, we’re doing this together.
From singing at talent shows to touring with national acts at 17 years old, it’s without question that AJ is talented and inspiring. If you’re interested in checking out his single ‘Tongue,’ you can hear it on Spotify. To sign up for updates about his new music and tour dates, go to ajlehrmanmusic.com.
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TRAVIS CLARK
of WE THE KINGS
words by lexy fields + photos by acacia evans We The Kings has been dominating the pop punk/alternative music scene for years with hits like “Check Yes Juliet” and “Say You Like Me.” BCT had the chance to sit down with vocalist and singersongwriter Travis Clark to discuss their ever-changing sound, Warped Tour, and his new role as a father. After explaining that we are trying to transition the magazine from alternative to pop but still attempting to keep elements of the alternative music scene alive, Travis responded with some words of encouragement. He explained that We The Kings is nearly the same, “We are exactly that. Our band is pop in the sense that it’s very catchy and melodic, but we’re still a band that wants to go hard at shows. We’re right on that line as well.” This year marks the band’s seventh year on Warped Tour. Travis laughed as he told the story of his and his fellow band members first few times going to Warped, “None of us really had any money so we would make fake tour passes to get us in for free.” After playing the tour for a few years, they admitted to Kevin Lyman, founder of Warped Tour, what they had done - “He was totally fine with it, just chuckled and told us it was an awesome story.” The band had originally won the Ernie Ball Battle of The Bands the first year they played, which meant they played a single date and performed before any of the actual touring bands went on. Travis then shared one of the most significant memories he has from Warped. “We had played last out of the four bands that had won Battle of The Bands so we were on right before Paramore. It was so funny because they had just started out so no one really came to their set – we actually had a bigger crowd than they did. It was mostly made up of friends and family, but I teased Hayley about it for years after whenever we would play shows together. It’s just a really great memory for the whole band to look back on.” After asking Travis what advice he would give to someone going on warped tour or what he
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wishes he had known at the start of We The King’s touring career, his answers were honest and simple. He explained that Warped Tour is completely different for bands who get to travel in tour buses versus the bands that travel in cramped vans. After admitting that the band had never done Warped Tour in anything but a tour bus, he countered that he has so much respect for bands who tour in a van. The WTK vocalist was extremely enthusiastic about Warped Tour as an incredible experience saying, “You build a family, regardless if you’re a band member, merch person, charity worker, volunteer; it doesn’t matter because everybody is experiencing Warped Tour together.” He insisted that the whole tour was an openminded experience and that it was a breeze to make friends because every social circle grows through the coordinated events and nightly barbeques. The most resounding advice he gave was to “Make it as memorable as possible. Meet as many people as you can, go around and see all the music, all the bands playing. Even as a fan going for the first time, just really take it all in. It’s a long, long day but a short tour once it’s over. You go through withdrawals a little bit. It’s a bizarre thing. Once
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you get off the tour, you’ll miss it.” It was eye opening to hear someone who has been such a major part of the tour to give a candid opinion of the six-week journey. Many pop punk or alternative fans will name We The Kings as one of the bands that got them going in their respective scenes. After almost ten years of being together, we were curious to get the vocalist’s opinion on their dedicated fan base. He immediately admitted how nice it is to see repetitive fans at shows, sharing that some had been to over fifty, or even a hundred shows. Describing that every single one of their albums change in the prospect of their sound and genre, Travis said that “Our fans are with us as people and they understand that we need to grow as musicians and as a band.” It is so impressive to see a band carry fans for this long, especially with an ever-changing sound. If you’ve ever been to a We The Kings show, you know that the fans know every single word and more than that, they sing them with passion. Travis admitted to us that when he was thirteen, the age a lot of kids start listening to We The Kings, he was listening to boy bands and that his first concert was *NYSNC. He shared the sweet story of his first real kiss in the
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hallway of the venue during that show. If you know of We The Kings, you most likely know of the separate member’s vlog accounts on YouTube. It all started with Charles, who interestingly enough, holds the spot for the longest standing YouTube vlog account in the history of the website. When asked about the experience of vlogging, he relayed it in a simplistic way – “It’s like your favorite tv show that never ends, there is no season finale.” Travis began to explain to us that a few of his favorite life moments were all documented due to the vlogging aspect of his life. From the day he proposed to his wife, to revealing to his parents that they were having a baby, to the birth of his daughter, the vocalist credits his vlog account for the documentation of these precious moments. One of our biggest questions for the new father was about the reality of touring with a family at home. Travis told us, “It’s difficult because you miss them a lot. I always explain it by what we were told on our Navy tour we did in the Middle East and Africa. We talked to the soldiers about FaceTiming or Skyping their families and how cool it must have been to see them after being apart for so long. Our tours are only a couple of months, but their tours last years. It is a much more extreme there. They said that FaceTime and Skype were awful because ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ When you see them, it just breaks your heart.” Luckily, Travis is married to a gorgeous, intelligent, and understanding woman. He explained that when you meet the right girl, she will respect the person you are, and for him that meant learning to love his passion for music. “She has been so amazingly supportive. I mean, she has done so well as a technically single mom when I’m gone. I think what balances us as a family is that we’re always open with each other and she
loves who I am and I love who she is. We don’t want each other to change just because we got married or had a baby. Solid relationships work on balancing careers, passion, and family.” The advice he gave us was not only heartfelt, but was straightforward. Travis has done an incredible job balancing his personal life with his career and tries to intertwine the two by bringing his wife and daughter out to shows. When asked the biggest difference between We The King’s first album and their newest album, the vocalist responded in a surprising way. He stated that finding youth in everything, in love and in ourselves, was something that grew with the band, “It’s ironic – the more you live life, the more you understand your youth.” Writing about love for the simplicity and beauty of being a kid was something that stuck with Travis, especially in the new album. “You only respect youth once you live life,” he informed us. An interesting fact that surfaced during the interview was that their latest album, Strange Love, was recorded in different cities. Although the majority was done in Los Angeles, Travis told us that each member recorded their parts in their respective cities. He produced and wrote everything for the album, but credited his band members with truly making the album sound like a collective We The Kingsrecord. After building the skeleton of a song, he would send it out and tell everyone to make it their own with their instruments and ideas. The end product turned out to be absolutely unbelievable and it was hard to imagine that a band could put out an album like this from different cities.
Our final question for Travis was what he would say to his fans - “I think it’s really cool when we play shows – I vicariously live through our fans.
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I can’t tell you the last live show I went to. At some point, I would think that playing a venue would feel like work, because it is a job. But I see our fans waiting in line for hours before the show and then they get in and find this energy through our openers and our band. It’s such a cool thing to see someone come in and experience our show. I always ask anyone if it’s their first show because all I can think about is my first live show. If one person leaves the concert thinking it was the best night of their life, then my job is so much more than complete. My goal was always to reach people that needed music like I needed music when I was a kid. Overall, ‘thank you’ would just be an understatement. I love the fans for who they are and that our music can be a light for people.” We were shocked at the sheer beauty of this answer. It was uplifting to hear a band member speak so honestly and highly of his fans. We The Kings has established a deep connection and feeling of mutual respect with their fans. The love they share for each other proves itself in each song they write and each show the fans attend.
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ENTER I R A K I SH
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questions by drew nolen, words by tyler price + photos by john curtis hughes
Since their formation in 1999 under the previous name Hybryd, Enter Shikari has been absolutely killing the game – first in the U.K, climbing their way up the charts, and now in the U.S. on Warped Tour. Typically playing for large arena-sized crowds in Europe, playing smaller venues was going to be a new and different experience for Enter Shikari. “We love both situations – playing a massive arena, to playing an intimate, sweaty, grimy place like this is cool,” said Rou Reynolds, Enter Shikari’s lead vocalist. But initially, Enter Shikari did have a few concerns. “We always thought going into arena-sized venues, we’d lose an element of the mayhem and the close connection. Because that was so much at the back of our minds, we made sure we got into the audience. We had a B stage – back by the sound desk – played a couple tracks from there,” said Reynolds. To ensure an intimate crowd-driven experience, Enter Shikari took a different route when choosing venues. “We didn’t play traditional arenas like amphitheaters, we did sort of warehouses, like rave venues almost, one big, long standing room so everyone felt like they were still in it together. It was still crazy and the passion was still high,” said Reynolds. The pandemonium is a huge element to who Enter Shikari is, but it’s not planned or rehearsed; it’s just felt. “When you’re in those moments, you’re not really thinking – you’re just in the present. We were very close to getting thrown off Warped Tour – it was the second time we’d done it – really deflated the stage. If you’re throwing a cab, you don’t know it at the time, but it’ll dent the stage. The last thing we want to do is make other people’s jobs harder or make them have to fork out money to
fix things. So, if we do ever fuck up somebody else’s shit, we’ll pay for it,” said Reynolds. Chaos and angst are great catalysts for heart-felt music – which is something Enter Shikari is known for. Their most recent album, “The Mindsweep,” contains concepts that speak to our society and the disconnected elements within it.“The discrediting, the disparaging, the dissuading of new ideas by those in power - any new philosophies, new technologies that companies will suppress because it will take away from their market share. It’s like sweeping new ideas out of one’s mind. Each song takes an example of how that happens in modern society and how capitalistic society accentuates those kinds of things,” said Reynolds. Obviously, Enter Shikari likes mayhem, grimy venues, and deep, philosophical thought. But because all this can be quite taxing, they have a few methods to decompress while on tour. “We try to get outside the city, maybe go to the forest or a bit of greenery – something that isn’t just hotels and venues. Last night, we went to Percy Priest [in Nashville, TN], and had a bonfire by the lake. It was amazing – it felt like we weren’t on tour,” said Reynolds. They also just genuinely like this side of the pond as a whole. “The general affinity that everyone has of a sort of friendliness that you perhaps don’t get in Europe – you can strike up a conversation with someone on the street and it not be weird. In England, that would be like, what does he want, what is he trying to sell me – you’d be thinking about it negatively right away,” said Reynolds. In closing, Enter Shikari had a few heartfelt parting words to their fans, “Thank you for your support and we’ll definitely keep coming back.”
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words by kara johnson + photos by cj moy
MAGICMAN
TAKES US BEYOND THE WAVES INTO NEW MUSICAL TERRITORY: BIG CITY THOUGHTS | 20
M
agic Man is the kind of band that wants to have fun while taking the listener to places they have never been before. When listening to any song from the band, the sound reveals adventure, fun, and most importantly, a lucid anxiety of nostalgia and growing up. It’s an artistic ability that many bands don’t capture as well as Magic Man. The band is boundless, and they’re ready for whatever is next in their musical journey. The journey began in the summer of 2009 when Alex Caplow and Sam Lee, founding members and friends, set off on a trip to Europe. While exploring the beauty of everything that Europe had to offer, Caplow and Lee weren’t concerned about that. Instead, after each day, the two friends would race back to their hotel and write. As the summer went on, each developed a sound of worldwide synth-pop and developed what later became their album titled “Real Life Color.” After some time, the duo added their mutual high school and college friends Gabe Goodman, Joey Sulkowski, and Justine Bowe. Two soon became five and created the eclectic sound of Magic Man. The synth-pop band has found great success in the music world. In 2014, the five-piece band released their debut album “Before the Waves” and was very successful, gaining radio play with their hit song ‘Paris.” Now, after a few years, Magic Man is touring the country with Panama Wedding and the Griswolds on the Hotline Spring Tour while also writing a new album.
We caught up with Sam Lee, co-founder of Magic Man, and discussed tour life, new music, life in the studio, and what they want to be remembered for. Kara Johnson: You guys just started a North American tour with the Griswolds and Panama Wedding. How has that been going for you guys? What have been some of the highlights of the tour so far? Sam Lee: It’s been rad. They are great people and great bands. I feel like every night is a highlight. There have been some great shows in Texas, Columbus, and playing in Boston is always really special. We’ve also spent so much time hanging out with everyone and it’s been wonderful. It’s been one of my favorite tours so far. KJ: Songs are always different in the studio than they are when they are live. What’s that been like for you as you bring these songs to life on this tour? How do these songs reflect you as individuals and you as a band in a live performance? SL: It’s been so great. Sometimes we have to change things up a little, and it’s been really fun. The reactions to the new songs we’ve been playing have been really good. It makes me excited to finish the record, and put it out to the world. As for the songs reflecting us as individuals, we have to put different elements into each piece of the performance. We try to make things more simple in a live setting. There are so many different layers in our music, that sometimes it’s nice just to make a live performance more simple so it doesn’t feel as cohesive all the time. We love to bring the energy to the show though. We’re very much a full live band.
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KJ: “Paris” is a song that really catapulted you in the music scene. Would you say it’s changed your life in a way? Were you expecting such major success? SL: It’s always been a really cool song, and I don’t know if you can ever expect for something like that to happen. It’s definitely changed our careers, and it’s really special to play it at every show. KJ: You guys are currently working on a new album. How will this album be different from Before the Waves? How have you found yourselves approaching this new material? SL: The subject matter is a lot different in terms of Before the Waves. We were writing that one before we had done a lot of touring, and a lot of stuff as a band. The album is super optimistic, while this next one will be a lot of us looking back on the last couple of years, and the amazing whirlwind experiences of touring and becoming a real band. There is still a lot of optimism and excitement, but there’s also songs that are about dealing with being on the road for so long, and being away from family or our girlfriends and boyfriends. As for the sound, we are taking a lot of the elements we have and are upgrading them, and bringing in some new sounds to make us more interesting as a band. KJ: How do you guys determine the track list for an album? SL: You want the record to start off with a statement like ‘Texas’ was for our first album. I think that’s important. I love to keep it as a narrative art. Thinking about it
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like a vinyl album is really helpful for me. I think it’s important to have a break when you flip a record. In that way, it’s like the album has an act I and act II. I also love putting songs on a playlist and playing those tracks until it feels right. Once you work on songs for so long, you kind of have a sense of where they fit on the album. It’s definitely an intuitive process. KJ: When it comes to making an album, to some artists such as Keith Urban or Taylor Swift, it’s all about where it’s at during the time of recording or the music they are listening to. Is it the same for you or is it a different muse of inspirations? What influences and inspires you during the process? SL: It really depends sometimes. When there’s a band that you’ve listened to your whole life, that always influences your music no matter what album you’re on. Other times, you’ll hear something on the radio and love the beat and want to do something like that. But, I think it’s most important to always stay inspired and put in as much of your daily life in your songs as possible. We are our own set genre, but we also want to try and expand from that while remaining true to ourselves. KJ: What is the songwriting process like in the studio? SL: It always depends. Usually Alex and I write together. Sometimes he’ll come up with an idea and other times I will, and then there are times we’ll get into a room together with a guitar and see what comes out. It’s an interesting process, and you can’t ever limit yourself to one process. Sometimes you write the lyric first and other times the lyric will end up coming last.
KJ: Reflecting back on the death of Prince, who was a legend, and will always be remembered specifically for the song ‘Purple Rain,’ is there a song that you guys have written thus far that you would want to be remembered by? What’s the message you want your fans to remember? SL: I think one thing that I love hearing is when someone comes up and tells me that our music has helped them get through a tough part in their life or that its been the soundtrack to their summer. I feel like when your music becomes a soundtrack to someone’s life that means that you’re helping them get through something that’s either really tough, or reminding them of a really fun summer they had with their friends. That’s the most meaningful part to me about all of this. I would love for Magic Man to affect as many people as possible in that way and to become an important part in their life. I think it has, and we’re incredibly lucky to have that relationship with our fans.
For more information on tour dates and new music check out MagicManMusic.com
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brand
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new
PHOTOS BY KELSEY GIESBRECHT
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twenty one PHOTOS BY HANNAH JONES
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pilots
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