Twindem ‘Double Take’

PERFORMING ARTISTS Twindem

‘Double Take’

By Yolanda Hanna Photograph Courtesy Of Oneofakind Photography & The Face of Oneofakind

caught up with Ashton Chandler, one half of the popular Bahamian rap/RnB duo Twindem, to talk about their journey through the music industry, blending their Bahamian culture into their music and The Bahamas turning ‘50’. Up and Away: Tell us about your stage name. Where did the name “Twindem” originate from? Obviously, you’re identical twins, but is I

that the name people called you growing up?

Our given names are Aaron and Ashton Chandler. When we entered high school, the kids would refer to us as “twin” or “the twins”. It wasn’t our original stage names but we started using it around 2015/2016 when we began performing together as a duo. Prior to that, we were a part of a group called V.U.B. (Vocal Union Bahamas) with our friend Christopher Rolle.

Up and Away: Interesting you started out in a group. Was this when you started taking music seriously and decided that you wanted to become rappers/professional music artists?

In 2010, we dropped the song called “Holla at Me” with VUB. At that time, making music was a hobby and we had just bought our first studio mic. One of us was really into creating music, and the other was just interested in recording.

When we worked on “Holla at Me”, Aaron, Chris and I each contributed a verse. After we released the song, people began to positively respond to it, so we started dropping new music every week. The public feedback we got really inspired us.

Around that time, we started attending The College of The Bahamas (now University of The Bahamas). VUB began to fade, so my brother and I decided to do our own thing. At first, we called ourselves “Twin and War” and we stood out because we’re twins. We left COB in 2014 and that’s when we got serious about music. We got focused, began getting booked for performances, and eventually changed our name to Twindem. Making music went from something we did for fun to something we could possibly make a living doing.

Up and Away: As music artists/rappers from The Bahamas, what has your journey through the music industry been like? What have you learned?

That’s a great question. We’ve learned that you get what you put into this music industry. Looking back, if we were more ambitious in the beginning, we probably would’ve been a lot further. My brother and I had a laid-back approach and we just let the music speak for itself. Our popularity grew through word of mouth. People liked our music, they were listening to it, telling people about us and soon everybody was listening.

We’ve learned to appreciate support. Nobody is obligated to support you. People say things like “Bahamians don’t support”, but when we started doing music, Bahamians supported us. We learned that people will support you if they like your music or have an interest in what you’re doing. Family and friends might support you, even if they don’t have an interest in what you’re doing, but that’s not the goal. The ultimate goal is to gain the support from people who don’t know you or are invested in your life personally but they like your music.

We’ve also learned humility. Some people are star-struck when they see us, they admire and look up to us. We’re humbled by that and we’re always cordial to people.

Up and Away: Do you incorporate aspects of Bahamian culture in your music?

Definitely! We’re from The Bahamas and our music speaks about us. We use Bahamian dialect and incorporate our culture in some of our songs because we’re telling our story and being ourselves. It’s not like rake ‘n’ scrape music where that’s all you hear but we do include it in our music.

Up and Away: Where does Twindem draw its inspiration from?

We draw inspiration from life, human experiences, trials and tribulations. We speak about our personal experiences and some songs we created just for venting purposes.

If you listen to our music, you’ll sometimes hear us mention the names of people who have passed who were dear to us. Our music catalogue is like a series; you can hear our growth, not just in our experiences, but even in our sound. If you listen to the first song we ever recorded and the last song we recorded, you’ll notice that we don’t sound the same.

Up and Away: What makes Twinden unique?

I guess we’re unique because you don’t see twin rappers every day but there are twins doing the music thing. Many of them are cliché though—they dress alike, they sing alike, etc., until it gets to the point where there’s no differentiation in their art. We’re not like that.

What makes Twindem unique is that we’re twin rappers who complement each other. Most times, my brother (Aaron) raps and I’m singing. His voice is slightly deeper than mine, and even though we’re identical, we do have a slightly different look. What makes us unique is the fact that our music is based on our own experiences in love, relationships, death, etc. We always wanted to take listeners on a journey with us through our music, so they can hear our growth. Like I said before, our music is a series.

Up and Away: Have you built a fan base outside of The Bahamas?

The bulk of our fans are Bahamians who live in The Bahamas. And there are Bahamians who reside in other countries like Canada, United States, China and the Caribbean who play our music. We do have some American fans in the U.S., but most of the love we get comes from the Bahamian people at home.

Up and Away: From your experiences, what advice would you give to young Bahamian rappers?

Know your dream. Know if something is really for you. If you believe in your heart that music is really what you want to do, then stay true to yourself, keep going, and don’t let a lack of support stop you from pursuing what you love. Just remember to stay humble on this music journey, stay true to yourself, because as quickly as it comes, it can go.

Up and Away: On July 10th, 2023, The Bahamas celebrates its 50th year of independence. What does that mean to Twindem, if anything?

We love our country; we love being a Bahamian and respect those who brought us as far as we are today. Our experiences come from where we come from. I’m a proud Bahamian with ‘242’ tattooed on me! Bahamians are unique; there are less than 400,000 of us living in The Bahamas, not millions, and I like that. When I personally think about 50 years of independence, that’s what I think about. UA

Twindem Aaron and Ashton Chandler