Over the years, Twelve24 have worked from the ground up and they now have a loyal legion of fans all over the world. Their empowering music will light up the night and take you higher!
With inspirational songs that are equally upbeat and uplifting, Twelve24 spread a message of love. They like to party but they aren’t afraid to show their scars.
We caught up with the talented musicians backstage at their recent headline show in Manchester. In our exclusive interview, Josh and Ryan spoke about: their favourite lyrics, the global support they receive, their time on tour with Ben Haenow and much more.
You can read highlights and hear our full interview with Twelve24 below!
For people who aren’t aware, how did you come up with the name Twelve24?
Josh: “So part of what we do is going to high schools. We share a bit about our story and a bit about our faith; all of that kind of stuff. The name Twelve24 is based on our faith. It’s from the Bible; from John 12:24. It just describes our journey, how we got together and all of that.”
What message do you hope to convey with your music and lyrics?
Ryan: “I think the main thing is that we want people to feel like they’re here for a reason and who they are is good enough. I think a lot of people are trying to be somebody else. If we’re trying to be somebody else, we can be a terrible version of someone else but you can be the best version of you that you can be. There’s nobody else like you and I think that’s our message. Who you are is good enough and you’re here for a reason. You have value. A lot of people struggle with self-esteem and stuff like that and we just want our music to help people with whatever they’re going through.
“If they’re loving life and pumped, we want to pump them up even more. If they’re feeling low, we want them to feel like ‘oh man, I’ve been waiting for somebody to tell me in a way that I really believe that I’m worth something.’ So that’s kind of the overarching meaning of our music. Other than that, we do want people to just have a good time and feel loved and feel like they belong.”
We love the line ‘I may never know why I had to face this pain, but these scars let the world know that we’re gonna stand again’ in ‘Scars’ – are there any lyrics that you’re particularly proud of?
Josh: “I mean that’s one.”
Ryan: “‘We’re doing shows around the world, yeah we’re killing the game, so call me Birdman, put some respek on the name’. I love it. There’s a viral video that went off in America. Lil Wayne’s old like CEO of his company stormed out on an interview because he was so upset with the people and he was like ‘yo, put some respek on the name.’ He just walked out. That’s my favourite punchline.”
Josh: “That’s from a new tune. Mine’s off a new tune too called ‘Keep A Little Love’ and the lyrics say: ‘Can we live for more and give our lives for something we believe in?’ We feel like regardless of your faith, we should all live for something you can believe in and all live for something that’s worth more than just yourself and living for a selfish gain. That’s why we do our music; not just to bring a good time but to also inspire people as well. Some people can see it as a money thing or a fame thing and that’s all involved but, for us, a big part of it is to inspire people and bring hope.”
Your music definitely helps to empower people and inspire people. Have you had many emotional messages from fans?
Ryan: “Yeah man. You don’t always get the crazy stories but people have said that our music has helped them; they wanted to take their lives and then listened to a song which just blows my mind and then they feel like they’ve got hope. I grew up without my dad around and a lot of people have been through the same thing. I used to write a lot more about it before but people used to message saying ‘thanks so much for sharing about this’ and ‘I went through all of that and it’s great to hear somebody else come out the other side of it’. With some of the stuff that Josh shares during the live shows and stuff, people literally message all the time saying ‘that really inspired me and really moved me’ so yeah.”
Josh: “Yeah, we get messages from time to time so it’s all good.”
Ryan: “People are definitely enjoying the music.”
Are there any songs from your previous records that you wish you could go back and release as singles with music videos?
Josh: “Definitely ‘Say Yes’ and ‘Scars’.”
Ryan: “We did ‘#Vivalawldkdz’ but definitely ‘Say Yes’ and ‘Scars’. The trouble is that because we’re independent artists, we always do stuff on budget. We’re paying for everything, doing everything and that kind of stuff so we really try and stretch the creativity but we’ve never done a big budget video. We would have loved to have given some of the ones that we did videos for a bit more budget and done something a bit more high-end. Everything we’ve done is the best that we could as indie artists but yeah, we’d love to do music videos for every song. We could do a Beyoncé and make a visual album.”
From the Manchester Arena to the Lumen festival in Slovakia, you’ve played huge venues all over the world. Is it overwhelming to see global support?
Josh: “It’s mad. Obviously because we’re Christians, there’s like a Christian culture that wants like healthy music for their young people. It’s not necessarily just based off our success that we get invited but when we get invited back, that’s when you know you did a good job and the young people loved us. So the fanbase is growing. Next year, we’re trying to make a small European tour happen so we’ll see.”
Ryan: “And the UK too.”
You design lots of different clothes and you’ve just launched a new range – is that something you’re particularly passionate about?
Josh: “Ryan’s the guy.”
Ryan: “Yeah man. I mean we’re just trying to make something that makes people feel like somebody out there believes they’re here for a reason and that somebody believes they’ve got value even if they’re struggling with it. When they put it on, they’ll remember that and remember us. That’s kind of why we do it. It’s got to look good in order for people to wear it otherwise man ain’t touching that.”
You recently supported Ben Haenow on The Rising Tour – how did you find those shows?
Ryan: “Yeah man, the people on it were so cool. Well we met you in it, didn’t we? It was so good and he’s a great guy as well.”
Josh: “It was sick. Ben’s one of those real guys. You see him on the stage but he’s just the same off the stage. He’s positive, happy, he’ll just take you under his wing and you’re like best friends straight away. It’s very rare to find people who really genuinely just exude love. He has that unconditional love for you. That’s what we’re all about so it’s great to see people on the same wavelength.”
And Ben is performing at your show tonight – can we expect a collaboration anytime soon?
Josh: “He is. He came down as a special guest; it’s so good for us man. It’s amazing.”
Ryan: “I don’t know about a collaboration, we’ve never mentioned it to him but we love him. We’ve not tried to wangle anything yet but we’ve enjoyed his company, being artists together and sharing our music so maybe.”
Josh: “We’re not ruling it out. We wanted to bring him down to our hometown and let our fans see him because we actually think he’s a sick artist. He’s not just like a nice guy but a sick artist. We want good music at our show so Ben’s the one.”
What does the rest of 2018 have in store?
Ryan: “Hard work. New music.”
Josh: “Babies; we’re both having kids. New music, new babies, new kids.”
Ryan: “Music videos. We’re just trying to put out more musical content. We just want to put some stuff out that people can really go ‘oh, that’s what you’ve been working on for so long’ and get vibed for. I think we’re planning a tour for after 2018 and we’re scheming that so check out www.twelve24.co.uk/gigs. Everything will be there. More of that. Maybe some more tours; trying to get on some other people’s tours as a support act.”
If you could leave a message for your fans, what would you say?
Ryan: “We love you.”
Josh: “Listen. This year is for you. Everything we do this year, we’re trying to do the best for you guys so keep rocking with us. You won’t be let down.”
Finally, to end the interview, what’s your ultimate life motto at the moment?
Josh: “Just seize the moment. Take every opportunity and make the most out of it because you never know what it could turn into and you never know who’s watching. More than that, you’ll always have way more fun in that moment if you make the most of it rather than if you just sulk in a ‘oh, there’s not enough people here’ way or whatever. Just make the most of it. Enjoy it.”
Ryan: “Yeah, I feel like it’s just keep going. Don’t give up. Keep going and keep growing.”
Twelve24’s latest single ‘With You’ is available here on iTunes and here on Spotify. Make sure you also check out their previous tracks; their discography is nothing short of incredible so you won’t be disappointed. You can purchase items from the band’s new clothing range here online.
As mentioned in the interview, Twelve24 have lots planned for 2018. They’ll be filming two new music videos soon so keep your eyes peeled for those. We will keep you updated. #Vivalawldkdz
Which are your favourite Twelve24 songs? Let us know over on Twitter @CelebMix!