{"id":40249,"date":"2026-02-06T15:40:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T15:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/?p=40249"},"modified":"2026-02-06T15:40:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T15:40:10","slug":"i-hated-singing-it-josh-dun-reveals-the-one-song-he-almost-cut-from-the-setlist-saying-vocal-duties-terrified-him-more-than-backflips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/?p=40249","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI Hated Singing It.\u201d \u2014 Josh Dun Reveals the One Song He Almost Cut from the Setlist, Saying Vocal Duties “Terrified” Him More Than Backflips."},"content":{"rendered":"

For years, Josh Dun<\/span><\/span><\/strong> has built a reputation as one of modern rock\u2019s most fearless performers. Backflips off pianos, gravity-defying drum risers, and relentless physical stamina have become trademarks of twenty one pilots<\/span><\/span><\/strong> live shows. But according to Dun, none of that came close to the fear he felt stepping up to a microphone during the band\u2019s most recent tour.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a candid post-tour retrospective published on February 5, 2026 by Kerrang!<\/span><\/span><\/strong> and Music Makes You Think<\/em>, Dun opened up about his vocal debut on The Contract<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, a centerpiece of the band\u2019s eighth studio album, Breach<\/span><\/span><\/em>. Despite years of performing under pressure, Dun admitted the experience left him physically ill with anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to vomit every night before that cue,\u201d he confessed. \u201cI hated singing it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The breaking point came during a disastrous soundcheck at TQL Stadium<\/span><\/span><\/strong> on the opening night of the Clancy Tour: Breach leg in September 2025. According to Dun, the vocals fell apart, and panic immediately set in. Hours before doors opened, he pleaded with bandmate Tyler Joseph<\/span><\/span><\/strong> to cut the segment entirely.<\/span><\/p>\n

Joseph refused.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe told me the narrative needed it,\u201d Dun recalled. \u201c\u2018I\u2019m not doing this alone.\u2019 That was basically it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

What made the moment uniquely brutal wasn\u2019t just singing\u2014it was singing while<\/em> maintaining his notoriously complex drumming patterns. Dun described the challenge as \u201csplitting my brain in two,\u201d balancing intricate polyrhythms on his custom SJC kit while delivering a vocal line that carries the emotional climax of the album\u2019s story.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fans had heard hints of Dun\u2019s voice before\u2014affectionately dubbed \u201cjocals\u201d in the Skeleton Clique community\u2014through backing parts on tracks like Bandito<\/span><\/span><\/em> and the band\u2019s MTV Unplugged<\/span><\/span><\/strong> appearance in 2022. But The Contract<\/em> marked the first time his voice stood front and center, symbolically grounding the song\u2019s narrative against Joseph\u2019s chaotic protagonist.<\/span><\/p>\n

The gamble paid off. The track quickly became a fan favorite, with crowds screaming Dun\u2019s lines back at him night after night. Still, he admits he hasn\u2019t watched the footage. \u201cI can\u2019t do it yet,\u201d he laughed. \u201cAll I see is the panic.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As the Clancy Tour: Breach winds down and the band prepares for major 2026 festival appearances, including Pinkpop<\/span><\/span><\/strong> and Rock Werchter<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, Dun\u2019s vocal leap stands as one of the era\u2019s defining risks.<\/span><\/p>\n

For the drummer known for fearless stunts, it wasn\u2019t the backflips that tested him\u2014it was finding his voice. And by facing the one thing that truly terrified him, Josh Dun may have delivered the most human moment of the Breach era.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For years, Josh Dun has built a reputation as one of modern rock\u2019s most fearless performers. Backflips off pianos, gravity-defying drum risers, and relentless physical stamina have become trademarks of twenty one pilots live shows. But according to Dun, none of that came close to the fear he felt stepping up to a microphone during…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=40249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40249\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=40249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=40249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=40249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}