Our Favorite Musical Duos of the 21st Century You Should Totally Listen To
Feb 4, 2020 • Kyzia Maramara
The world is fortunate to have solo artists such as Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Post Malone going on worldwide tours as well as huge bands like the quartet of The 1975, the 7-piece Korean superstar group BTS, and the 4-piece indie rock band Vampire Weekend. But sometimes the planets just align and the stars shine brighter when bands with only two members harmonize wonderfully on stage. Give these best musical duos of this century a listen!
Twenty One Pilots
Listen to: “Car Radio”, “Tear in My Heart”, “Guns for Hands”
American duo Twenty One Pilots is composed of members Tyler Joseph and Joshua Dun. Their latest album, Trench, was released in 2018 and won Best Rock Album of the Year at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards. Back in 2016, they won the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for their song “Stressed Out.” The duo is known for their lyrics and music videos depicting the struggles of mental health over indie pop/alternative rock tunes.
Oh Wonder
Listen to: “Without You”, “Drive”, “Technicolor Beat”
London-based alt-pop duo Oh Wonder will add the calming soundtrack to all your road trips and walks in the park at dusk. Anthony West and Josephine Vander Gucht have a knack of creating songs that evoke all kinds of peaceful emotions. Their tunes will literally inspire you, or at the very least make you tap your toes to the beat.
HONNE
Listen to: “Location Unknown”, “Warm on a Cold Night”, “Someone That Loves You”
The songs mentioned above won’t do HONNE justice. One simply has to listen to their studio albums to understand even an inkling of this duo’s greatness. James Hatcher and Andy Clutterbuck named their duo HONNE after the Japanese word which means “true feelings.” They couldn’t have been more accurate. HONNE’s synth pop/electronic music will let you experience a range of emotions – from sadness and longing to the happy and dancy tunes of funky guitars. There’s a HONNE song for every emotion!
Dan + Shay
Listen to: “Tequila”, “Speechless”, “10,000 Hours”
When they formed in 2013, this duo didn’t know they were poised to win prestigious awards a few years down the line. In 2019, they won a Grammy Award for Best Country Duo Group Performance and a Billboard Music Award for Top Country Duo/Group. Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney’s country pop music is a discovery! They are currently on their Arena tour for 2020 (it’s not passing by the Philippines though!).
Billie Eilish and Finneas
Listen to: “Ocean Eyes”, “Everything I Wanted”, “Bad Guy”
Billie Eilish is the hottest name in the music industry right now having swept trophies for all the major categories at the GRAMMYs. But not everyone probably knows about her brother, Finneas, who has co-written and co-produced beside her since the beginning. Billie and Finneas could’ve easily debuted in the music world as a duo but big brother Finneas wanted his younger sister to have the spotlight. Billie for her part never forgets to acknowledge her brother in everything she does. This is the cutest unbreakable sibling duo ever!
This Wild Life
Listen to: “Better With You”, “No More Bad Days”, “Roots and Branches”
To everyone out there, it might be a surprise that Kevin Jordan and Anthony Del Grosso don’t look like the genre they’re singing at first look. Their songs are lovely and there’s no other way to describe it. This Wild Life is acoustic rock meant to be played for all the times you feel emo for love, you’re falling in love, or you’re missing someone and you don’t even know why you’re crying. Listen to them and you’ll know we’re right.
Us the Duo
Listen to: “No Matter Where You Are”, “Slow Down Time”, “Just Love”
Us the Duo is an American folk pop duo consisting of Michael and Clarissa Alvarado. Pure talent is what Us the Duo introduced to the world when they gave us their hit song “No Matter Where You Are” back in 2012. Would you believe they made this song for their own wedding and they even performed it? In between creating music, they post song covers and medleys. And BTW, we’re totally smitten with their one-year-old daughter, Xyla!
The Civil Wars
Listen to: “Poison and Wine”, “From this Valley”, “Barton Hollow”
Before The Civil Wars broke up in 2014, they were taking the music scene by storm. Joy Williams and John Paul White were such a force of talent that they won 4 Grammy Awards in a span of 2 years; one was for Best Folk Album of 2012 and two were for Best Country Duo/Performance in 2012 and 2014. They poured out their heart and soul into making indie folk music that left a mark to their listeners. Unfortunately, even the brightest star crashes and burns, and in 2014 the duo broke up in bad terms.
Who’s your favorite duo?
