Twenty One Pilots Draws Massive Crowd to Their Headlining Performance at the "March Madness Music Festival" in Indianapolis

To be 100% transparent, when I write one of these concert reviews, I typically have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to say. I take notes during the show (both mental & physical), I make careful observations, and focus on analyzing how the overall performance comes out in the sound mix to the audience.

This concert, however, is a different case entirely, and for a variety of reasons.

First and foremost, I have been an avid fan of Twenty One Pilots for a decade, and have been privileged to see them live several times– eight to be exact. I know their mannerisms, their stage presence, the setlist staples, etc. It practically feels second nature to me now.

Second: not only is Twenty One Pilots my favorite band, but there's also something about saying, 'Oh, they're my favorite band,' that feels almost superficial for what I'm trying to express. Their lyricism profoundly resonates with me on emotional, spiritual, and geographical levels. Like many fans, I have spent a lot of my life navigating battles with depression and anxiety. I'm the firstborn daughter of a Worship Pastor, and I'm an Ohio kid, born and raised.

And lastly– on April 3rd, exactly 11 years ago to the day, my parents took my little brother and me to our first ever real concert at... You guessed it, the 2015 Indianapolis March Madness Music Festival.

Not to mention, as of 2022, I have been a Hoosier, making Indiana my home state, and this makes the show and the fact that I get to take professional photos all the more special. How. Freaking. Cool.

But let's not get too sappy here, we're here to talk about the show!

Per usual, the boys blew it out of the park.

The set list was very similar to their February set at Innings Festival in Arizona.

• Overcompensate
• The Contract
• Center Mass
• Shy Away
• Heathens
• Next Semester
• One Way (with Milky Chance's "Stolen Dance" bridge)
• Tear in My Heart
• Jumpsuit / City Walls
• Nico and the Niners
• HeavydirtysouL
• Drum Show (featuring a snippet of Miley Cyrus's "The Climb" during bridge as Josh climbed scaffolding for drum solo)
• RAWFEAR (Josh drumming on scaffolding)
• Drag Path (single version)
• Doubt (demo version)
• Ride
• Tally (snippet of Cher's "Believe" during bridge)
• Seven Nation Army (The White Stripes cover)
• Stressed Out
• Trees

Many notable moments from the show include Tyler's cover of Miley Cyrus' 2009 hit "The Climb" as bandmate Josh Dun scaled to the top of some nearby scaffolding to drum for the next song. It wouldn't be a Twenty One Pilots show without some element of danger, right?

Also, in between songs, Joseph took a survey of the crowd, asking who uses Apple Maps versus who uses something else, and urged fans to make the switch and ditch Apple Maps.

Many fans continue to speculate about a possible continuation in the "Clancy" storyline, noting new additions of yellow tape to the "Torchbearer's" torch, as well as other new blue visual elements incorporated on-screen.

Despite many safety concerns and incidents of fans passing out in the pit, which seemed to be a consistent issue throughout Friday's lineup, I think things turned out all right. Obviously, there are unavoidable risks with festivals of this nature, and with the band's notable cult following, the grounds were absolutely packed, leaving event staffing severely outnumbered. The weather was warm and humid, and many fans had been waiting all day since 7 AM. It was unfortunate to witness staff members & security unable to help distressed fans quickly, and I hope next year the Festival can get more staff on hand.

But all in all, fans enjoyed the performance, and crowd members were left cheering, "One more song! One more song!" over and over. It's safe to assume there was a good majority of viewers that were new or unfamiliar with Joseph & Dun's nearly two-decade-long tradition– once "Trees" is played, the show is over.

If you weren't able to make the live performance, no worries! The whole performance was live-streamed, and you can find an unofficial link to the entire performance here.

Additionally, the boys will be performing at several other festivals all over the globe throughout the course of 2026, which you can find listed on their official website.

I feel incredibly blessed to have gotten this opportunity; there truly aren't adequate words to express how grateful I am.

I also have to shout out the wonderful teams at both my hometown camera store, Gene's Camera Store, and at the nearby Robert's Camera Store in Indianapolis. Gene's was able to hook me up with a beautiful Sony G Master 200-600mm lens that helped me achieve such beautiful images.

And a very special thank you to my husband and parents, who kept watch over all my gear while I shot; it was so special to have you there to cheer me on at my biggest show yet.

So, "Stay strong. Live on. And power to the local dreamer." - Tyler Joseph