Holding On to You (Twenty One Pilots song)

"Holding On to You"
Single by Twenty One Pilots
from the album Vessel
Released	September 11, 2012
Recorded	2011
Genre	Rap rock hip pop synth-pop electropop alternative rock post-emo
Length	4:23
Label	Fueled by Ramen Roadrunner
Songwriter(s)	Tyler Joseph Maurice Gleaton Charles Hammond Robert Hill Deangelo Hunt Bernard Leverette Gerald Tiller Jamall Willingham
Producer(s)	Greg Wells
Twenty One Pilots singles chronology
"Holding On to You" (2012) "Ode to Sleep" (2012)
Music video
"Holding on to You" on YouTube

"Holding On to You" is a song by American musical duo Twenty One Pilots from their second studio album Regional at Best (2011). It was re-recorded and later made their debut single and was listed as the second song on the track list of their major-label debut album, Vessel (2013). "Holding On to You" features upbeat rhythms and bouncy suspended chords over which Tyler Joseph delivers scattershot raps with down-to-earth sentiments and sings grandiose, euphoric choruses. The track's indie-inspired synth-pop transforms from a sensitive ballad to a hip-hop number with rapped verses and codas. The song contains lyrical elements of "Lean wit It, Rock wit It" by Dem Franchize Boyz. Lyrically, "Holding on to You" is an ode to self-control. It addresses "the claiming of one's own life and holding onto your values." The song's lyrics express introspective lines as well as a sentiment about taking back control of one's own mind, lost to mental health. 

The song was released as the lead single from Vessel on September 11, 2012. It impacted rock and alternative radio in 2012 and later mainstream radio in the following year. Upon its release, "Holding On to You" received universal acclaim from contemporary music critics. An accompanying music video for the single was directed by Jordan Bahat and released on November 15, 2012. The video exhibits a mixing of an abstract blend of a live-shoot and radical stage performances. It features smoke, ballerinas and other contemporary dancers who wear skeleton facepaint and makeup while swaying and weaving their bodies around Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun as they perform the song. The music video for "Holding On to You" was praised for its choreography, and Twenty One Pilots was subsequently nominated for the Artist to Watch award at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.