Breathe Carolina

Breathe Carolina is an American electronic music duo that started in Denver in 2007. The original members were David Schmitt and Kyle Even. Over time, they grew into a full band, with a well-known lineup that included Schmitt, Even, drummer Eric Armenta, keytarist Joshua Aragon, and DJ Luis Bonet. In 2013, Even left the group, and Tommy Cooperman joined that same year. Today, the duo consists of Schmitt and Cooperman. They have put out five studio albums: It's Classy, Not Classic (2008), Hello Fascination (2009), Hell Is What You Make It (2011), Savages (2014), and Dead: The Album (2019). Their biggest hit, "Blackout," earned a platinum certification in the United States.

Kyle Even (born September 21, 1985) and David Schmitt (born March 26, 1988) started out playing in different local Colorado bands. Even got into alternative rock through an older stepbrother and began singing as a teen. Before Breathe Carolina, he performed in the band Rivendale, which released an EP called Portrait of Shadows. Schmitt picked up bass at age 12, later switching to guitar, and played in Colorado with As the Flood Waters Rose (later renamed the Autobiography). The two bands often played together, with As the Flood Waters Rose opening for Rivendale at Rivendale’s album release show at Grandpa’s Music Box in Thornton, Colorado. After leaving his band, Schmitt began recording his own songs on GarageBand and asked Even to join in. When both bands broke up as members left for college, Even and Schmitt formed Breathe Carolina.

Breathe Carolina began in 2007 with Even and Schmitt making songs on GarageBand for fun. They set up a MySpace page, which got over 10,000 plays in 2008 and more than 30 million plays by 2009. The name came from a dream Schmitt had in ninth grade, where he calmed down a woman named Carolina. Soon after, Even quit his photography job to tour full-time.

Their first EP, Gossip, came out on iTunes on November 26, 2007. In May 2008, they signed with Rise Records and announced their debut album. They performed at Bamboozle Left in April 2008. The album was recorded using GarageBand, with new songs like "The Introduction," "No Vacancy," "Show Me Yours," "Classified," "That's Classy," and "You Wish."

Schmitt wrote, recorded, and produced it in his home studio in Denver. It streamed on PureVolume on September 1, 2008, and was officially released on September 16. It's Classy, Not Classic hit number 186 on the Billboard 200. The duo headlined a fall 2008 tour with Every Avenue, Brokencyde, and The Morning Of, and supported Pierce the Veil on "The Delicious Tour" in November 2008. The lead single, "Diamonds," came out on February 4, 2009, with a music video featuring Millionaires and Josh White.

In February 2009, they joined the Take Action tour with Cute Is What We Aim For, Meg & Dia, Every Avenue, and Anarbor. They also appeared on Punk Goes Pop 2 with a cover of "See You Again" in March 2009.

In April 2009, Breathe Carolina left Rise Records and signed with Fearless Records. They started work on their second album that same month with producer Mike Green. Even said the album captured their "vision of everything we are." On June 29, 2009, they released the first song, "Welcome To Savannah."

The lead single, "Hello Fascination," premiered on MySpace on July 25, 2009. The album dropped on August 18, 2009, peaking at number 43 on the Billboard 200 and selling 11,000 copies in its first week. They played the Vans Warped Tour in 2009 and joined Family Force 5 on the Dance Rawr Dance 3 tour from September to October 2009. The duo toured the UK in January 2010.

A deluxe edition of Hello Fascination came out on July 6, 2010. On June 23, Schmitt and Even launched a clothing line called Blush. The second single, "I.D.G.A.F.," had its music video released on July 30, 2010. They performed at Warped Tour again in 2010 and joined Mayday Parade on the Fearless Friends tour that fall.

Their cover of Jay Sean's "Down" appeared on Punk Goes Pop 3 on November 2, 2010, and reached number 31 on the US Rock Digital Song Sales chart. On November 21, 2010, they released a Christmas song, "Mile-High Christmas," for the 'Tis the Season to Be Fearless compilation.

Recording for their third album took place in early 2011 in Los Angeles. It was the first album recorded as a full band. They worked with producers Ian Kirkpatrick and Matt Squire. The lead single, "Blackout," streamed on MTV Buzzworthy on June 13, 2011, and was released for digital download the next day. On June 16, they performed it on Jimmy Kimmel Live. The song became a commercial hit, peaking at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning a platinum certification from the RIAA. It also reached number one on the UK In...