Oldham brothers hit number one in download charts

Georgie Dockerand
Joel Mitchell,North West
Two Connors Two men in their mid twenties with beards look off into the distance. Two Connors
Danny and Callum Connor - the Greater Manchester brothers taking over the charts

Two brothers singing about the town where they grew up have spent a day at the top of the charts, above the likes of Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars.

Oldham's Danny and Callum Connor, better known by fans as Two Connors, have been a part of Greater Manchester's music scene for the last three years.

But after playing small rooms and community events - the pair have been launched into the limelight after their new tune Familiar Faces went straight to number one in the UK Singles Download charts on Thursday.

Two Connors knocked Taylor Swift's Opalite and Bruno Mars' I Just Might off the top spot, a feat which Danny told BBC Radio Manchester was "bonkers honestly."

The brothers said the song was about "the legends, places and characters of Oldham".

Callum said he had a feeling about the song very early on in the writing stages.

"When I wrote it, I got a mad feeling through me writing it with Danny in the studio," he said.

"We were meant to be working on another song but we did this one in the studio instead.

"And then we put a performance up online of us doing it live and it just went insane."

Looking back over their journey to success, Danny said he and Callum "started everything from scratch".

"We just made a Facebook page and I remember getting like 64 followers at the time - and now we're on over 100,000 followers and millions of views and stuff like that.

"It's just gone through the roof for us."

Callum added that it "kind of doesn't sink in sometimes when you get to that point it's a bit like 'all right like'.

"I'm extremely grateful."

Two Connors A young man with a beard in his 20s sits with an older lady on a sofa. She is smiling and laughing and he looks proud.Two Connors
'Those are the moments that make everything worth it,' Two Connors said as their grandma hears them on the radio.

The duo said the response from their family had "meant a lot".

Two Connors surprised their grandmother with the news last week - as their song was played on Capital FM.

"We went round to my grandmas and we knew they were playing it [the song] in the Top 40," Callum said.

"We didn't tell her when it was coming on... and you should see her face when she hears them introducing it on the radio.

"It was out of this world."

Two Connors/ hjwtphotography Two young men in a music venue - the photo is black and white.Two Connors/ hjwtphotography
After conquering the download market - the brothers are eyeing up a number one in the streaming market.

Callum said, unlike his brother Danny, he does not have a career outside of music.

"I always put music first, because that's my dream and ambition," he said.

"But I think even if you work a full-time job - I'd say to always still chase a dream because you don't know if tomorrow's promised."

"In the future, we want a number one," Danny said.

"Like I always say, it might sound bonkers to other people, but to us, as two brothers, we believe in ourselves and we believe that one day we're going to get a number one out there and that will come.

"I've never been an egotistical person," Danny said.

"I'm glad it's happened later on in life, so I'm able to stay grounded.

"But when we go out there we can't even go down the street without someone beeping and saying 'love your music' and stuff.

"I'll just say to any young ones - or even older ones wanting to come through - to blank out any hate and keep going - live like a phoenix, born from the ashes and fly."

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