You Me At Six: Emo band to split after 20 years

You Me At Six performed at last year's Reading and Leeds festivals

Rock band You Me At Six have announced they will be splitting up after 20 years.

In a suitably emo video filmed in a cemetery, they said on social media that their 2025 tour will be their last.

"I'm grateful that we're in a position where we can celebrate, in real time, with our fans," lead singer Josh Franceschi tells BBC Newsbeat.

He adds the group had known "for six to nine months" this was coming.

The timing is serendipitous for them, Josh says, as the tour lines up with when they first formed as teens.

It was three years later in 2008 they released their debut album Take Off Your Colours.

"We had a meeting before we did the announcement and worked out our last show next year is going to be on the same day that we had our first band practice, 20 years to the day.

"So all these full-circle moments keep cropping up."

Josh hopes the tour can be a chance for fans to "celebrate... rather than [us] slipping out the back door".

"It's been lovely to see an outpouring of love," he says.

The band are best known for hits like Take on the World and Underdog

Most acts don't survive for 20 years, but if they do, a lot of bands end up changing members - either due to arguments, artistic differences or other members simply moving on.

But Josh says one of the things he's happiest about is that their line-up has remained consistent.

"I think that's the thing that we're all fundamentally the most proud of," he says.

"We've always put each other before anything else.

"Any relationship takes nurturing, and you really have to remove the ego and think about what's best for others around you before yourself."

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With eight albums, a lot of thought will have to go into the setlists for their final shows, but Josh says they still haven't decided exactly what they're going to play.

"We know that we're going be playing for two hours and we've got eight albums. So there's a lot of time, but a lot of songs to cover.

"I think it's going to be a completely mixed bag, to be honest.

"And as for the last song that we play, I have no idea," he says.

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