NEWS
Hayley Williams, "Leave It Alone"
Courtesy PhotoHayley Williams has withdrawn from social media, but the Paramore frontwoman wrote a heartfelt message via newsletter on Sunday (Nov. 28) to thank her bandmates for their support with her two solo albums — 2020’s Petals for Armor and 2021’s Flowers For Vases/Descansos — and teased a possible Paramore comeback for next year.
“In the thick of it all, I wrote. Enough to make up 2 solo albums. The kind I never swore I’d make! Because how dare anyone, most of all me, think for a second that my loyalty to Paramore has dwindled,” Williams wrote. “The guys were by my side nearly the entire process. If not actually working on the project with me then cheering me on. I even got to write with a few friends outside of – but very much connected to – Paramore, who taught me so much and gave me so much to be inspired by. Petals would likely not even exist if not for Joey Howard, his bass guitar, and a drum machine!!”
Before closing out the newsletter, Williams thanked her fans for sticking with her over the years and teased that a Paramore album or comeback is imminent. Paramore’s last release was in 2017 with After Laughter — the album charted at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 and went No. 1 on the Top Rock Albums chart following its release.
“Before I go, thank y’all so much for the incredible support these last couple years. I know we didn’t get to properly come together to sing and vent and sweat it all out…but I do think that Petals and descansos lived exactly the lives they were meant to. Besides, Paramore can’t be ‘on a break’ forever now can we? I love y’all. See you sometime next year?” the singer concluded.
Williams revealed that she was ready to get back into the studio with fellow band members Zac Farro and Taylor York back in February while talking to a fan on Twitter about her Flowers for Vases project.
“did you write more songs for FFV that weren’t eventually included in the tracklist and if so are you gonna use them either for a future solo project or for a Paramore album? #flowersforvases,” the fan wrote. “There are more songs, yeah,” the singer replied. “but I’m not planning on another solo album. and I’m not sure if they’d be great for Paramore. I’m ready for the next Paramore album. let’s go.”
See William’s newsletter post in full below.
Fontaines D.C. have teamed up with Rosalía for their new collaboration, Where Is Gone?.
The song features on the Irish rock band's forthcoming album, Dopamine Chamber, which arrives on Friday (16.10.26). For guitarist Carlos O’Connell, working with the Spanish superstar is particularly special because of his own Spanish roots.
He explained: “I’ve admired Rosalía ever since her debut album, which I thought was absolutely beautiful.
“What excited me most was the way she continued to preserve Spain's musical traditions, something that felt spiritually connected to what we've been trying to achieve with Irish music. Having roots in both countries, it's been really special to witness. "She's an artist who has continued to amaze me at every point in her career.”
Frontman Grian Chatten has also described the collaboration with Rosalía as one of the most memorable achievements of his career.
He revealed that he felt "humbled" when she agreed to lend her voice to the band's album.
Speaking to NPR, Grian said: “I've always felt there's something almost like a single big idea that I'm personally trying to communicate to the world before I get old and die, if that makes sense. There's one thing I think I'll spend my life trying to express. I have a feeling she has a similar outlook. … I mean, she's an amazing arranger, composer and lyricist. It means so much that she wanted to sing on something we'd put together. It's definitely one of the highlights of my career.”
Rosalía's links to Irish rock music extend beyond Fontaines D.C. She also offered inspiration and helped develop the Spanish lyrics for U2's The Mirror Maker (Rosalía), a track from their forthcoming album, Carnaval de Luz.
During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last week, she spoke about frontman Bono, saying: “I don't know him personally, but he sent me a text explaining that he was working on a new project and had written a song called The Mirror Maker."
Rosalía joked that Bono had invented a few words of his own.
She recalled telling him: “I wasn't sure what to make of it, but I told him he could create his own language if he wanted to.”
She described the opportunity to collaborate with the 66 year old music veteran as a real privilege.
She added: “Bono is a legend.
“It's amazing.”
Bono recently revealed that he was worried about seeming like a stalker when he reached out to Rosalía to ask whether he could name the song after her.
