“This Is Why” by Paramore

Hayley Williams has described this “This is Why” as a song that had been inspired by “the last three of four years”, which of course was highlighted by COVID-19. She described the said period as “a global pandemic of biblical proportions”. 

And even thereafter, under her estimation, the human race has failed to repent. So now, the way she sees it is that our “dying planet” is facing “impending doom”.  And again, the lyrics of “This Is Why” is based on such a belief system.

This is one of these cases where we’re fortunate to have been made privy to the song’s backdrop by the singer/songwriter herself, as the lyrics are very ambiguous, for lack of a better word. 

But with that explanation in tow, what they appear to speak to, most simply interpreted, is a vocalist who has grown distrustful of the world, to the point of apparently having become some type of an introvert.

What is being further implied is that the addressee is someone, presumably a friend, who is trying to encourage Hayley to break this modus operandi. But the singer seems thoroughly convinced that if she were to step too far out of her comfort/security zone, i.e. her home, then she will either experience or witness something to reaffirm her belief that the world is going to hell.

Paramore

Paramore is an early-aughts rock band from Tennessee whose membership has fluctuated throughout the years. But since 2017, the group has been held by the following trio:

• Hayley Williams (vocals)
• Taylor York (guitar)
• Zac Farro (drummer)

This act has experienced notable success in the past, with their second LP, 2007’s “Riot!”, standing as their most-successful album to date.

Paramore’s most-recent studio album, “After Laughter”, peaked at number 6 on the Billboard 200 and number 4 on the UK Albums Chart. However, it didn’t necessarily perform too well in comparison to most of the band’s previous efforts. 

That may be one of the reasons why it took them so long for the band to come out with a follow-up. 

“This Is Why”

The said follow-up album goes by the title “This Is Why”. It is from this album that this song (“This Is Why”) also comes from. Actually this song, which was made public on 28 September 2022, is not only the album’s lead single but also the title track.

Furthermore, the track was the last song written for that project.

This song was written by the aforementioned H. Williams and T. York, who have been bandmates since 2007. 

Its producer is Carlos de la Garza, who also participated in the creation of the aforementioned “After Laughter”.

The music video to “This Is Why” was directed by another rock musician in Brendan Yates of Turnstile fame.

Paramore had been teasing this particular track since about the beginning of September, 2022.