Paramore’s Hayley Williams’ advice to young bands about their mental health
Paramore‘s Hayley Williams has seen it all from a young age; as early as 14, she had been signed to a two-year production deal. Atlantic Records had wanted to make Williams a solo pop star, but she was adamant about fronting a pop-punk band, and eventually, she formed Paramore with brothers Josh and Zac Farro and Jeremy Davis.
A glittering career in the industry followed; however, in 2010, both Farro brothers left the band and Paramore’s initial success slowly dwindled. With the popular retrospect of all things the 2000s, though, Williams and Paramore have experienced a resurgence in popularity, and their sixth album, This Is Why, will be released next year.
Earlier this year, Williams wrote for Spotify’s Song Start series and gave advice to young bands on starting up in the music industry and the importance of taking care of your mental health. Williams gave particular notice to the burnout that had seemingly occurred during the middle period of Paramore’s journey.
She wrote, “I do think that burnout is somewhat inevitable. There are times when – not necessarily even for a negative reason – you’ll overwork yourself, and you won’t know. Or there are times that you think you’re making the right decision, and maybe you don’t know [everything] that decision entails. But I do think that you can take all those lessons in stride, and they stack up and build your foundation.”
Evidently, those difficult times are a vital period of any artist’s working life; they strengthen the spirit and make one more resolute and ready for future hardships. Williams also echoed the one-time comments of George Harrison that being in a successful band isn’t necessarily the direct route to happiness.
Williams continued, “People that make music that have any degree of success, I think that it actually gets harder to ask for help. Because it’s embarrassing. People think, ‘They’re making money. They live in a [nice] home. They probably have everything they ever dreamed of.’ [I spent] 15, 16 years in a band that makes a living being a band. And I can tell you with full confidence; it’s just not happiness.”
The Paramore singer’s ultimate advice, however, is to listen to your gut instinct. She suggested, “I think as long as you’re flexing that muscle of discernment, that voice deep in your gut that says, ‘This isn’t me,’ or, ‘This is me, and I’m going to fight for this,’ That’s the thing to listen to. It will always be there. It will be your constant companion, no matter if you’re signing your first record deal or you’re negotiating your masters.”
