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Hey there, Hive!✨
You have probably heard of this artist before, mainly for being the vocalist of the super successful band Paramore, a group that achieved worldwide fame in 2004 when she was very young, at just 16 years old. Hayley Williams after all these years is still a very relevant artist in the industry, and in this post I will tell you a little about her, who in more recent years has focused on her solo career.
Hayley is a 36-year-old American singer and songwriter with an incredible artistic career. Her main project is her alternative rock/pop band Paramore, with whom she continues to work, but as it usually happens with musicians who dedicate many years of their lives to the same artistic project, Hayley decided to start another solo project. It's not that things with the band are going wrong, on the contrary, but when you have so much time of your life doing exactly the same thing, there can come a point where you need to do something new, something different.
Also, if this can happen to us in the everyday sphere, with things as simple as getting bored of the same daily routine, for someone with a lot of creativity like the great artists it must be even worse because even if you have the most varied ideas, if your fame is due as in this case to a specific musical genre, you will not have as much freedom to experiment because your followers expect something specific from you. Even so, Paramore has changed their music quite a bit, but perhaps Hayley needed something that was clearly hers and in reality, what she has done as a soloist does not sound at all like what the band is.
This is how in 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, she released her first solo album called Petals for Armor. Although she maintains her alternative essence as an artist, in her experimentation with musical genres, this album has nothing to do with rock, but rather a more indie, pop and synth-pop sound that is artistically quite expressive, making it evident that it is a much more personal project, as it talks about her emotions, her reactions to different situations in life, the fight against depression (a disorder that Hayley suffers from), loneliness, grief, self-esteem, among many other topics.
It is truly an album that reflects all the work that the artist has achieved through years of therapy and work on herself, on her mental health. Being something so personal, it is inevitable to feel related with many of its lyrics (or all of them), because it will make you connect with something that you yourself have experienced or are going through at the moment.
Personally, this album moved me a lot because at the time I was going through a crisis, starting to prioritize myself and focus on my own process. That's why its songs were a little healing for my heart, because hearing how someone who dealt with similar situations is able to express it through art somehow helped me feel understood. I think I love all the songs, although some were much more meaningful than others because of what they mean to me.
Aside from the creativity she had for the music videos, the general aesthetic, the lyric videos, everything is beautiful, delicate and experimental, proving that Hayley has a lot of talent and a lot to give, being a very complete artist.
Flowers for Vases / Descansos was released in 2021, being an album with more tints towards the folk genre but maintaining its alternative pop essence. It should be noted that most of the work was done exclusively by her. The lyrics here are just as personal and poetic. While the previous album sounds like someone who is just beginning their process of personal growth and healing, this one feels like someone who has already healed, who has integrated their positive aspects and their shadows, someone who has grown a lot.
Overall, Hayley Williams is a versatile artist, very talented and willing to experiment and have fun with music, because that's what music and art in general is all about, using it as a means of expression in whatever way you want at that moment. She is a very expressive singer, with her soprano voice and great range she manages to convey what her lyrics say clearly, making it easy to relate to her songs.
For me she is an incredible artist who I hope continues creating art for quite a while longer, both for her band and as a solo artist.
Español
¡Hola, Hive!✨
Seguramente habrán escuchado de esta artista, principalmente por ser la vocalista de la súper exitosa banda Paramore, grupo que alcanzó la fama mundial en 2004 cuando ella era demasiado joven, con apenas 16 años. Hayley Williams después de todos estos años sigue siendo una artista bastante relevante en la industria, y en este post les hablaré un poco sobre ella quien en años más recientes se ha enfocado en su carrera como solista.
Hayley es una cantante y compositora estadounidense de 36 años con una increíble carrera artística. Su proyecto principal es su banda de rock/pop alternativo Paramore, con quienes continúa trabajando pero como suele ocurrir con músicos que dedican muchos años de su vida al mismo proyecto artístico, Hayley decidió comenzar otro proyecto solitario. No es que las cosas con la banda vayan mal, al contrario, pero cuando tienes tanto tiempo de tu vida haciendo exactamente lo mismo puede llegar un punto donde necesites hacer algo nuevo, algo diferente.
Además, si esto nos puede ocurrir a nosotros en el ámbito cotidiano, con cosas tan simples como aburrirte de la misma rutina diaria, para alguien con mucha creatividad como los grandes artistas debe ser incluso peor porque a pesar de que tengas las más variadas ideas, si tu fama se debe como en este caso a un género musical específico, no tendrás tanta libertad de experimentar pues tus seguidores esperan algo específico de ti. Aún así Paramore ha cambiado bastante su música, pero quizás Hayley necesitaba algo que fuera netamente suyo y en realidad, lo que ha hecho como solista no suena para nada a lo que es la banda.
Así es como en el 2020, justo en pandemia, publicó su primer álbum solista llamado Petals for Armor (Pétalos como Armadura). Aunque mantiene su esencia alternativa como artista, en su experimentación con géneros musicales éste álbum no tiene nada de rock, sino más bien un sonido bastante indie, pop y synth-pop que artísticamente es bastante expresivo, siendo evidente que es un proyecto mucho más personal, pues habla de sus emociones, sus reacciones ante distintas situaciones de la vida, la lucha contra la depresión (trastorno que Hayley presenta), la soledad, el duelo, el autoestima, entre muchos otros temas.
Es realmente un álbum que refleja todo el trabajo que la artista ha logrado a través de años de terapia y trabajo en sí misma, en su salud mental. Al ser algo tan personal es inevitable sentirte identificado con muchas de sus letras (o todas), porque te hará conectar con algo que tú mismo has vivido o estás atravesando en el momento.
Personalmente este álbum me conmovió mucho puesto que para el momento me encontraba atravesando cierta crisis, comenzando a priorizarme y enfocándome en mi propio proceso. Por eso sus canciones fueron una pequeña cura en el corazón, porque escuchar cómo alguien que lidió con situaciones similares es capaz de expresarlo a través del arte de alguna manera me ayudó a sentirme comprendida. Creo que adoro todas las canciones, aunque algunas fueron mucho más significativas que otras por lo que significan para mí.
Aparte la creatividad que tuvo para los videos musicales, la estética general, los videos con letra, todo es precioso, delicado y experimental, demostrando que Hayley tiene mucho talento y mucho que dar, siendo una artista muy completa.
Flowers for Vases / Descansos (Flores como jarrones / Descansos) fue publicado en 2021, siendo un álbum con tintes más hacia el género folk pero manteniendo su esencia de pop alternativo. Cabe destacar que la mayoría del trabajo fue hecho exclusivamente por ella. Las letras aquí son igual de personales y poéticas. Mientras el álbum anterior suena como alguien que apenas comienza su proceso de crecimiento personal y sanación, éste se siente como alguien que ya sanó, que integró sus aspectos positivos y sus sombras, alguien que ha crecido mucho.
En general, Hayley Williams es una artista versátil, con mucho talento y que está dispuesta a experimentar y divertirse con la música, porque de eso se trata con la música y el arte general, usarlo como un medio de expresión de la manera en que tú quieras en ese momento. Ella es una cantante muy expresiva, con su voz soprano y un gran rango logra trasmitir lo que sus letras dicen de manera clara, por lo que es fácil identificarse con sus canciones.
Para mí es una artista increíble que ojalá continue creando arte por bastante más tiempo, tanto para su banda y como solista.
Great post! Hayley Williams, or more specifically Paramore, have been one of my personal favourites for a long time -- since middle school! :') So many great songs, I loved that they were in the Twilight soundtrack 😍
But anyway, as for Haley's solo career, I think she's doing great! She's trying out so many different styles, 70s, country-pop, etc. She's had an incredibly long and prolific career, kudos to her 😊
Again, thank you for sharing! Have a great week 🙏
Thank you so much! Yes, Hayley and Paramore have also been one of my long time favorites, since middle school as well! I just love their music so much. Decode is one of the best songs they have.
Hayley is definitely experimenting with her own style, she's doing an amazing job.
Thank you so much for reading and commenting 🖤 have a lovely weekend
Nice one
Thanks!