Here’s why Hayley Williams decided to dye her hair platinum blonde

Given that Paramore have entered into a new era, it seems only fitting that frontwoman Hayley Williams would change up her signature hair color. However, her reason for doing so is about more than just aesthetics.

Today, Paramore released their fifth album, After Laughter, their first in four years. The band preceded the collection with the bouncy, tropically-tinged pop-punk single “Hard Times,” which came with a jolly and brightly-colored beach-themed music video. The group then followed it up with the video for “Told You So,” which continued this new, colorful journey.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEB6ibtdPZc?feature=oembed

If you’re wondering why the line-up for Paramore looks slightly different that’s because, well, it is. In 2015, it was announced that band’s bassist Jeremy Davis had quit the band. Then, earlier this year, one of the band’s original members, drummer Zac Farro, re-joined the group.

Things haven’t always been easy for Paramore. In a revealing profile published in The Guardian, the band discussed their rocky past as a group, including the ongoing legal issues they’re facing regarding songwriting credits and royalties. While they were, legally, unable to discuss their problems in full, Hayley Williams did say, “I wasn’t OK for a while; maybe I’m still not.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BT8LfHdlONC

Well, given the ups and downs of the last few years, it’s understandable that Hayley Williams would want to make a change.

Opening up to Entertainment Weekly, Williams explained why she decided to ditch her signature red and orange hair.

"The hair thing is so emotional for me. About a year ago, I called my colorist and was like, 'I’m going through so much emotionally. I need a reset. I need you to bleach my hair,'" she said. "This has been really important for me, as a 27- and 28-year-old, to show myself every morning when I get up that I’m not someone who is going to live in the past. When it’s time for Neon Hayley to come back to life, she will. But right now, this is me."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yw-RPm1uOM4?feature=oembed

The singer also spoke about how she and bandmate Taylor York nearly called it quits on the whole Paramore thing.

“There were many talks over coffee,” she said. “We thought, ‘Maybe we should start something new.’ But Taylor said to me, ‘If we start another band and people call it Paramore, you’re gonna be so mad. So you might as well just be Paramore.’ I actually think I could have been happy if we kept creating together and never put out a record, but the fact that we created an album and people can hear it — I’m still pinching myself.” 

We’re so glad that Hayley has managed to begin to face her demons and find solace in her music. We totally get needing to change things up, whether that’s making a physical or an emotional change, and from listening to their new music it seems that, as a group, Paramore have managed to achieve that.

Meanwhile, you can pick up a copy or stream Paramore’s brand new album After Laughter now (and you definitely should ’cause it’s really good).

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