HAYLEY WILLIAMS’ DEBUT SOLO ALBUM ‘PETALS FOR ARMOR’ OUT NOW

Words by Nic Angeles

Since the release of the first and lead single “Simmer”, excitement for Hayley Williams’ Petals For Armor hasn’t exactly simmered down one bit—this, despite a cancelled tour and the other challenges of promoting a release in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, which she has previously discussed with Billboard.

Today, May 8th, Petals For Amor is finally out in its entirety, with all three parts released for fans of the Paramore vocalist to consume in all its art pop glory. Featuring the tracks “Simmer”, “Leave It Alone”, “Cinnamon”, and “Why We Ever”, Petals For Armor is Hayley Williams first solo album, a release outside of her band. Paramore’s Taylor York, however, has been involved in the production and played in the album, and drummer Zac Farro directed the music video for “Dead Horse”, which premieres here over the weekend.

“These stories are so personal, and I didn’t really want to give this to something that, to me, already has a legacy,” Williams tells the Los Angeles Times, opening up about why these songs weren’t crafted for Paramore. “When it’s time for us to write another record, we’ll come back stronger,” she says.

“I’m in a band with my favorite musicians so I never really feel the need to step into a role as a player when it comes to Paramore records. This project, however, benefited from a little bit of musical naïveté and rawness and so I experimented quite a bit more. I made this with some of the closest people to me. Their respective talents really shine bright throughout the record,” Williams tells Annie Mac on BBC Radio 1.

Leading up to today’s release, Williams has been sharing 30-second snippets of Petals For Armor tracks, and for the last preview for the track “Crystal Clear”, she shared a poignant story about her “Grandcat” and a song that he had written in the 80s for her granny.

Stream below and pick up Petals For Armor here.