Hayley Williams is known for her place as the frontwoman for alt-pop-punk band Paramore. However as recent years have shown, she’s been doing a hell of a lot on the Billboard charts on her own as a bonafide artist.
Jumping into the spotlight in 2005 when Paramore’s debut album, ‘All We Know is Falling,’ released, she was quickly dubbed as the orange coifed, angsty girl with the strong pipes. Churning out hits like ‘Pressure’ and ‘Emergency,’ the band’s punk and alt-rock vibe pushed them toward the kids who frequented the Warp Tour circuit instead of going straight for the more pop friendly mainstream. However it was 2007’s ‘Riot’ that catapulted the band and Hayley towards pop stardom. Her attitude and power on ‘CrushCrushCrush’ and ‘Misery Business’ proved that Paramore are beyond a band that plays punk rock but Hayley is also someone with a legitimately stellar voice. This was clearly proven when fans heard a cover of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah,’ which is also on the album. Despite the endless times artists have covered the track, Hayley showed that she had the ability to soften up her tone and show the versatility of her musical abilities. Hearing her sing this track acoustically easily puts your ears and heart at ease and makes you forget about the punk attitude her band conveys. The softer side of Hayley comes through as she matures in her music with ‘The Only Exception,’ and even more fun pop songs like ‘Ain’t It Fun’ and ‘Still Into You.’
If there is a criticism one would have with Hayley at this point is the fact that the songs she’s singing are happier than they used to be. As a fan who relished her angsty vocals on ‘Stop This Song’ and ‘My Heart,’ her lighter stuff makes me yearn for her to be a bit more cynical. But being in love can change that in you, I guess. No matter how you like your Hayley Williams music served up -- electro pop style like her collaboration with Zedd on ‘Stay the Night’ or more of her harder stuff like ‘Let This Go,’ one thing is clear -- the girl can really sing.
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