"This Is Why" is a song by American rock band Paramore, released as the lead single from their sixth studio album of the same name, on September 28, 2022. It was written by Hayley Williams, Taylor York, and Zac Farro and produced by Carlos de la Garza. The song was accompanied by its music video, released the same day.

The song won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Performance.

Background "This Is Why" was released on September 28, 2022. It was the last song written for the album, at which point Williams was "tired of writing lyrics", although guitarist Taylor York convinced Williams and drummer Zac Farro to work on one "last idea". Williams stated that it "summarizes the plethora of ridiculous emotions, the rollercoaster of being alive in 2022, having survived even just the last three or four years" and thought that following the COVID-19 pandemic and "the impending doom of a dying planet", "that humans would have found it deep within themselves to be kinder or more empathetic or something".

Composition "This Is Why" has been described as post-punk, post-punk revival, art-punk, dance-punk, pop punk, indie pop, and alternative rock. This song is said to also incorporate influences from funk, soul, and dance. It is the band's first title track.

Critical reception

Quinn Moreland of Pitchfork wrote that the track "builds on the funky pop that colored 2017's After Laughter, but shifts away from its predecessor's bright gloss for something muddier and vaguely threatening" and called the chorus "spiky" with instrumentation from marimbas making for a "suspense[ful]" bridge, after which "the song creeps forward, ultimately never pulling itself out of its paranoid spiral". Ali Shutler of NME described it as a "snarling, defiant middle finger to the haters" and a "giddy statement of purpose" with "newfound urgency to the party-starting music that takes influence from their angsty days as scrappy pop-punkers" accompanied by a "disco stomp". Steffanee Wang of Nylon called it a "disillusioned anthem" as well as "explosive" and remarked that it "sonically fits in the neat in-between space between [the band's] older pop-punk stuff and the electronic contemporary sound of 2017's After Laughter".

Accolades +Awards and nominations for "This Is Why" Organization Year Category Result MTV Video Music Awards 2023 Best Alternative Grammy Awards 2024 Best Alternative Music Performance + Year-end accolades for "This Is Why" Publication Accolade Rank Consequence Top 50 Songs of 20221 NME The 50 Best Songs of 20222 Nylon Favourite Songs of 2022– BBC Radio 1 Hottest Record of the Year 20221

Music video The music video was released the same day as the song, and was directed by Brendan Yates of the American punk band Turnstile and filmed in Malibu, California. It depicts the band performing and "frolick[ing ...] in the Malibu wilderness, amid the grasses, against the blue sky, and [...] in the spare interiors of a house".

The music video for the band's song "Thick Skull" served as a direct continuation of the video, with Yates returning to direct.

Personnel

Hayley Williams – vocals, backing vocals, percussion, piano Taylor York – guitar, keyboards, programming, glockenspiel, vibraphone, backing vocals Zac Farro – drums, percussion, keyboards, programming, vibraphone, glockenspiel, backing vocals Carlos de la Garza – production, backing vocals Brian Robert Jones – bass guitar Henry Solomon – bass clarinet, clarinet, flute Phil Danyew – glockenspiel, keyboards, programming Em Mancini – mastering Manny Marroquin – mixing Harriet Tam – engineering Kyle McAulay – engineering assistance Patrick Kehrier – engineering assistance Scott Moore – engineering assistance Joey Mullen – drum technician Erik Bailey – guitar technician Joanne Almeida – guitar technician

Charts

Weekly charts + Weekly chart performance for "This Is Why" Chart (2022–2023) Peakposition Canada Rock (Billboard) 25 Germany Rock Airplay (GfK) 9 Ireland (IRMA) 90 New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ) 8

Year-end charts +Year-end chart performance for "This Is Why" Chart (2023) Position US Rock & Alternative Airplay (Billboard) 21

Certifications

Release history + Release dates and formats for "This Is Why" Region Date Format(s) Label Various September 28, 2022 Atlantic United States October 4, 2022 Alternative radio November 7, 2022 Adult alternative radio

References