Paramore's Hayley Williams Makes Her Solo Debut With Haunting "Simmer" Music Video

Hayley Williams might be known for her powerful voice, but the "Simmer" video proves she'd be pretty perfectly cast in a horror movie. The Paramore frontwoman released the first single off her debut solo album, Petals For Armor, and the video's symbolic imagery is perfectly haunting to suit the song's lyrics about giving into rage, suffering loss, and vulnerability.

"If my child needed protection / from a f*cker like that man / I'd sooner gut him / 'cuz nothing cuts like a mother," Williams sings as she's running through the woods in the dark trying to escape a shadowy figure chasing her. In the final scenes of the video, she sneaks up on her chaser and knocks them out, only to realise it was her all along. Very meta.

"Making it was a scary, empowering experience," Williams said about her upcoming album in a statement. "Some of my proudest moments as a lyricist happened while writing Petals For Armor. Now that it's time to put it all out there, I can finally exhale. I'm excited to let people in to experience a different side of myself that I've only very recently become familiar with."

And if any fans are worried about the fate of Paramore, never fear! The band made sure to show their support for their frontwoman, sending out a tweet to celebrate Williams's single release. "Please support our badass singer as she takes on the world on her own for a little bit," the post reads.

We are beyond proud of @yelyahwilliams for stepping out on her own and making her own art. Please support our bad ass singer as she takes on the world on her own for a little bit! https://t.co/jBRaIUOroa pic.twitter.com/oRSblAAfxK

— paramore (@paramore) January 22, 2020

Watch the "Simmer" video above and look out for the full Petals For Armor album on May 8.