Here’s why fans are scared Paramore is breaking up
To quote the band in question: “Are we really over now? Maybe I can change your mind?”
Update: Since this article was published, Paramore announced two more international tour stop cancelations. But the band also revealed its involvement in a Talking Heads tribute album produced by A24 Films.
For weeks, Paramore fans have expressed concern that the band is breaking up.
Seriously, they’re freaking out a bit.
The rumors that date back to before Christmastime were initially sparked by the band going dark on social media — scrubbing all of its posts and even its website.
But new clues suggest the band is just going through some changes. We explain.
What was Paramore up to this past year?
Paramore has had a big year in 2023. The band’s sixth studio album This Is Why was well received, debuting at the No. 2 spot on the Billboard 200 in February.
The album is up for two Grammys, including Best Alternative Music Performance and Best Rock Album.
The band went on international tours both as the headlining band and in support of Taylor Swift’s massive Eras Tour. On TikTok, videos of the band’s frontwoman Hayley Williams pulling fans onto the stage to sing the bridge of “Misery Business” went viral.
Williams also expanded her haircare brand, Good Dye Young, and celebrated the opening of her own colorful and LGBTQ+-friendly hair salon in Nashville.
How did the Paramore breakup rumors start?
Following their late 2023 tour dates in Melbourne, Australia, the band went on to wipe its social media presence.
On Instagram, all of the group’s posts were removed and its profile photo was swapped out for a plain gray avatar.
Perhaps the most jarring to fans, a click on the band’s link-in-bio, Paramore.net, leads users to a blank page with a 404 error.
On Thursday, the band also announced it was canceling its upcoming iHeartRadio ALTer EGO performance, citing “unforeseen circumstances.”
What have fans been saying?
Oh, it’s full-on doomsday over here. Fans have been freaking out that this is the end for Paramore and that all of the group’s future tour dates — including its slated international shows opening for Taylor Swift — are canceled.
The rumors continued to swirl when a line in Rolling Stone’s UK print edition from December said that indie artist Maisie Peters was “snapped up as support for Swift’s European ‘Eras’ tour next year.” As noted by Variety, that sentence has been removed from the web version, but has caused fans to speculate if Rolling Stone knew something about Paramore that wasn’t yet public.
Neither the band nor Swift’s camp has suggested any changes to the Eras Tour lineup.
Still, the freakouts even inspired a satirical article from Hard Times — a parody site similar to The Onion but focused on punk and hardcore music — about the breakup rumors.
What clues suggest Paramore is still together?
First off, we know Swift — the Berks County native — is a machine when it comes to touring.
As it stands, Paramore is slated to open up for Swift at all 48 of her United Kingdom-Europe tour stops. Williams and Swift are old friends through the music industry, coming up in the scene around the same time.
A significant change to the Eras Tour’s international leg, which is slated to begin in September, such as the only opening group canceling, would surely inspire more headlines.
Regarding the Rolling Stone mention of Peters opening for Swift, Peters tweeted on Friday afternoon that she was not opening for the Eras Tour.
It’s also worth noting that Paramore has pulled stunts like this before! The band has previously archived its social media pages — as has Williams — ahead of new album releases and big announcements. In fact, the group did the same just before This Is Why dropped.
But the most concrete piece of evidence we have to date is new intel from Variety citing unnamed sources close to the situation.
What does Variety say is happening to Paramore?
According to Variety, the band going dark on social has to do with becoming a free agent, ending its 20-year deal with Atlantic Records. It’s unclear, in that case, who took Paramore’s site down.
Paramore’s relationship with Atlantic Records over the years has been murky at best.
Williams was initially recruited and signed as a solo artist, according to some accounts. And in 2020, she debuted a solo album under the label before Paramore picked up from an indefinite hiatus between the group’s fifth album After Laughter in 2017 and sixth studio in 2023.
The label’s structure caused some strife over the years, according to former band members. In a since-deleted blog post, former bandmate Josh Farro (and brother of current bandmate Zac Farro) said the band didn’t understand why Williams was the only one signing a contract back in the band’s early days.
Variety also added that Paramore canceling its iHeartRadio festival set next week came down to a simple scheduling conflict. And that the group’s future 2024 tour dates were still on.
Has Paramore said anything?
It’s been quiet. The most public statement the band has made since scrubbing things on social was its announcement about canceling its iHeartRadio performance.
Notably, Williams has also scrubbed her personal Instagram account.
Bandmates Farro and Taylor York’s Instagram profiles are still live and populated, but neither has posted recently.
When’s the next public Paramore event that could happen?
The Grammy Awards take place on Feb. 4 and Paramore is up for two awards. It’s unclear if the bandmates will be in attendance or not.
From there, the band’s next performance is slated for March 23 at Lollapalooza Brasil.