GRAMMY® Award-winning artist Hayley Williams has announced today's release of her eagerly awaited debut solo album, PETALS FOR ARMOR. The 15-track collection is available now via Atlantic Records at all music retailers and streaming services. PETALS FOR ARMOR - which features five brand new tracks alongside 10 songs previously released on the acclaimed "PETALS FOR ARMOR I" and "PETALS FOR ARMOR II" EPs - is accompanied by today's premiere of a new companion video to the album highlight, "Dead Horse," directed by Paramore's Zac Farro - watch!
Produced by Taylor York, Williams' lead collaborator in the GRAMMY® Award-winning Paramore, PETALS FOR ARMOR has already been met with critical praise, with the New York Times declaring it "an eclectic, unexpected, ambitious solo project (that lets) the singer and songwriter exorcise demons and stretch her creative powers," noting its "songs encompass self-empowerment, romantic sparks, female solidarity and simply thriving." The album "is a cohesive statement - a moving collection of songs that find (Williams) at her most honest - buoyed by a release strategy precisely tailored to its three sweeping waves of emotion," wrote Billboard, while NYLON raved, "On PETALS FOR ARMOR, Williams displays a new level of vulnerability and rawness that she says comes from starting something from scratch."
PETALS FOR ARMOR was first heralded earlier this year by "PETALS FOR ARMOR I," highlighted by tracks, "Simmer," "Leave It Alone," and "Cinnamon," all of which are joined by official companion videos streaming now via Williams's official YouTube channel. Directed by Warren Fu (Paramore, The 1975, The Strokes), the three films form a compelling storyline beginning with "Simmer," forwarded in an exclusive "Interlude" video, continued in "Leave It Alone" and a second "Interlude," and then, "Cinnamon." All three videos are streaming now via the Paramore singer and founder of haircare and color company Good Dye Young's official YouTube channel.
"PETALS FOR ARMOR II" followed, including tracks "Roses/Lotus/Violet/Iris," featuring singer-songwriters Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus on background vocals and joined by an official lyric video streaming now via YouTube. Like its predecessors, the track was met by worldwide critical attention, with Billboard praising it as "a stance on feminism that uses a garden as a metaphor for growth and self-discovery, a positive message during this trying time." In addition, the EP includes "Why We Ever" and "My Friend," both joined by official lyric videos, as well as "Over Yet," accompanied by a special at-home workout video.
Williams has also offered a number of striking reinventions of songs from PETALS FOR ARMOR, including an exclusive new version of "Simmer" remixed by acclaimed singer-songwriter-producer Caroline Polachek. Described by Williams in a recent tweet as "even angrier and suddenly v sexy," "Simmer (Caroline Polachek Remix)" is streaming now. In addition, stripped down versions of "Leave It Alone" and "Why We Ever" - both featuring PETALS FOR ARMOR accompanist Joey Howard - premiered via Williams' popular Instagram "Sunday Sessions" livestreams and are streaming now at YouTube.
Due to the continuing restrictions on travel and large gatherings as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK, Europe, and North American Petals For Armor tour dates currently scheduled to begin in May, are being rescheduled for 2021.
More information on when the new dates will take place will be available soon.
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