Paramore’s Hayley Williams Defends ‘Misery Business’ Lyrics
Story by Anne Erickson
Hayley Williams is a feminist, she says, despite skeptics criticizing her lyrics for ‘Misery Business’
Paramore singer Hayley Williams proudly calls herself a feminist, but some critics has called her out for the lyrics of the band’s 2007 track “Misery Business.” Williams recently posted a blog in which she states that “Misery Business” “is not a set of lyrics that I relate to as a 26 year old woman.”
“I haven’t related to it in a very long time. those words were written when i was 17…admittedly, from a very narrow-minded perspective,” she wrote. “It wasn’t really meant to be this big philosophical statement about anything. It was quite literally a page in my diary about a singular moment i experienced as a high schooler.”
The lyrics of “Misery Business” has Williams (or the character she’s portraying) saying to her current boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend, “I never meant to brag, but I’ve gotten what I wanted now.”
“That’s the funny part about growing up in a band with any degree of success. People still have my diary,” Williams explained. “The past and the present. All the good and bad and embarrassing of it!”
She added, “In conclusion, I’m a 26 years old person. And yes, a proud feminist. Just maybe not a perfect one?”
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