I'll Stop the Whole World
One.
MTV.com, December 22nd 2010
Paramore Split Turns Nasty
James Montgomery
Last night, ex-Paramore guitarist Josh Farro posted a scathing exit statement on his blog. The 23-year-old wrote a tell-all post about his time in the band and why he and his brother decided to leave. Although his brother Zac’s name was signed at the end of the post, it feels like the words were coming, not from him, but from the older Farro brother’s anger.
Hayley’s daily scroll-through of the MTV website suddenly took a turn. Her stomach felt heavy in her stomach as she clicked on the link that took her to Josh’s newly-made blog. Tucking a strand of her newly dyed orange hair behind her ear, Hayley’s breath caught in her throat as her eyes moved over the words on the screen. Certain phrases jumped out at her. Her eyes became glassy as the reality of the statement and the implications it would hold for the remaining members of the band sunk in.
We’ve always been treated as less important than Hayley.
What started as natural somehow morphed into a manufactured product of a major label, riding on the coattails of “Hayley’s dream.”
She knew that the friendships in the band had been ridiculously disconnected over the last few months, but she had no idea they’d felt like that for so long. She wouldn’t deny that she was the only one signing contracts, but she had always made it clear to the record company that it was never going to be just her, it would always be the band. She fought tooth and nail to keep her band. In the early days she was offered more money, a better deal and a pop career if she’d agreed to ditch the guys. Not once did it cross her mind that she would leave them. That they all wouldn’t achieve their dreams together.
Closing the window on her laptop, she placed it on her coffee table and cried. In her mind, she wasn’t sure what was going to happen to Paramore. She thought that they all would have been able to resolve everything without having to come to public blows.
Although it hurt Hayley with a near unbearable throb of pain, she couldn’t help but think of the fans. They were going to believe that everything they had achieved was a lie. Every word she had ever written was about something she’d felt, something that she had experienced and had to go through. Nothing about their band was manufactured. Despite what Josh was trying to say.
She sat on the sofa for the best part of three hours, in an almost comatose state. It hurt to think, because as soon as she began to think, she realised what was happening. It might all be over. Everything they had fought for might be over. And if that were the case, she wasn’t sure she was capable of handling in. Buzzing by her ear, Hayley’s phone informed her that she had a new text message. It was from Taylor.
I read it. Don’t worry H-Bomb. Me, you & Jerm will get through this x
For what seemed like the first time that day, Hayley felt something that wasn’t pain. Sitting up swiped a pen from the coffee table, and grabbed her worn, trusty lyrics notebook from her bag. Opening up to the first blank page, she looked at the white paper staring back at her. The words fell from her mouth like secret. ‘I’m not the villain, despite what you’re always preaching’. She said it out loud, feeling the tightness in her chest unwind slightly, she was able to breathe a little better as she wrote down a few other phrases before closing the notebook, leaving it for another day, when she’d fill in the rest of the lyrics, making it suitable for a new song.
Almost as soon as she put the phone down, Andrew, Paramore’s manager called. Before she could utter a greeting, he was apologising.
‘I’m so sorry!’ He called down the line.
‘For what?’ Hayley asked.
He breathed deeply before beginning. ‘I tried to talk to him, I tried to tell him we could sort this out without saying anything to the fans. I’ve already had offers for interviews from MTV, Rolling Stone, Kerrang and about 10 other publications.’ He said quickly, he sounded rushed off his feet. Hayley knew he was probably pacing around his office as they spoke.
‘Okay, I’m not sure I want to talk about this over and over again, so can we just do MTV and no one else?’ She said, literally shuddering at the thought of going over the whole debacle over and over again.
‘That’s fine. I’ll call Taylor and Jeremy and let them know. How are you?’ Andrew’s voice turned from business to genuine care with his question.
Her breath out was shaky. ‘I’m okay, it was just a shock to see that he took it that far.’ Hayley couldn’t help but let her voice crack. ‘It just hurt a lot, is all.’
That evening, Hayley’s doorbell rang. Even though she wasn’t expecting anyone, she answered the door, her Hello Kitty slippers shuffling along the floor towards the front door.
‘SURPRISE!’ Jeremy and Taylor jumped into Hayley’s hallway, almost knocking her backwards with sheer force.
‘We brought Chinese!’ Taylor declared holding the take out bag aloft and running down the hall.
Hayley chuckled under her breath at her friend. ‘And I have the DVDs,’ Jeremy told her, his voice at a significantly lower level than his band mate, putting his arm around her shoulder and guiding the both of them into the front room.
The night passed quickly, despite all of the jokes and laughs between the three people, there was a tension hanging in the air. All of them were avoiding talking about ‘it’ as much as they could.
At around 11pm, the credits for Ferris Bueller’s Day Off were rolling down the screen, leaving the room in a dark glow.
‘You guys don’t think it’s all about me, do you?’ Hayley said, her voice so small, she doubted either of the men had heard her.
Taylor, who was sitting next to her, sat up straight. ‘Of course not, Hayles.’ He wrapped his arms around her slender shoulders and hugged her close.
‘We were talking about it on the way over; we think Josh was out of line to put all of that on the internet. This all could have been resolved between the five of us.’ Jeremy chipped in.
‘If we didn’t enjoy this and we weren’t having the time of our lives, do you really think we’d still be here?’ Taylor asked, watching Hayley blink back a fresh wave of tears.
The next half an hour passed with the three of them getting everything off of their chests. Even though they didn’t have problems with their situation like Josh and Zac did, they wanted everything to be out in the open.
‘I want to be able to start afresh, and leave this in the past.’ Hayley said, playing with a loose string on her yellow cardigan.
Too soon, it was time for the MTV interview. To make it easier, Andrew had arranged for it to take place at Hayley’s house.
As the crew set up the lights and cameras, Hayley set to work making coffee for everyone, not wanting to sit still, too nervous about the impending interrogation. Taylor and Jeremy arrived, and promptly had make-up dabbed on their faces and microphones clipped on to their shirts.
‘So, what do you guys have to say about the Farro brothers’ blog post?’ the interviewer asked, looking directly at Hayley, clearly only caring what she had to say.
‘Well, I can’t stop them from having their opinion. I just think it’s a shame they think that’s how our career happened. We all worked hard to be here, and I don’t think anyone should discredit what we’ve achieved.’ Hayley said carefully, trying not to openly insult two people who used to be their closest friends. She didn’t want to start a public verbal spat with them.
‘Do you guys think it was right for them to convey their opinion that way?’
Taylor looked up, taking lead. ‘Well, like Hayley said, we can’t stop them from saying what they want to. If they felt posting that was the right way to go about it, more power to them.’ Jeremy nodded slowly in agreement.
The interviewer looked at the three of them before asking, ‘what does the future of Paramore look like?’
‘We have a few shows scheduled for August, but that’s all that’s on our calendar for this year. I think that needs to be rectified. We want to play a lot more shows, but we’re going to take some time off, start writing a new EP maybe. We’re not sure yet. We want to make music but we’re not sure if we’re in the right place to start crafting an album.’ Hayley said, feeling a little more relaxed talking about music.
‘Yeah, I think a few jam sessions would be good for us to get to grips writing just the three of us.’ Jeremy smiled as the prospect of creating something with their new dynamic.
‘So Paramore are still raring to go?’
‘Of course. Paramore is still a band.’ Hayley said confidently.
A few more questioned were asked and consequently answered, about 25 minutes, the interview was over. They thanked the interviewer and crew who were packing away the equipment.
I'll stop the whole world
I'll stop the whole world
from turning into a monster, and eating us alive.
Don't you ever wonder how we'd survive?
But now that you're gone the world is ours.
Hayley’s singing drew stronger as she closed the song, feeling the power behind the words she had only finished writing five minutes previously.
‘Is that about everything?’ Jeremy asked, sitting on the piano bench next to Hayley.
‘Yeah, it’s about Josh and Zac and it’s about everyone wanting to know what’s going on, and me not knowing how to tell them. But it’s also about us coming through stronger. So did you think it was okay?’ She asked her band mates timidly, as she always did with a song that started the writing process for a new album, or in this case an EP.
Taylor didn’t respond with words, he began playing a melody that moulded perfectly with Hayley’s words.
Paramore Split Turns Nasty
James Montgomery
Last night, ex-Paramore guitarist Josh Farro posted a scathing exit statement on his blog. The 23-year-old wrote a tell-all post about his time in the band and why he and his brother decided to leave. Although his brother Zac’s name was signed at the end of the post, it feels like the words were coming, not from him, but from the older Farro brother’s anger.
Hayley’s daily scroll-through of the MTV website suddenly took a turn. Her stomach felt heavy in her stomach as she clicked on the link that took her to Josh’s newly-made blog. Tucking a strand of her newly dyed orange hair behind her ear, Hayley’s breath caught in her throat as her eyes moved over the words on the screen. Certain phrases jumped out at her. Her eyes became glassy as the reality of the statement and the implications it would hold for the remaining members of the band sunk in.
We’ve always been treated as less important than Hayley.
What started as natural somehow morphed into a manufactured product of a major label, riding on the coattails of “Hayley’s dream.”
She knew that the friendships in the band had been ridiculously disconnected over the last few months, but she had no idea they’d felt like that for so long. She wouldn’t deny that she was the only one signing contracts, but she had always made it clear to the record company that it was never going to be just her, it would always be the band. She fought tooth and nail to keep her band. In the early days she was offered more money, a better deal and a pop career if she’d agreed to ditch the guys. Not once did it cross her mind that she would leave them. That they all wouldn’t achieve their dreams together.
Closing the window on her laptop, she placed it on her coffee table and cried. In her mind, she wasn’t sure what was going to happen to Paramore. She thought that they all would have been able to resolve everything without having to come to public blows.
Although it hurt Hayley with a near unbearable throb of pain, she couldn’t help but think of the fans. They were going to believe that everything they had achieved was a lie. Every word she had ever written was about something she’d felt, something that she had experienced and had to go through. Nothing about their band was manufactured. Despite what Josh was trying to say.
She sat on the sofa for the best part of three hours, in an almost comatose state. It hurt to think, because as soon as she began to think, she realised what was happening. It might all be over. Everything they had fought for might be over. And if that were the case, she wasn’t sure she was capable of handling in. Buzzing by her ear, Hayley’s phone informed her that she had a new text message. It was from Taylor.
I read it. Don’t worry H-Bomb. Me, you & Jerm will get through this x
For what seemed like the first time that day, Hayley felt something that wasn’t pain. Sitting up swiped a pen from the coffee table, and grabbed her worn, trusty lyrics notebook from her bag. Opening up to the first blank page, she looked at the white paper staring back at her. The words fell from her mouth like secret. ‘I’m not the villain, despite what you’re always preaching’. She said it out loud, feeling the tightness in her chest unwind slightly, she was able to breathe a little better as she wrote down a few other phrases before closing the notebook, leaving it for another day, when she’d fill in the rest of the lyrics, making it suitable for a new song.
Almost as soon as she put the phone down, Andrew, Paramore’s manager called. Before she could utter a greeting, he was apologising.
‘I’m so sorry!’ He called down the line.
‘For what?’ Hayley asked.
He breathed deeply before beginning. ‘I tried to talk to him, I tried to tell him we could sort this out without saying anything to the fans. I’ve already had offers for interviews from MTV, Rolling Stone, Kerrang and about 10 other publications.’ He said quickly, he sounded rushed off his feet. Hayley knew he was probably pacing around his office as they spoke.
‘Okay, I’m not sure I want to talk about this over and over again, so can we just do MTV and no one else?’ She said, literally shuddering at the thought of going over the whole debacle over and over again.
‘That’s fine. I’ll call Taylor and Jeremy and let them know. How are you?’ Andrew’s voice turned from business to genuine care with his question.
Her breath out was shaky. ‘I’m okay, it was just a shock to see that he took it that far.’ Hayley couldn’t help but let her voice crack. ‘It just hurt a lot, is all.’
That evening, Hayley’s doorbell rang. Even though she wasn’t expecting anyone, she answered the door, her Hello Kitty slippers shuffling along the floor towards the front door.
‘SURPRISE!’ Jeremy and Taylor jumped into Hayley’s hallway, almost knocking her backwards with sheer force.
‘We brought Chinese!’ Taylor declared holding the take out bag aloft and running down the hall.
Hayley chuckled under her breath at her friend. ‘And I have the DVDs,’ Jeremy told her, his voice at a significantly lower level than his band mate, putting his arm around her shoulder and guiding the both of them into the front room.
The night passed quickly, despite all of the jokes and laughs between the three people, there was a tension hanging in the air. All of them were avoiding talking about ‘it’ as much as they could.
At around 11pm, the credits for Ferris Bueller’s Day Off were rolling down the screen, leaving the room in a dark glow.
‘You guys don’t think it’s all about me, do you?’ Hayley said, her voice so small, she doubted either of the men had heard her.
Taylor, who was sitting next to her, sat up straight. ‘Of course not, Hayles.’ He wrapped his arms around her slender shoulders and hugged her close.
‘We were talking about it on the way over; we think Josh was out of line to put all of that on the internet. This all could have been resolved between the five of us.’ Jeremy chipped in.
‘If we didn’t enjoy this and we weren’t having the time of our lives, do you really think we’d still be here?’ Taylor asked, watching Hayley blink back a fresh wave of tears.
The next half an hour passed with the three of them getting everything off of their chests. Even though they didn’t have problems with their situation like Josh and Zac did, they wanted everything to be out in the open.
‘I want to be able to start afresh, and leave this in the past.’ Hayley said, playing with a loose string on her yellow cardigan.
Too soon, it was time for the MTV interview. To make it easier, Andrew had arranged for it to take place at Hayley’s house.
As the crew set up the lights and cameras, Hayley set to work making coffee for everyone, not wanting to sit still, too nervous about the impending interrogation. Taylor and Jeremy arrived, and promptly had make-up dabbed on their faces and microphones clipped on to their shirts.
‘So, what do you guys have to say about the Farro brothers’ blog post?’ the interviewer asked, looking directly at Hayley, clearly only caring what she had to say.
‘Well, I can’t stop them from having their opinion. I just think it’s a shame they think that’s how our career happened. We all worked hard to be here, and I don’t think anyone should discredit what we’ve achieved.’ Hayley said carefully, trying not to openly insult two people who used to be their closest friends. She didn’t want to start a public verbal spat with them.
‘Do you guys think it was right for them to convey their opinion that way?’
Taylor looked up, taking lead. ‘Well, like Hayley said, we can’t stop them from saying what they want to. If they felt posting that was the right way to go about it, more power to them.’ Jeremy nodded slowly in agreement.
The interviewer looked at the three of them before asking, ‘what does the future of Paramore look like?’
‘We have a few shows scheduled for August, but that’s all that’s on our calendar for this year. I think that needs to be rectified. We want to play a lot more shows, but we’re going to take some time off, start writing a new EP maybe. We’re not sure yet. We want to make music but we’re not sure if we’re in the right place to start crafting an album.’ Hayley said, feeling a little more relaxed talking about music.
‘Yeah, I think a few jam sessions would be good for us to get to grips writing just the three of us.’ Jeremy smiled as the prospect of creating something with their new dynamic.
‘So Paramore are still raring to go?’
‘Of course. Paramore is still a band.’ Hayley said confidently.
A few more questioned were asked and consequently answered, about 25 minutes, the interview was over. They thanked the interviewer and crew who were packing away the equipment.
I'll stop the whole world
I'll stop the whole world
from turning into a monster, and eating us alive.
Don't you ever wonder how we'd survive?
But now that you're gone the world is ours.
Hayley’s singing drew stronger as she closed the song, feeling the power behind the words she had only finished writing five minutes previously.
‘Is that about everything?’ Jeremy asked, sitting on the piano bench next to Hayley.
‘Yeah, it’s about Josh and Zac and it’s about everyone wanting to know what’s going on, and me not knowing how to tell them. But it’s also about us coming through stronger. So did you think it was okay?’ She asked her band mates timidly, as she always did with a song that started the writing process for a new album, or in this case an EP.
Taylor didn’t respond with words, he began playing a melody that moulded perfectly with Hayley’s words.
♠ ♠ ♠
I hope you guys like it. This is the first time I've written a Paramore fic.I'm not sure when I'm going to be able to post the next part(s) because I haven't written them yet and I don't really have a concrete clue of where I'm going to take the story.
What did you think? Comments?
Lola x