This Is Why (song)

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"This Is Why"
Single by Paramore
from the album This Is Why
ReleasedSeptember 28, 2022 (2022-09-28)
Genre
Length3:27
LabelAtlantic
Songwriters
ProducerCarlos de la Garza
Paramore singles chronology
"Caught in the Middle"
(2018)		 "This Is Why"
(2022)		 "The News"
(2022)
Music video
"This Is Why" on YouTube

"This Is Why" is a song by American rock band Paramore, released as the lead single from their sixth studio album of the same name, on September 28, 2022.[1] It was written by Hayley Williams, Taylor York, and Zac Farro and produced by Carlos de la Garza. The song was accompanied by its music video, released the same day.[2]

The song won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Performance.

Background

"This Is Why" was released on September 28, 2022.[1][2] It was the last song written for the album, at which point Williams was "tired of writing lyrics", although guitarist Taylor York convinced Williams and drummer Zac Farro to work on one "last idea". Williams stated that it "summarizes the plethora of ridiculous emotions, the rollercoaster of being alive in 2022, having survived even just the last three or four years" and thought that following the COVID-19 pandemic and "the impending doom of a dying planet", "that humans would have found it deep within themselves to be kinder or more empathetic or something".[2]

Composition

"This Is Why" has been described as post-punk,[3] post-punk revival,[4] art-punk,[4] dance-punk,[5] pop punk,[6] indie pop,[7] and alternative rock.[8] This song is said to also incorporate influences from funk,[8][3] soul,[8] and dance.[8] It is the band's first title track.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
NMEStarStarStarStar[9]

Quinn Moreland of Pitchfork wrote that the track "builds on the funky pop that colored 2017's After Laughter, but shifts away from its predecessor's bright gloss for something muddier and vaguely threatening" and called the chorus "spiky" with instrumentation from marimbas making for a "suspense[ful]" bridge, after which "the song creeps forward, ultimately never pulling itself out of its paranoid spiral".[10] Ali Shutler of NME described it as a "snarling, defiant middle finger to the haters" and a "giddy statement of purpose" with "newfound urgency to the party-starting music that takes influence from their angsty days as scrappy pop-punkers" accompanied by a "disco stomp".[9] Steffanee Wang of Nylon called it a "disillusioned anthem" as well as "explosive" and remarked that it "sonically fits in the neat in-between space between [the band's] older pop-punk stuff and the electronic contemporary sound of 2017's After Laughter".[11]

Accolades

Awards and nominations for "This Is Why"
Organization Year Category Result Ref.
MTV Video Music Awards 2023 Best Alternative Nominated [12]
Grammy Awards 2024 Best Alternative Music Performance Won [13]
Year-end accolades for "This Is Why"
Publication Accolade Rank Ref.
Consequence Top 50 Songs of 2022 1 [14]
NME The 50 Best Songs of 2022 2 [15]
Nylon Favourite Songs of 2022 – [16]
BBC Radio 1 Hottest Record of the Year 2022 1 [17]

Music video

The music video was released the same day as the song, and was directed by Brendan Yates of the American punk band Turnstile and filmed in Malibu, California.[2] It depicts the band performing and "frolick[ing ...] in the Malibu wilderness, amid the grasses, against the blue sky, and [...] in the spare interiors of a house".[11]

The music video for the band's song "Thick Skull" served as a direct continuation of the video, with Yates returning to direct.[18]

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "This Is Why"
Chart (2022–2023) Peak
position
Canada Rock (Billboard)[19] 25
Germany Rock Airplay (GfK)[20] 9
Ireland (IRMA)[21] 90
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[22] 8
UK Singles (OCC)[23] 61
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 (Billboard)[24] 8
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[25] 15
US Rock & Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[26] 3

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for "This Is Why"
Chart (2023) Position
US Rock & Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[27] 21

Certifications

Certifications for "This Is Why"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[28] Gold 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "This Is Why"
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Various September 28, 2022 Atlantic [1]
United States October 4, 2022 Alternative radio [29]
November 7, 2022 Adult alternative radio [30]

References

  1. Trapp, Philip (September 28, 2022). "Paramore Share New Song 'This Is Why,' Announce Their Sixth Album". Loudwire. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  2. Ruiz, Matthew Ismael (September 28, 2022). "Paramore Announce New Album This Is Why, Share Video: Watch". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  3. Gotrich, Lars (October 4, 2022). "Paramore, 'This Is Why' An empathetic but exasperated sigh accompanies the motorik post-punk funk". NPR. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  4. Malkin, Ben (February 10, 2023). "Paramore This Is Why Review". IINAG. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
  5. Gleadow, Ewan (October 4, 2022). "Paramore-This Is Why Review". Cult Following. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
  6. "The 50 Best Songs of 2022". NME. December 5, 2022. Retrieved December 23, 2022.
  7. Summan, Yasmin (September 30, 2022). "Paramore, Slipknot and Polyphia are our tracks of the week". Alternative Press. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
  8. Barcelata, Diana (October 3, 2022). "Paramore is Officially Back With "This Is Why"". Music Daily. Archived from the original on November 10, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
  9. Shutler, Ali (September 28, 2022). "Paramore's 'This Is Why' is a snarling, defiant middle finger to the haters". NME. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  10. Moreland, Quinn (September 28, 2022). "Paramore: "This Is Why" Track Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 29, 2022. builds on the funky pop…
  11. Wang, Steffanee (September 28, 2022). "Paramore's "This Is Why" Lyrics Meaning, Explained". Nylon. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  12. Grein, Paul (August 8, 2023). "Taylor Swift Is Top Nominee for 2023 MTV Video Music Awards (Complete List)". Billboard. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
  13. "2024 Grammy Nominations: See The Full Nominees List". The Recording Academy. 10 November 2023. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  14. Fu, Eddie (December 5, 2022). "Top 50 Songs of 2022". Consequence. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  15. Campbell, Erica (December 5, 2022). "The 50 best songs of 2022". NME. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  16. H., Lindsay (December 6, 2022). "Nylon's Favourite Songs Of 2022". Nylon. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  17. "How Paramore wrote 2022's song of the year". canvas-story.bbcrewind.co.uk. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  18. Paul, Larisha (1 March 2024). "Paramore Drive Over the Deep End and Survive in Metaphoric 'Thick Skull' Video". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 30 January 2025. Retrieved 8 May 2025.
  19. "Paramore Chart History (Canada Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  20. "Radio No9 Charts [Week 40/2022]". Radio-No9. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  21. "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
  22. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
  23. "Official Singles Chart on 7/10/2022 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
  24. "Paramore Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  25. "Paramore Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  26. "Paramore Chart History (Rock & Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  27. "Year-End Charts: Rock & Alternative Airplay Songs (2023)". Billboard. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  28. "American single certifications – Paramore – This Is Why". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 10, 2026.
  29. "Future Releases on Alternative Radio Stations". AllAccess. Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  30. "Future Releases on Triple A Radio Stations". AllAccess. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.