Last week, Hayley Williams kicked out two fans for being disruptive during a Paramore show at Madison Square Garden. Now, the frontwoman has taken to the band’s Discord to apologize to the couple she kicked out after seeing the moment in a different light.
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According to Williams’ apology, footage from the crowd didn’t “look like the fight” she thought she was stopping.
“Without the opportunity for a proper back and forth (and with a looming, strict show-curfew in the back of my mind), I bared my teeth like a mother wolf,” Williams explained on Discord. “I embarrassed the hell out of these two people, without truly knowing what the situation was. Then, as a group – all 25,000 of us or so – exiled these people from the show in record time.”
She continued, “It was a moment that I would not fully process for a couple of days, when a friend showed me a video from inside the crowd, up close to the action. It didn’t look particularly kind [but,] I have not been able to shake the feeling that I abused my responsibility and my platform in that moment.”
She then went on to say that she did see positive reactions toward the way she handled the situation and that she feels it’s important to “set firm boundaries” on how she wants the environment at Paramore shows to be. But, overall, she said she doesn’t “feel proud” of the moment.
“When I saw their faces in the video, I didn’t see the smug smiles that some commentators criticized them for,” she continued. “I saw embarrassment and I cried for them. I’m telling you, I haven’t stopped thinking about it.”
She wrapped up her thoughts by issuing an apology to the couple she kicked out. “I’m sorry I handled the whole situation like the arbiter of the same type of cancel culture that doesn’t often teach or lead in any productive way.”
Find her full statement, below.
Photo Courtesy of The Oriel Co.
