Day 10: Hayley Williams, Leave It Alone | 30-Day Song Challenge

Haley Williams is plagued by grief on the sad “Leave It Alone,” a perfect fit for Day 10 of the 30-Day Song Challenge.

Embracing the trendiness of social media, The Musical Hype unleashes its own, month-long version of the 30-Day Song Challenge.

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Day 10 Prompt: A song that makes you sad

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Hayley Williams released her debut solo album, Petals for Armor, on May 8, 2020.  One of the songs that appeared on the EP Petals for Armor I that bore a negative connotation is “Leave It Alone”.  Just think about it for a minute.

How did you feel when your parents scolded you as a child and said the expression, “Leave it alone?” Food for thought.  Obviously, “Leave it Alone” runs deeper than that.  It is definitely perfect for Day 10 of the 30-Day Song Challenge – a song that makes you sad.

“If you know love / You best prepare to grieve.” The thoughtfully penned “Leave it Alone,” produced by Taylor York, finds Hayley Williams totally consumed with grief.  The record has an extremely somber tone from the onset, instrumentally and lyrically. On the first verse, she sings, “‘Cause now that I want to live / Well everybody around me is dying / Now that I finally wanna live / The ones I love are dyin’.” Thinking about family members dying – people you care about leaving you – is totally depressing and overwhelming.  On the second verse, she’s further ‘triggered,’ providing a specific example of loss:

“You don’t remember my name somedays
Or that we’re related
It triggers my worry
Who else am I gonna lose before I am ready?
And who’s gonna lose me?”

The centerpiece of the record is the chorus, where “The truth’s a killer / But I can’t leave it alone…”  Clearly, I absolutely love “Leave it Alone” because I’ve featured it literally everywhere.  I used it as a track of the week for Music to Atone to and Somber Sunday for Weekly Gems No. 4: Week of 4-20-2020. Furthermore, “Leave it Alone” previously graced 11 Solitary Songs That Are Totally Alone, 15 L Songs Selected with No Rhyme or Reason, and 15 Songs That Possess a Negative Connotation.

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Hayley Williams • Petals for Armor • Atlantic • 2020

Day 10: Hayley Williams, “Leave It Alone” (30-Day Song Challenge) [Photo Credits: Atlantic, Brent Faulkner, The Musical Hype, Pixabay]

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