Follow-Up: Paramore – “We’re Not A Fake, Manufactured Product Of A Label… We Promise.”
Just as the music industry slowed down for the holidays, drama hit the Paramore camp and hard. Two of the founding members of the group referred to Paramore as a "manufactured major label product" and insisted that lead singer Hayley Williams puts herself and her career before the band. It was revealed that Paramore had been signed into a major label contract with Atlantic during their stint at the indie label Fueled By Ramen.
This tactic allowed Paramore to take the grass-roots route and gain indie credit.
Josh Farro, the now defunct lead guitarist of Paramore, published these pejorative claims, among others, on his personal blog. After learning that the remaining members of group had issued a statement detailing the reasons for his departure before he could address it, Farro felt jilted. He thought their depiction of why his brother and he left the group didn't match up, as the issues were multifaceted.
Since, York and Williams of Paramore chatted with MTV, refuting these claims:
"We're not a manufactured band. We've dealt with that rumor for a long time, and that's because of the rumors of Fueled by Ramen and Atlantic's relationship. We've always talked about that … saying, you know, when we started, I again fought for something that we could really work hard and start from the ground… we wanted to be that kind of band, we wanted to be those kind of people that worked for whatever they were going to get. We didn't know it would turn into this. Thank God it did, because we got to experience so many cool things." (Read on.)
WTF is “indie” about the Fueled By Ramen label? Warner does all the talking and distributing for them, they are far from truly indie.
According to Williams, “it doesn’t matter if there’s a name on a contract.”
That’s not really a good answer. While doesn’t matter to her that hers is the only name on the contract, it does matter to the label, her manager, and other band members.
The Monkees were “The Pre-Fab Four,” and yet many of the songs which were written for them have endured.
After reading the article and only realizing afterward that it was about Paramore I cared a lot less, but still very interesting stuff…
I read what both parties had to say about the situation and I have to say that the member who left seemed to have a more detailed comment which seemed more honest. Honestly, why WOULD two members leave a band that has made a name for itself and is signed to a major label? The lead singer and other members gave NO real reason why the other members would just walk away from success which enhances what they did and for what reason to be even more true.
I keep saying this over and over again… Most artists and bands signed to major labels nowadays are all created and shaped specifically by them. People keep wondering why most music sounds so plastic and lifeless… It’s the control factor the labels are taking now. They don’t FIND artists, the MAKE them! They sign as limited contracts as they possibly can to keep as much money and control as they can. If you really compare the music of major label artists and the true indie or unsigned acts you can hear the difference in quality! The majors are all so overly produced and polished until they sound unreal and unrelatable!!!