Hayley Williams Struggles With the Idea of Losing Those She Loves in ‘Leave It Alone’ Video

On Tuesday (Jan. 28), Hayley Williams continued the eerie storyline she began with her first solo single "Simmer" in the form of "Simmer Interlude." Just days later, fans have another part of the narrative with "Leave It Alone" — and though the video is brighter, the story gets darker. 

Williams released "Leave It Alone" along with its video on Thursday (Jan. 30), which starts out where the interlude left off, with Williams — now a butterfly — waking up in a cocoon. The video flashes between shots of Butterfly Hayley and Human Hayley, who is wandering through and dancing in a forest as the butterfly struggles to emerge from its entrapment. The contrast is an affecting metaphor for the song's narrative about the realization that all love will eventually result in loss.

"If you know love/ You best prepare to grieve/ Legit enter your open heart and/ Then prepare to let it leave," Williams sings on the bridge.

The Paramore frontwoman was inspired to write the poignant track after she almost lost her grandmother in late 2018, explaining to Apple Music Beats 1's Zane Lowe, "The more you love, the more you stand to lose… I struggle with it all the time."

"Leave It Alone" will appear on Williams' forthcoming solo album, Petals For Armor, which arrives May 8 Atlantic Records.

Watch the video below.