An entire generation of kids grew up with Paramore's pop-rock songs, and most millennials probably still have a soft spot for the band. Even after all this time, lead singer Hayley Williams is proving to be just as relatable now. While promoting their new album This is Why , Paramore debuted their latest song "Running Out of Time" at a show in Nashville on February 6. "This song is about me always being late," Williams quipped to the audience at the Grand Ole Opry, according to Rolling Stone . "It's not actually that deep, unless you want to think about the demise of the Earth. Then it could be that deep."
However, Williams did later reveal a deeper meaning behind the song. In an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music, she revealed that the new song was actually inspired by memories of hanging out with Taylor Swift as a teenager.
"I remember when we were 19, Taylor Swift and I were a lot closer because we were both living in Nashville and we were both experiencing our own version of real success for the first time," the 34-year-old the singer recalled. She talks about hanging out at Swift's house, how the other singer-songwriter is "a really good cook," and seeing a closet full of gifts ready for people Swift wants to thank .
"I was like, 'Oh my God, my life is so incomplete.'" I was like, 'I can barely remember sending someone a card or flowers,' she said. It was this feeling of needing to get her life back on track that ultimately inspired her to write "Running Out Time," with lyrics about how she would send flowers to her neighbors, or send a sympathy card, or walk her dog more, But in the end it doesn't do anything.
Williams went on to tell Lowe: "I hope I'm a guy who feels like I've got it all together and I'm like, 'Oh, I've got some extra time, so I'm just going to come over with some flowers.' "Things like this, that's my idealized version of myself. "
Listen to the song and read the full "Running Out of Time" lyrics below.
[Section 1]
Said I was going to bring some flowers to my neighbor, but I
Time is running out
Don't want to go to the party empty-handed, but I
Time is running out
Said I would walk the dog tonight, a little farther than the driveway
extra mile
Thought I'd send a card to express my condolences, but damn, I
Just ran out of time
[pre-chorus]
Intentions can only take you so far
What if I'm just a selfish asshole? Not consider?
[chorus]
I never have time
I never have time
[Poem 2]
It doesn't matter, I pressed the alarm twenty times
But I'm just too tired
Traffic jam, spilled my coffee, crashed my car, or else
will be here on time
It should, it can, it doesn't matter, the final alibi.
you know it's a lie
There was a fire (metaphor)
Arrive within five minutes (hyperbolic)
[pre-chorus]
Intention can only get you so far (it’s on my bucket list and I swear I intend to do it)
The cruel reality is yet to be discovered
[chorus]
I never have time
(She never has time)
I never have time
[bridge]
Why must we be in a hurry?
My watch is just for decoration
Look, I showed up early the first time
Now it's a new feeling
[chorus]
we never have time
(She never has time)
I never have time
I never have time
(She always has no time, no time)
I never have time
