Turn It Off

Album: Brand New Eyes (2009)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Frontwoman and lyricist Hayley Williams explained this song to Kerrang! May 9, 2009: "Everyone knows what we believe in and our personal choice to believe in Jesus. It's a struggle in the real world to do that. Sometimes you want to give up. Some of the things we've been through - things I've been through personally - in the last few years, I've felt it would be easier to not have faith in anything and see myself as alone and work at it that way. It sounds like a good idea and I don't think it's anything anyone gets over. I also think it's a hopeful lyric, too. If you find yourself at the bottom, the only way you have is to look up. It can't get any worse if you're at the bottom."
  • Hayley Williams explained to Alternative Press that the lyrics were born out of internal strife during a period when Paramore came close to breaking up: "Another bunch of lyrics from my trusty Sidekick. I wrote all the verses with no melody on the tour with did last spring with Jimmy Eat World. We were going through so much as a band - a lot of negative vibes. I felt hopeless and even faithless a lot of the time. Funny it had to be on a tour with some of our heroes. Nearly a year later, we're at our practice space and the guys are jamming this song. I just started singing these lyrics, reading them right out of my phone and making up the melodies as we all went along. It worked! I memorized the chorus progression and went home to write the chorus with my guitar in hand. Does anyone beside me think the last line in the chorus sounds like, 'When I hit the bottle?' Well, it's not. Okay?"

Comments: 2

  • Trever from N. Syracuse, Nyi agree w/ the post below me. its true. no matter if it is never looked at this way or even if you notice it or not, you may think things get better in no time, but thats not true. things will always get worse before they start to get better. next time your in a bad situation, just think about it getting worst before it gets better and you will notice it does not got better first.
  • Alan from The Meadow Of Rainbows, United KingdomI love the lyric "Andthe worst part is that before this gets any better we're headed for a cliff" - sometimes things have to get worse before they get better. Clearly the songs also about the conflict the band had, like with most songs on Brand New Eyes.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"They're Playing My Song

The Prince-penned "Manic Monday" was the first song The Bangles heard coming from a car radio, but "Eternal Flame" is closest to Susanna's heart, perhaps because she sang it in "various states of undress."

Have Mercy! It's Wolfman Jack

Have Mercy! It's Wolfman JackSong Writing

The story of the legendary lupine DJ through the songs he inspired.

Who Did It First?

Who Did It First?Music Quiz

Do you know who recorded the original versions of these ten hit songs?

Daniel Lanois

Daniel LanoisSongwriter Interviews

Daniel Lanois on his album Heavy Sun, and the inside stories of songs he produced for U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan.

Bob Dylan Lyric Quiz

Bob Dylan Lyric QuizMusic Quiz

Think you know your Bob Dylan lyrics? Take this quiz to find out.

David Gray

David GraySongwriter Interviews

David Gray explains the significance of the word "Babylon," and talks about how songs are a form of active imagination, with lyrics that reveal what's inside us.