Paramore receives co-writing credits on Olivia Rodrigo’s hit ‘Good 4 U’
Have you heard of the Misery Business and Good 4 U mashups circulating online? If yes, then you’ll 100% agree on this move.
Paramore vocalist Hayley Williams and ex-guitarist Josh Farro have been named as co-writers in the chart-topping hit Good 4 U, alongside Olivia Rodrigo and songwriter-producer Daniel Nigro.
The credits of the song, which is the debut single from Rodrigo’s album “Sour,” have been updated on the website of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers as an interpolation of Paramore’s 2007 pop-anthem Misery Business. This means an element of a previously recorded song was re-recorded and incorporated into a new song, according to a Variety report.
Both parties were reportedly in talks before the song was released in May but in a Billboard story in the same month, Williams and Farro were not in the song’s full credits.
What does the new co-writing credit mean for Willams and Farro? Paramore, from their album Riot!, released Misery Business in 2007, which peaked at No. 26 at the Hot 100. With their names being added in Good 4 U, Williams and Farro have their first top Hot 100 as songwriters, according to Billboard.
Prior to Williams and Farro retroactively added as co-writers of the song, listeners have pointed out the similarities of the two songs. Shortly after the chart-topper’s release in May, people on YouTube and TikTok churned out mashups of the two songs, which shows Misery Business seamlessly weave through the Good 4 U track.
@adamusic_ olivia has entered her 2000s pop punk girl era and i’m here for it #fyp #oliviarodrigo #good4u #paramore #pop #remix #mashup #miserybusiness
♬ good 4 ur misery business by Adamusic - Adam Wright
This is not the first time that Rodrigo’s camp have retroactively credited artists in her songs after the release of her debut album “Sour” in May.
In July, Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff and St. Vincent were added as co-writers in Rodrigo’s hit song Deja Vu, which acknowledges an interpolation of Swift’s 2019 song Cruel Summer.
Swift and Antonoff have also been credited as co-writers on Rodrigo’s 1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back, which interpolates Swift’s 2017 song New Year’s Day, according to Billboard.
For the past few years, retroactively crediting songwriters has become a practice for artists to avoid copyright infringement battles.
Ed Sheeran shared royalties of his 2017 hit song Shape of You with the writers of the iconic TLC song No Scrubs, after listeners pointed out the similarities of the pre-chorus of Sheeran’s song and the main hook of the early 2000s hit.
Similarly, Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars gave writing credits to ‘70s funk group The Gap Band for their song Oops Upside Your Head, in which the Ronson and Mars borrowed elements from for their hit song Uptown Funk.
Watch Olivia Rodrigo's Good 4 U music video below:
Banner and thumbnail photos from @oliviarodrigo and @yelyahwilliams on Instagram