What do you do after three years in front of sold out major venues worldwide, billions of streams, platinum and gold plaques, and millions of messages and comments from an adoring audience?
The Los Angeles band—Daniel Seavey, Corbyn Besson, Jonah Marais, Jack Avery, and Zach Herron—flatlined all social media, picked up their instruments, and personally wrote, recorded, and co-produced their next chapter themselves. Powering up pop with D.I.Y. energy, the guys kickstarted their evolution through a combination of deft musicality and bold experimentation. “Writing and co-producing our own music has been one of the most rewarding experiences for us,” explains Corbyn. “In the past four years we’ve become confident enough to reinvent ourselves, becoming the band we always hoped to be.” “It was time to do this ourselves,” agrees Daniel. “I’m happy we got to release our own vision. These are our ideas, melodies, and thoughts. When the fans listen, they’ll know it really comes from us.” A tireless grind brought them to this point. Since emerging in 2016, Why Don’t We rocketed to the forefront of popular music and culture on their own terms. They achieved unprecedented success highlighted by upwards of 3 billion global streams, 670 million YouTube views, two RIAA Platinum-certified singles, four RIAA Gold-certified singles, a Top 10 bow on the Billboard Top 200 for their full-length debut 8 Letters, and a social media imprint of over 5 million followers. Beyond selling out shows on multiple continents, they’ve graced historic stages, including Radio City Music Hall and many more. While on the road, the group turned their attention to the future. The musicians wrote backstage, on tour buses, and in hotel rooms. Unable to contain the excitement, short social media snippets sent fans into a frenzy in 2019. “After shows, we’d go to the hotel room, hop on the computer, and start producing and working on our chops,” recalls Jonah. “Those demos really laid the groundwork for us.” “It was a little scary at first,” admits Daniel. “However, the fan response to the clips reassured us. We were like, ‘Why don’t we give it a shot and try to write this all on our own?’” Returning from the road, they planned to go silent on social media for three months. When COVID-19 hit, those three months turned into nine months. Using Daniel’s home studio as a creative hub, the guys tracked parts one at a time. Each member rotated instruments, spanning guitar, bass, piano, and even cello. “We grew up on social media and it’s part of our daily routines, so it was weird to go dark,” says Corbyn. “At the same time, we found out what we were capable of. The music spoke for us.” “We went into this as five guys doing a pop thing,” states Jonah. “We came out of it a real band.” “From the moment we got off tour, we wanted to step it up,” Zach adds. “We had the time to perfect everything and get into our instruments like never before. We put all of our blood, sweat, and tears into this.” Why Don’t We ignite this chapter with the single “Fallin’.” Opening with an iconic drumline, the track steamrolls out of the gate towards a magnetic and massive refrain punctuated by fiery falsetto and a chant, “Maybe, we’ll just keep falling.” “Lyrically, I was thinking of a girl,” reveals Daniel. “When you’re thinking about committing to someone, you get those butterflies. It can be terrifying to get into a relationship, because we’re always moving around so much. Sometimes, you can’t help falling though.” “From the jump, we wanted to be super aggressive and in-your-face,” smiles Corbyn. “It’s not what people would expect from us.” In the end, Why Don’t We aren’t just the band they always wanted to be; they’re the band that pop music has been begging for. “Why Don’t We has really changed our lives in the craziest ways possible,” Corbyn concludes. “We’ve gotten the chance to travel the world and meet so many people. We can’t believe we’re living this dream. This is also a brotherhood. It’s a safe haven for each of us in times when we need it. It was really important to make a positive impact on fans and the world. It’s crazy to think we could do that by making music. We’re all musicians, and we’ve dreamed of doing this since we were kids. With this record, it feels like we’re going in the right direction.”
