Despite dark storm clouds threatening rain above Forest Hills Stadium, Hayley Williams captivated her audience with a reinvigorating performance that sent a wave of positive, progressive energy through the Queens neighborhood.

Relief and release dominated the emotional tone on Sept. 17 — the second of Williams’ two-night stint at the former tennis stadium tucked away among Tudor Revival single-family homes and apartment buildings of the New York borough.

For many in attendance, the setting could have seemingly been anywhere and everywhere all at once as they sang along word-for-word with the celebrity and Paramore singer’s expansive catalog of solo material.

A significant portion of the performance was centered around Williams’ latest work, Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party, released nearly a year earlier in November 2025 on Post Atlantic, the artist’s own label.

The album is carried by ground-shaking bass lines that bring a funk-forward groove to the album while addressing subjects of love, loneliness, depression, new beginnings and life in the conservative South.

The undertaking, which tackled these heavy subjects with a smooth, soulful musical optimism, earned Williams her first Grammy nominations as a solo artist.

Propelled by the same rumbling bass found on the record, fellow Paramore bandmate Joey Howard performed on bass. Howard’s presence was bolstered with seamless percussion from Joey Mullen, another Paramore member.

Despite being Williams’ solo tour, the fan-celebrated “Parafour,” who back Williams under the Paramore banner, remain at their stations for this solo tour, with Brian Robert Jones carrying the melody on guitar and Logan Mackenzie filling out the sonic palette with additional textures from guitar and synthesizers.

The core ensemble is also joined by Amber Coffman, providing backing vocals, guitar and percussion alongside Anne E. Williamson on keyboard.

A special four-piece string ensemble named the True Believer Quartet also joined Williams onstage for specific live arrangements.

This collaborative energy reached a zenith with a reimagined rendition of “True Believer,” a deep criticism of contemporary conservative ideology in the United States and its deep-seated roots in Williams’ native Tennessee.

“The greatest threat to democracy is Christian Nationalism,” Williams told the audience, seated at her piano before performing the piece that draws a comparison between contradictions in conservative values and the gentrification of the state’s capital, Nashville, where Williams initially blossomed as a songwriter, musician and performer.

The energy and enthusiasm of the musicians remained palpable throughout the performance held in the stadium’s horseshoe-shaped bowl, which accommodates more than 13,000 people.

Even from afar, atop the action in the highest rows of the venue’s stadium benches, fans sang their hearts out as if they were in the front row of the general admission floor hundreds of feet away.

A highlight of the evening came during Williams’ performance of “Glum,” as the audience took part in singing the song’s chorus, sharing a communal moment of catharsis and overcoming the deep isolation the piece depicts.

“Do you ever feel so alone that you can implode and no one would know?” the audience sang along with Williams. “And when you look around and nobody’s home, Don’t you wanna go back to wherever we’re from? Wherever we’re from.”

This dedicated, enthusiastic and moved audience was a mix of millennials who likely followed Williams’ rise during the zenith of pop-punk’s popularity and hold on youth culture, alongside an equal number of younger fans, many of whom seem to be equally drawn to Williams not only for the artist’s musicianship but also for the artist’s fierce and vocal support of the LGBTQ+ community.

This positivity, self-love and commitment to community remained palpable throughout the night and beyond.

Every ticket sold for this performance and every night of “The Hayley Williams Show” tour in North America includes a $1 donation split between the nonprofit organizations REVERB and Support + Feed.

REVERB focuses on reducing the environmental footprint of live music touring while engaging fans to take climate action, while Support + Feed, founded by Billie Eilish’s mother, Maggie Baird, works to simultaneously battle food insecurity and the climate crisis by expanding access to plant-based food.

A food drive was also held on-site at the show by Support + Feed, collecting plant-based, nutrient-dense products from fans for distribution to local New York communities facing food scarcity.

This reformist and proactive spirit came to define the evening, serving as a reminder of the punk and alternative communities where Williams shaped her initial artistic identity. But now, nearly 20 years after the release of Riot!, Williams continues to make it blatantly clear that her music will not be held within the bounds of genre categorization or pop culture moments.

And by the sound of their many loud voices, singing in the dark of a cool summer night, listeners agree.