Why Don't We

**Why Don't We** (often abbreviated as **WDW**) are an American boy band assembled on September 27, 2016, in Los Angeles, California. The lineup consists of Jonah Marais, Corbyn Besson, Jack Avery, Zach Herron, and Daniel Seavey, all of whom had solo careers prior to forming the group, and met through social media events and shows. Their fans are named Limelights, originating from their debut single, "Taking You".

The group have been named as Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" in 2017, and were nominated for MTV's Push Artist of the Year in 2018. They have hit #1 on iTunes, been covered by the likes of *Billboard*, *Rolling Stone*, *Forbes*, *TIME*, *Teen Vogue*, *Seventeen*, headlined a sold-out tour, performed at Madison Square Garden, and played alongside artists such as Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Camila Cabello, The Chainsmokers, Logic, and Zedd at Jingle Balls in eleven major cities.

## Official biography

Multi-talented band Why Don't We have made their highly-anticipated return with new single "Love Back"—available now via Atlantic Records. Teaming up with GRAMMY-nominated producer JHart, the triumphant new track finds the quintet sounding refreshed as ever after a turbulent year, finding creative solace and marking the beginning an exciting new era for the group.

"We are so thankful to be able to release new music for our fans after they have been such an incredible support system for us throughout the past five years as a band. ‘Love Back' is the start of our most authentic chapter yet, and we can't wait for what's next." – WHY DON'T WE

Since their debut in 2016, Why Don't We has amassed over 3 billion global career streams, over 870 million YouTube views, 6 million Instagram followers, two RIAA Platinum-certified singles, four RIAA Gold-certified singles, two Top 20 singles at Pop radio, and two Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 chart. Taking an innovative and unconventional approach towards releasing new music and actively engaging their rapidly growing fanbase, the band put out their first five EPs within their first year together and followed shortly after with their inaugural full-length 8 Letters album in 2018. Soon after, 2019 saw the release of new singles monthly, including standouts "Big Plans," "I Don't Belong In This Club" featuring Macklemore, & the Ed Sheeran-penned/Steve Mac-produced hit "What Am I."

The Los Angeles quintet—Daniel Seavey, Corbyn Besson, Jonah Marais, Jack Avery, and Zach Herron—went back to basics for their sophomore album, flatlining all social media and picking up their instruments to personally write, record, and produce the music themselves. Led by the band's inaugural Billboard Hot 100 charting single "Fallin' (Adrenaline)," The Good Times and The Bad Ones earned their highest debut on the Billboard 200 at #3 and their first #1 album on the album sales chart.

The band has sold out back-to-back North American and global headline tours, in addition to performing on historic stages such as Radio City Music Hall (selling out the venue in under two hours) and Madison Square Garden (as part of the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour). Furthermore, Why Don't We took home the award for "Choice Music Group" at the 2019 Teen Choice Awards, received a nomination for "Best Group" at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, and has made high profile national television appearances on NBC's *TODAY* Show (including back-to-back summer concerts in Rockefeller Plaza), ABC's Good Morning America, nationally syndicated *Live with Kelly and Ryan*, *The Ellen DeGeneres Show*, NBC's *The Kelly Clarkson Show*, CBS's *The Late Late Show with James Corden*, ABC's *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* and more. (Official website)

## Career

### 2016-2017: Formation and career beginnings

Jon Lucero, the tour manager who ran Brave Fest, initially contacted Avery, Marais, Besson and Herron to fly out to Los Angeles and perform for the well-known group manager David Loeffler with his business partner, Randy Phillips. It was speculated that Reed Deming was intended to be the fifth member, but chose to go solo, and Avery messaged Seavey to fly down. Once Seavey arrived and performed with the four, the band was complete. The group officially formed on September 27, 2016, and announced it the next day through their YouTube account. In October 2016, the group released their debut single, "Taking You", the lead track from their first EP, *Only the Beginning*, which was released later on November 25th.

In 2017, they embarked on their headline tour, Taking You. That same year, their four extended plays, *Something Different* (April 21), *Why Don't We Just* (June 2), *Invitation* (September 26), and *A Why Don't We Christmas* (November 23) were released, and they wrapped up their Something Different Tour around the United States. Their non-album single, "These Girls", was released on August 29.

### 2018-2019: *8 Letters* and monthly singles

In 2018, they went on their third headlining tour in support of their fourth EP, *Invitation*, that traveled across North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. Their first studio album, *8 Letters*, was released on August 31, 2018, which was met with mixed reviews. Their headlining tour for the album began in March 2019. Additionally, they released a song for each month in 2019: "Big Plans", "Cold in LA", "I Don't Belong in This Club", "Don't Change", "Unbelievable", "Come to Brazil", "I Still Do", "What Am I", "Mad at You", "With You This Christmas", and "Chills".

### 2020-present: *The Good Times and The Bad Ones*

The group took an 8-month hiatus during the start of 2020, where they recorded new material. They released the single "Fallin'" (later renamed "Fallin' (Adrenaline)" to avoid confusion with a previous song, "Can't You See") on September 29, 2020. It was introduced as the lead single from their sophomore album, *The Good Times and The Bad Ones*. On December 4, 2020, the band released the second single from the album, "Lotus Inn". On December 9th, the band released the single "Slow Down" without any promotion, which interpolated the Smashing Pumpkin's "1979".

On January 15, 2021, the band released their sophomore album, containing ten tracks. It generated mixed criticism, though was recognized as a transition into maturity by Matt Collar of AllMusic. The record reached the top 10 albums on *Billboard* within a week, and by January 24, secured the number 3 spot. On January 27, the album reached number one on the *Billboard* charts, a new record for the band.

In 2022, their first piece of music was a collaboration with Jonas Blue on "Don't Wake Me Up". Their single "Let Me Down Easy (Lie)" was released in April, with "Just Friends" and "How Do You Love Somebody" the following month. The band had plans to embark on their fifth headlining tour, The Good Times Only Tour starting July 2022, but was forced to cancel it due to legal complications. In light of the announcement, the band is also on an indefinite hiatus.

## Band members

* Corbyn Besson (2016-present)
* Daniel Seavey (2016-present)
* Jack Avery (2016-present)
* Jonah Marais (2016-present)
* Zach Herron (2016-present)

## Artistry

In an interview, Seavey stated that their musical style has a mix of Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake, and The Chainsmokers. Individual influences include Jaden Smith, Jon Bellion, Frank Ocean, and they collectively list Ed Sheeran as their inspiration, who has helped penned their single, "Trust Fund Baby" (2018) and "What Am I" (2019). They considered their sound to be "urban" and "R&B".

## Discography

Main article: Discography
* *8 Letters* (2018)
* *The Good Times and The Bad Ones* (2021)

## Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations
## Tours

### Headlining

* Taking You Tour (2017)
* Something Different Tour (2017)
* Invitation Tour (2018)
* 8 Letters Tour (2019)
* The Good Times Only Tour (2022) (Cancelled)

## Publications

* *Why Don't We: In the Limelight*, HarperCollins (30 October 2018) ISBN 9780062871329

## Trivia

* The first time they heard they were going to be on the radio, they were eating at a fancy Italian restaurant with their managers and sprinted back to the manager's car to listen.
* It was said that they spent a week together in LA and the idea of forming a band came to mind.
* 4/5 agreed that their mother is the person that they look up to, but Marais said both of his parents, causing Seavey to reply that Marais didn't really answer the question.
* All four collectively agree that they would switch hairstyles with Marais.
* They went to Hawaii in May for last five days vacation before tour.
* Marais and Seavey recorded part of "Lotus Inn" in a hotel room, with their mic hanging from a lamp.
* In 2017, they said if they could collaborate with any artist, it would be Ed Sheeran.
* Their favorite song to perform on the Taking You Tour: "Nobody Gotta Know" (Herron), "Taking You" (Avery and Besson), and "Free" (Seavey and Marais).
* For Batman versus Spider-Man, only Herron thinks Batman would win, while the rest of the band think it's Spider-Man.
* They've worn jeans with some of their song titles, "Hooked" and "Trust Fund Baby". "Rare Find" and "Smooth Charm" were also guessed to be future songs, but it was not.
* Over an Instagram livestream on August 11, 2018, they jokingly made up lyrics to "Rare Find": *She's just a rare find
 On a dirt road
 She's just a rare find
 She played my heart like a banjo
 In Alabama
 On a Saturday night
 Anywhere that we can go
 I rode my deer back home*

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Dana Rose Falcone. "Why Don't We: What to Know About the Hot New Boy Band". *People*. December 15, 2017.
2. ↑ "MTV VMAs 2018 Complete Winners List". *Billboard*.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 *Why Don't We: In the Limelight*. Chapter 8: Boot Camp. Pages 210-228.
4. ↑ "The Good Times and the Bad Ones - Why Don't We | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic"
5. ↑ Locke, Ashley (October 26, 2016). "Boy Band Why Don't We Shares the Story Behind How They Formed Their Group. *sweety high*.
6. ↑ "Why Don't We Are Climbing The Charts | ONES TO WATCH". *ET Canada*. July 24, 2017.
7. ↑ Raisa Bruner. "Meet Why Don't We, One of 2017's Biggest Breakout Boybands". *Time*. December 19, 2017. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
8. ↑ "WATCH: Why Don't We Sing A Cappella Chubby Bunny Christmas Song". December 10, 2017.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Why Don't We's DANIEL SEAVEY over daten: "If she's THE ONE for me and she's a FAN, then…" | #Fangirl". *MTV Nederland*. June 11, 2018.
10. ↑ "Why Don't We Surprised With Puppies, Talk Jake Paul, What They Look For In A Girl & More". *PeopleTV*. November 9, 2017.
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "WHY DON'T WE: INTERVIEW & LIVE STREAM!". *YSBnow*. July 12, 2017.

## External links

* Official website
* Why Don't We on Apple Music
* Why Don't We (@whydontwemusic) on Facebook
* Why Don't We at the Internet Movie Database
* Why Don't We (@whydontwemusic) on Instagram
* Why Don't We on SoundCloud
* Why Don't We on Spotify
* Why Don't We (@whydontwemusic) on Twitter
* Why Don't We on YouTube