Photo via Radio City Music Hall’s Facebook page

On Friday night, Hayley Williams made a surprise appearance with David Byrne at New York’s iconic Radio City Music Hall. The Paramore singer–who is currently supporting her third solo effort, Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party–emerged during the former Talking Heads frontman’s show to sing and dance alongside Byrne’s backing combo on “What Is the Reason for It?” Wearing the same blue two-piece outfit as the rest of the group, Williams emerged unannounced, though Byrne introduced her after she left the stage. Later in the night, Williams returned to help Byrne through Paramore’s “Hard Times,” the Talking Heads-inspired tune from 2017’s After Laughter he has been covering during his current multi-media tour.

Byrne and Williams have made their mutual admiration known in recent years. Paramore covered the Talking Heads classic “Burning Down the House” on the 2024 tribute album Stop Making Sense, and Byrne responded by recording a version of “Hard Times” later that year. The two covers were even packaged as a special Record Store Day single offering. Williams also lent her services to Byrne’s 2025 LP Who Is the Sky?, appearing on “What Is the Reason for It?” and the performers recently worked on “Open the Door,” a new track from the soundtrack from the Netflix adaption of Roald Dahl’s The Twits.

Though Friday’s show was the third of Byrne’s four engagements at Radio City, it was the only to include a special guest appearance. Byrne will perform at Richmond, VA’s Altria Theater on Tuesday while Williams will sit for a conversation and performance with Jack Antonoff at New York’s Beacon Theater on October 23.