Why Don't We, shortened to WDW, are an American boy band consisting of Jonah Marais, Corbyn Besson, Daniel Seavey, Jack Avery, and Zach Herron. They were formed in 2016 and have released two

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

s and six

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

History

2016–2017: Career beginnings

The band originally formed on September 27, 2016, after having all met in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the mo ...

a year prior. On October 20, 2016, the group released their debut single "Taking You", a track from their debut EP, ''Only the Beginning'', which was released on November 25 of the same year. They embarked on their first headlining tour, the "Taking You Tour", the next year. Their second EP, ''Something Different'', was released on April 21, 2017. Following the release of their second EP, they embarked on the Something Different Tour, their second headlining tour. The group's third EP, ''Why Don't We Just'', was released on June 2, 2017. In September 2017, the band signed with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most ...

. That same month, ''Invitation'', their fourth EP, was released. On November 23, 2017, they released their fifth EP, ''A Why Don't We Christmas''. In 2018, in support of the ''Invitation'' EP, they headlined the " Invitation Tour". Additionally the band has appeared in several

vlog A video blog or video log, sometimes shortened to vlog (), is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in ...

s of

YouTuber A YouTuber is an online personality and/or influencer who produces videos on the video-sharing platform YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006. Influence Influe ...

Logan Paul Logan Alexander Paul (born April 1, 1995) is an American media personality, podcaster, actor, and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand, but is inactive due to a knee injury. He has over 23 ...

2018–2019: ''8 Letters'' and 12/12 era

On August 31, 2018, they released their first album, ''

8 Letters ''8 Letters'' is the debut full-length studio album by American boy band Why Don't We. The album was released on August 31, 2018, by Atlantic Records in the United States and by Warner Music Group elsewhere. The album was supported by three si ...

''. The record debuted at number nine on the US ''Billboard'' 200, and was preceded by three singles: " Hooked", "

Talk Talk may refer to: Communication * Communication, the encoding and decoding of exchanged messages between people * Conversation, interactive communication between two or more people * Lecture, an oral presentation intended to inform or instruct ...

", and "

". In March 2019, they embarked on the "8 Letters Tour". Why Don't We released a new song each month in 2019. On January 16, they released " Big Plans", and a music video was released three days later. The song received a gold certification from the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

in April 2020. On

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, the group released "Cold In LA", along with a music video two days later. On March 20, 2019 they released the humorous song " I Don't Belong in This Club" featuring American rapper

Macklemore Benjamin Hammond Haggerty (born June 19, 1983), better known by his stage name Macklemore ( ; (formerly Professor Macklemore), is an American rapper and songwriter. A native of Seattle, Washington, he has collaborated with producer Ryan L ...

. It was certified gold by the RIAA in August 2020. On April 20, the group released "Don't Change", which was featured on the

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's '' Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' ...

of the animated film '' UglyDolls''. In May, the group unveiled their fifth song of the year, "Unbelievable". In June, they released "Come To Brazil", inspired by fans frequently asking them to visit the country. On July 26, the band released the song "I Still Do". On August 23, they released " What Am I", penned by

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...

, who previously wrote " Trust Fund Baby". The song was certified gold by the RIAA in June of the following year. On October 25, they released "Mad At You". The following month, the group released the

Christmas song Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject m ...

"With You This Christmas". On December 30, the group released their twelfth and final song of 2019, "Chills". The group then took a nine-month break shortly after the music video release.

2020–2022: ''The Good Times and the Bad Ones'' and hiatus

On September 29, 2020, the band released " Fallin' (Adrenaline)", the lead single from their second album, '' The Good Times and the Bad Ones''. It debuted at number 37 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, their first ever entry. Their second single from the album, " Lotus Inn", was released on December 4, 2020. They starred in a

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

documentary titled ''30 Days With'', which showed the last stages of development and behind the scenes content of their then-upcoming album for 30 days. Their third single from the album, "Slow Down", was released on December 17, 2020. On January 15, 2021, ''The Good Times and The Bad Ones'' was released. The album is largely self-produced, although it also features the productions of

Travis Barker Travis Landon Barker (born November 14, 1975) is an American musician who serves as the drummer for the rock band Blink-182. He has also performed as a frequent collaborator with hip hop artists, is a member of the rap rock group Transp ...

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, and

Timbaland Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...

. The album debuted at number 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart, making this their highest entry on the chart. The band released the single "Love Back" on October 6, 2021. The band then release a cover of Justin Bieber's "

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" in December that same year. In January 2022, they released their next single in collaboration with Jonas Blue: " Don't Wake Me Up", followed by "Let Me Down Easy (Lie)" in April, “Just Friends” on May 13, and “How Do You Love Somebody” on May 31. The band's North American tour, The Good Times Only Tour, was scheduled to commence in June 2022, but was canceled due to the litigation between Why Don't We current manager Randy Phillips and former manager David Loeffler. The band rescheduled the tour with new dates beginning in July. However, on July 6, exactly three weeks before the tour's first show, the band announced that due to ongoing legal battles with their former management, they would be cancelling the tour and going on a hiatus.

Musical influences

The band has cited

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

as their main musical inspiration, in addition to 5 Seconds of Summer,

Boyz II Men Boyz II Men (pronounced ''boys to men''), also known as B2M, is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are currently a trio composed of baritone Natha ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

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Childish Gambino Donald McKinley Glover Jr. (; born September 25, 1983), also known by his stage name Childish Gambino (), is an American entertainer, writer, director, and producer. After working in Derrick Comedy while studying at New York University, Glo ...

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and

CNCO CNCO is a Latin American boy band based in Miami, Florida. The group consists of Richard Camacho, Erick Brian Colón, Christopher Vélez and Zabdiel De Jesús; former member Joel Pimentel departed the band in May 2021. They won a five-year rec ...

Band members

Jack Robert Avery

Jack Robert Avery (born July 1, 1999) was born in

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, wh ...

, but raised in

Susquehanna, Pennsylvania Susquehanna Depot, often referred to simply as Susquehanna, is a borough in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, United States, located on the Susquehanna River southeast of Binghamton, New York. In the past, railroad locomotives and railroad car ...

. Avery released a solo single called "Liar" in 2016 and was part of the meet-and-greet tour "Impact", which members Zach Herron and Corbyn Besson were also a part of. He also starred in a short film called ''Fearless Five''. On April 22, 2019, Avery's former girlfriend, Gabriela Gonzalez, gave birth to their daughter.

Corbyn Matthew Besson

Corbyn Matthew Besson (born November 25, 1998) was born in

Dallas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, but raised in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

. Besson went to high school in

Centreville, Virginia Centreville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States and a suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 73,518 as of the 2020 census. Centreville is approximately west of Washington, D.C. History Colonia ...

. Besson's cousins are Dutch girl group O'G3NE. Before Why Don't We, he had a following on

YouNow YouNow is a American broadcasting service where users stream their own live video content or interact with the video streams of other users in real time. The service is available on its website, on Android and iOS apps. As of August 2015, the ...

and released a solo single called "The Only One" to

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mu ...

in 2014. His other acoustic single, "Marathon", was also released on the platform.

Zachary Dean Herron

Zachary Dean Herron (born May 27, 2001), the youngest member of the group, was raised in

. Growing up, he sang in the choir. Before Why Don't We, Herron covered songs on YouTube and also produced two singles himself, "Timelapse" and "Why".

Jonah Marais Roth Frantzich

Jonah Marais Roth Frantzich (born June 16, 1998), the oldest member of the group, grew up in

Stillwater, Minnesota Stillwater is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Washington County. It is in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, on the west bank of the St. Croix River, across from Houlton, Wisconsin. Stillwater's popul ...

. Before Why Don't We, Marais had a following on YouNow and released an album, ''When the Daylight's Gone'', in 2016 and went on the 2014 DigiTour.

Daniel James Seavey

Daniel James Seavey (born April 2, 1999), born in

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, located in Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Wa ...

. He grew up in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populou ...

. A main producer of the band, he can play over 20 instruments by ear. As a child, his father would take him to do street performances on the city's art walks. Seavey competed on season 14 of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to A ...

'' and finished in ninth place. He also has released multiple songs on his own including his newest singles "Bleed on Me" and "Can We Pretend That We're Good?".

Tours

Headlining *Taking You Tour (2017) *Something Different Tour (2017) * Invitation Tour (2018) * 8 Letters Tour (2019)

Discography

* ''

'' (2018) * '' The Good Times and the Bad Ones'' (2021)

Awards and nominations

iHeartRadio MMVAs

! , - ,

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, Themselves , Fan Fave New Artist , ,

iHeartRadio Music Awards

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, Themselves , Best Boy Band , rowspan="4" , , - , rowspan="2",

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, Limelights , Best Fan Army , rowspan="2" , , - , Zack Caspary , Favorite Tour Photographer , - , rowspan="2",

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

, Limelights , Best Fan Army , rowspan="2" , , - , Zack Caspary , Favorite Tour Photographer ,

MTV Europe Music Awards

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, Themselves , Best Push , ,

MTV Video Music Awards

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, Themselves , Push Artist of the Year , , , - ,

, Themselves , Best Group , ,

Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards

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, rowspan="2", Themselves , Favorite Musical YouTube Creator , rowspan="2" , , - ,

, Favorite Social Music Star ,

Radio Disney Music Awards

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, Themselves ,

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, rowspan="2" , rowspan="2", , - , " These Girls" , Best Song to Lip Sync to

Teen Choice Awards

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" , Choice Song: Group

Explanatory notes

References

"In the Limelight" Autobiography of the boys

External links

* {{authority control 2016 establishments in California American boy bands Atlantic Records artists Musical groups established in 2016 Musical groups from Los Angeles Vocal quintets