Category Archives: Walker Hayes

It took Walker Hayes over a decade to break into the country mainstream, but when he finally landed a Top Ten hit in 2017, “You Broke Up with Me” landed with the force of an explosion — appropriate, since its parent album was called boom. This 2017 album came six years after his full-length debut, Reason to Rhyme, announced a promising talent in a bro-country vein, but boom. was fresh work that fused modern R&B, contemporary country, hip-hop, and rock, announcing a distinctive talent.

Hayes is a native of Mobile, Alabama, born in that city on December 27, 1979. He grew up in Mobile, dividing his time between music and sports as a child and teenager. He wound up earning a music degree from Alabama’s Birmingham-Southern College, then attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Hayes and his wife moved to Nashville in 2005 with dreams that he would become a professional musician. He signed a song-publishing deal and then, on the strength of a demo he recorded for Keith Urban, Hayes inked a deal with Mercury before quickly moving to Capitol Records. Hayes released his debut single, “Pants,” in 2010, which wound up reaching 60 on the Hot Country Songs chart. The full-length Reason to Rhyme followed in 2011, but it didn’t chart.

8Tracks, Vol. 1: Good Shit

Over the next few years, Hayes worked as a songwriter, landing placements with Colt Ford and Rodney Atkins in 2014. Capitol dropped him, so he worked at Costco as he continued to write, releasing the single “Pimpin’ Joy” to little attention in 2014. Shane McAnally signed him to SMACK/RareSpark in 2016, leading him to release two EPs — 8Tracks, Vol. 1: Good Shit and 8Tracks, Vol. 2: Break the Internet — that year. Hayes landed a contract with Monument in 2017, which released “You Broke Up with Me” that year. The song became a hit, earning gold certification and setting up the release of the full-length boom. in December 2017. The album debuted at number six on the Top Country Albums chart, and peaked at number 37 on the Billboard 200. The reference-heavy single “90s Country” arrived in 2018, followed by the heartfelt “Don’t Let Her” in 2019.

Artist Biography by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Walker Hayes kicks off TikTok x NHL Partnership with Exclusive Performance

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Walker Hayes kicks off TikTok x NHL Partnership with Exclusive Performance

Walker Hayes is no stranger to TikTok fame – his single, “Fancy Like” went viral when he and his teenage daughter posted their own dance for it. The adorable video has been viewed over 34.9M times and appeared in a national ad campaign for Applebees. The single has made a splash on music charts, spending a collective 6 months and counting at the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Country Songs Chart and hitting the top 5 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Songs. “Fancy Like” is now certified RIAA 2X Platinum and has given Hayes his first GRAMMY Award nomination as an artist for Best Country Song. 

Amazon Music Celebrates Country Music Month

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Walker Hayes on Country Music News Blog

Amazon Music Celebrates Country Music Month With New Music and Livestreaming Events Featuring Reba McEntire, Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde, Reyna Roberts, and More Walker Hayes and Carin Leon collaborate on a brand-new Amazon Original song, out today on Amazon Music New data reveals Country Heat, the global country music brand for Amazon Music, has surpassed 13 billion streams in the U.S. since its first station launched in October 2016

Walker Hayes Donates $10,000 to Hope International Through His BE A CRAIG Fund

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WALKER HAYES DONATES $10,000 to HOPE INTERNATIONAL THROUGH HIS BE A CRAIG FUND Wednesday, November 4th, 2019 – in honor of Giving Tuesday, Walker Hayes played to a packed house at the Listening Room Cafe last night, with 100% of the proceeds going to HOPE International, via Walker’s Be A Craig Fund. In addition to proceeds from the show, The Be A Craig Fund donated a total of $10,000 to HOPE International – an organization that invests in the dreams of families in the world’s underserved communities through services, and loans that restore dignity and break the cycle of poverty. Walker Hayes gets asked all the time if the character, Craig, from his song of the same name is a real person. As the song highlights, Walker and his family were going through a tough time. Walker’s career wasn’t moving like he wanted it to and he was feeling the pressures of providing for his 6 children and wife, Laney. One day, at church, a man named Craig noticed that the Hayes family was piled into a small car that didn’t have enough seats for all of them. The next day, Craig showed up with the keys and title to a new minivan and handed them to Walker. Craig’s kindness meant that the family would have a vehicle big enough for all of the Hayes children to have a seatbelt. That incredible gesture sparked Walker to write the song, “Craig,” and inspired him to create the Be A Craig Fund as a way to pay it forward to the next one in line who needs a hand. This giving Tuesday, Walker payed it forward by hosting this concert at The Listening Room, with 100% of the proceeds benefiting HOPE International via the Be A Craig Fund. Walker hopes the Be A Craig Fund will encourage others to seek out opportunities to help those who may need a little extra love. Learn more about the Be A Craig Fund HERE.