You might not know her yet, but believe us you will. This weeks Campus Celeb is Nicole Hayley! She’s a third year Ethnomusicology major here at UCLA, born and raised in Los Angeles. Oh, and did we mention that she’s an incredibly talented singer and songwriter?! We were lucky enough to snatch a second with this busy bee and ask her some questions.
What is your passion in life?
Music! Specifically, writing and performing it. I grew up playing classical piano, and transitioned into writing my own music (and picking up guitar) when I was about 15 – but I’ve been singing for as long as I can remember. Songwriting is the most therapeutic form of expression for me, and the idea that my songs can help other people feel less alone is incredibly inspiring.
How would you describe your music style?
As an artist, my style falls into the indie-pop genre, with influences like Lana del Rey, Sara Bareilles, Norah Jones, and more recently, Sylvan Esso. As a songwriter, my songs range from folk to alt-pop. I tend to write about certain aspects of our generation that could be our downfall – for instance, the competitive nature present in our every day lives due to social media, or the “college culture” that compels people to mask their insecurities (especially at night). Musically and lyrically, these songs are love letters to the people and the world around us.
Has anything exciting happening recently/soon?
I’ve been working with some incredible writers over the past few months – Dan Heath (Lana del Rey), Peter Harper and Jay Blynn (Sara Bareilles), and Carl Restivo (Tom Morello) to name a few, and we recently recorded a TON of songs (15!!) that we will be releasing very soon! My band and I are also playing a show at Genghis Cohen in West Hollywood on November 5th. It’s going to be a fantastic night, so if you’re free, come on out and hang with us!!
If anyone is interested in going to the show please email Nicole at nicolehaley97@gmail.com for details