As a child, most of us grew up watching Disney Channel. We have seen where most Disney stars end up, but instead of taking the route of being wild, Hayley Kiyoko, former Lemonade Mouth star, has put her time into making music.
Kiyoko, who is 27-years-old, just released her debut album Expectations, at the end of March, and begins her tour next week. It wasn’t easy for her to begin her stardom, which is still rising. She tells Harper’s Bazaar magazine, “I mean, I’ve been unsigned most of my career, and they’re the reason why I got signed. They’re the reason why I was able to do my own headlining tour. No one else would take me on tour to open for them. We’ve really created our own opportunities and platform, so it’s my job to see it through and be a good representation.”
Before Expectations, Kiyoko had released two EP albums, This Side of Paradise and Citrine, but the young singer can only expect going up from this point on. She has become more open about herself, including her mental health and her sexuality, which she had expressed throughout the album. She was “really intimidated by the stigma and stereotype of the label” of coming out, as Billboard states, but she was encouraged to be more comfortable with herself through a relationship she once had. As an artist, you put your heart, soul, and mind into what you create and that’s just what Kiyoko is doing. Like most up and coming artists, there will be struggles, whether it’s with life, through the production of music, or getting your music out there.
If you haven’t checked out Expectations yet, feel free to listen to it below through Spotify, or check it out on Apple Music and Amazon Music as well.