Laney Beville Hayes and Walker Hayes

You might know Walker Hayes ’02 as the Applebee’s guy, or the Nashville-based country artist and family man, but we remember him as a piano major at BSC. Hayes always channeled the music kid you only see in movies. He would instantly find the piano in the room – he could play almost anything – and he would make up songs on the fly.

Hayes’ summer track, “Fancy Like,” took 2021 by storm, and it’s bringing his favorite low-key date spots with his wife, Laney Beville Hayes ’01, into the limelight. He saw the track hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Digital Song Sales chart and spend consecutive weeks on the Hot Country Songs chart.

The ode to the Wendy’s Frosty and Applebee’s Bourbon Street Steak has also inspired the viral TikTok dance started by Hayes and his daughter, Lela. Since its release, the song and dance have swept the Internet, leading to Hayes’ appearances on “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” “CBS Sunday Morning,” and “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” plus a Grammy nomination for Best Country Song. Hayes also toured throughout the fall and released his single “U Gurl” on Oct. 14.

Some alumni – especially those in the choir with Hayes – might remember him for his musical moments, or for his goofier moments. Any time the choir got on the bus for a trip or performance, Hayes booked his way to the front, grabbed the microphone, and sang “Rappers Delight.”

We’ll have to grab a Natty Light sometime soon and hear more of Hayes’ best BSC stories.

This story was published in the Fall/Winter 2021 issue of ’Southern, BSC’s alumni magazine.

If you have ideas for our next issue of ’Southern, please email [email protected]. We always welcome stories about outstanding people from the BSC community.

Listen to Walker Hayes on Spotify here.