Hayley King has played the violin since she was seven years old and was introduced to bluegrass music at the age of ten.  Throughout her elementary to high school music training, she attended the USC Strings Project youth orchestra.  During middle and high school, she also began to focus on Old-Time fiddle, competing in various regional music competitions.  She received first place in the junior division of the South Carolina State Fiddlers Convention at Hagood Mill in 2018, and in the Grayson County Fiddlers Convention’s youth division the same year.  She also was a recipient of the IBMA’s Sally Ann Forrester Scholarship in 2021 and the Rick Lang Music Songwriters’ Scholarship in 2022.

Hayley graduated from Morehead State University in May of 2023, where she earned a double major in Traditional Appalachian Music and Spanish.  During her college career, she was a part of the MSU’s traveling bluegrass band, opening for well-loved artists including Larry Sparks and Darrin and Brooke Aldridge.

She also co-produced a radio show called “Sounds of Our Heritage”, a radio program highlighting the musical endeavors of graduates and students of the Kentucky Center for Traditional Music.  She went on to write, produce and host a six-episode radio program through Morehead State Public Radio titled “Heart of the Orchard”, which discussed the musical history and tradition of different Appalachian musical styles.

Happy to be back in her hometown after graduation, Hayley is excited to begin a new chapter of her musical career by joining the Freeway Music team as a violin, fiddle and viola instructor.