University Songwriter Spreads Positivity Through Original Works and Self-produced Music Videos

When Hayley Fahey was a 1-year-old, her father bought her a miniature piano in hopes that she would learn to play.

And she did, at age 3, when her grandmother began to teach her. A year later, Fahey remembers loving to sing.

“My mom says I’ve been singing since I was a baby. Like I would wake up and sing instead of crying,” she said.

Today, Fahey is not only a singer and musician who performs solo and in an a cappella group, but also a songwriter, radio station intern and an instructor who teaches vocal, guitar and piano lessons.

As a junior broadcast journalism major at College Park, Fahey only has one goal: to spread positive messages to the world.

Fahey said she wants to create good music while transmitting a message that evokes positivity in the world. As a sustainability minor who cares about environmental issues, she said Jason Mraz’s and Jack Johnson’s efforts inspire her.

She currently teaches lessons to two high school students who recently performed at a nursing home.

“It’s just about their confidence and developing their own musicianship as well,” Fahey said. “It’s really cool to teach them.”

Fahey manages her own website and produces various YouTube videos. (Photo courtesy of Gary McKee/For The Bloc)
Fahey manages her own website and produces various YouTube videos. (Photo courtesy of Gary McKee/For The Bloc)

Despite her rigorous schedule and demanding course load at the university, she still finds time to perform and generate buzz for her own music career.

Fahey has entered various talent shows and received an executive producer callbacks for “The Voice” as well as a callback for “American Idol.”

And she is boosting her social media presence, accumulating about 1,000 likes on Facebook and more than 5,000 followers on Twitter.

Some of her tweets also help promote the a cappella group she is a part of at the university, PandemoniUM.

Sophomore accounting major and PandemoniUM Treasurer Chandler Pierce said Fahey has a “natural talent” and all of her commitments only manage to “strengthen each other.”

Fahey has also collaborated with junior mechanical engineering major and producer Julian Lofton who works with students around campus on musical projects.

“Working with Hayley was actually really different,” Lofton said. “She’s definitely the most dedicated musician I’ve worked with since doing this.”

Lofton said he usually writes the music but Fahey came to him eager to collaborate on something she had already written.

He said she was “disciplined” and “incredibly productive” at meetings but still fun to work with. And together, they created a song titled “Truth.”

Fahey has recorded 50 songs in her at-home studio and has written almost 100. She hopes to release an album in the near future with 10 to 12 of her favorite creations.

Fahey said she wants to continue pursuing music throughout her life and bring important issues to light such as climate change, whether it’s through journalism, photos, video or music.

“I’m putting out positive messages about peace, about love, about being one all together, and I think that’s something the world needs,” Fahey said.

Jordan Branch is a junior multiplatform journalism and government and politics major and can be reached at jordane.branch@gmail.com.


One response to “University Songwriter Spreads Positivity Through Original Works and Self-produced Music Videos”

  1. Patrick Fahey Avatar

    That’s my wonderful niece, doing what comes natural. Whenever I visit family out east, Hayley and I would do a show locally. Rehearsals were always efficient and fun, as fun as the gigs themselves! Local audiences would always feel they saw something special. Hayley was as disciplined as the many professional musicians with whom I play and record in SF and LA. Haley always taking her audience on a journey.

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