On The Row: Haley & Michaels Preview New Music

Haley & Michaels

Country duo Haley & Michaels visited the MusicRow office on Wednesday (Aug. 29) to show off their impressive harmonies and preview new music.

The Californians met in Nashville after their mutual guitar player from their solo projects connected the two. Over coffee at Frothy Monkey, they immediately bonded over their love of country music and realized they had actually grown up three miles from each other in northern California. Not long after meeting, Shannon Haley and Ryan Michaels formed Haley & Michaels.

Haley & Michaels inked a deal just last year with Sony/ATV and its New York-based label imprint Hickory Records, which later partnered with Reviver Records in Nashville. The duo is now gearing up to release their first single to country radio, “Taking Off.”

“We started writing and singing with each other right away and eventually got married,” Haley explains of the single. “We got to chance to write this song with our friends Zach Abend and Corey Crowder, and were talking about the beginnings in our relationship and our career. Everything felt like it was just exploding all at one time. We were going on to new chapters all at once– since we both worked together and were starting a new relationship.”

Pictured (L-R): MusicRow’s Eric Parker, Haley Crow, Alex Kobrick, Reviver’s Bob Reeves, Ryan Michaels, Shannon Haley, MusicRow‘s Sherod Robertson, Jessica Nicholson, and LB Rogers

Another song the pair played, “High Note,” was inspired by a phone conversation between the two while Michaels was leaving Desert Trip, a California music festival featuring Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones, and more. “I’m leaving on a high note,” Michaels told Haley over the phone, which lead to her reply, “That’s great about the concert but we have to write that!” The track was produced by Zach Abend and Phil Barton and has already seen over a million streams on Spotify.

Haley & Michaels also previewed a song inspired by their mutual love of football, “Hail Mary.” The pair hope to have it out at least by opening day of the upcoming season.

The visit was a full circle moment for the duo. “My dad was a pedal steel player so he was going to Bakersfield and doing all that in California, and my first MusicRow Magazine came from my dad,” Michaels says, “so I’ve actually been reading MusicRow for a long time. It’s cool to be here and meet all you guys.”

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LB Cantrell

LB Cantrell is Editor/Director of Operations at MusicRow magazine, where she oversees, manages and executes all company operations. LB oversees all MusicRow-related content, including the publication’s six annual print issues and online news. She is a Georgia native and a graduate of the Recording Industry Management program at Middle Tennessee State University.

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