ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Hayley Kiyoko

Hayley Kiyoko, known by her fans as "Lesbian Jesus", is a gift to us all. 

She started as an actor on the Disney Channel, and you might’ve seen her in the 2011 movieLemonade Mouth (If anyone hasn’t seen it, you really should) or in Freeform's "The Fosters". But ever since the 2015 release of her second EP, This Side of Paradise, Kiyoko has quickly become a pop star and a queer icon!

One of the songs on this EP is “Girls Like Girls”, and the title kind of says it all. Hayley Kiyoko was definitely making a statement, telling everyone that she is unashamed of being gay. And she went even further with the music video. Starring Stefanie Scott (another Disney star) and Kelsey Asbille, Kiyoko co-directed the story about two girls falling in love. I think the view count (Over 109 million as of this writing!) pretty much explains just how much people loved it. 

Since then, Hayley’s only gotten bigger. She consistently speaks out about things like helping LGBTQ+ youth, representation in media, and her experience being biracial, all while working on and releasing new music. In 2016, she releasedCitrine, her next EP, which includes the single “Gravel to Tempo”, the music video for which was completely directed by Kiyoko.

At the beginning of 2018, Hayley Kiyoko finally released her first full album,Expectations, which includes singles like “Feelings”, “Curious”, and “What I Need” feat. Kehlani. She also recently went on tour with Panic! at the Disco, whose lead singer, Brendon Urie, is another queer role model, plus you can see her in Taylor Swift’s new music video for “You Need to Calm Down”. As for acting, Kiyoko hasn’t forgotten that passion, and she currently stars in the Facebook Watch show "Five Points", whose Season 2 premieres Monday, August 5.

Outspoken and totally original, Hayley Kiyoko continues to prove to everyone that you don’t need to hide or change yourself to get people to like you. Funny, beautiful, and supremely talented, we love her and can’t wait to see what she does next!