Walker Hayes And His Six Kids Team Up With Great Clips For Back-To-School Campaign, Showcasing the Power Of A New Haircut

The campaign also features a sneak peek at a new Walker Hayes song fittingly titled, “Haircut.”

By

Madeleine O’Connell

| Posted on

July 25, 2023

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1:40 pm

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Walker Hayes and Family; Photo Provided

Walker Hayes has teamed up with Great Clips for a new back-to-school campaign that highlights just how much of an impact a new haircut can have on a kid’s confidence, especially as they prepare for that first day of reuniting with their peers in the classroom. 

While discussing the new partnership with Country Now, Hayes explained that this collaboration not only gave him the chance to incorporate his family into his work, but also taught him some important lessons on how much a kid’s mental health can be affected even in their early years. 

“Honestly, it just made sense. I mean, it’s a real product we use, it’s a real brand that I stand beside and have used my whole life, and especially with kids it’s where we would go to get a haircut,” he shared. “And I love anyone who is excited about getting my family involved because that’s just basically take your kid to work day.”

Walker Hayes and Family; Photo Provided
Walker Hayes and Family; Photo Provided

According to a new survey of 1,000 parents of school-aged children, Great Clips found that two in five parents (nearly 40%) believe their child is self-conscious about their hair ahead of the first day of school, more so than other appearance characteristics such as weight (27%), teeth (21%), skin condition (20%) and height (15%). Along with this information, it was also found that 52% of parents believe a fresh haircut gives their child a boost of confidence. 

In an effort to bring awareness to this data, the country singer and his six kids, Lela, Chapel, Baylor, Beckett, Loxley, and Everly, came together to film a new video called “In The Green Room.” As they each take a seat in a Great Clips chair, they discuss the similarities between Hayes’ time on the road and kids spending their days in school, such as studying lyrics before going on stage or reviewing notes and homework ahead of a test.

Hayes even threw in a few dad jokes that got his kids laughing and feeling confident in their fresh looks, showcasing how powerful a haircut can be. 

Walker Hayes; Photo Provided
Walker Hayes; Photo Provided

“I’m drawn to any campaign with a positive message and one thing, I loved all the research. I mean, they told me facts that I didn’t know like how many kids are very self-conscious about their hair. And look, I’ve got six kids, seven to 17, and I don’t know what the deal is about these days, but kids have a lot of anxiety. I don’t really know why, maybe it’s ’cause of socials, maybe just the world’s in a place that cultivates that kind of stuff right now, but I feel like kids have more pressures than I did.”

He continued, “So for my kids to all pop out of a chair with that little boost, I mean, even when we left that campaign that day, I should have videoed them in the car. Everybody was complimenting each other and laughing and just bragging. Some of ’em were like, ‘mine’s better,’ one of ’em, my youngest Everly, she literally cut it in half like a little bob, I guess you call it, and she just was grinning, swinging her hair back and forth. And Loxley, the little girl closest to her was just like, ‘oh my gosh, she looks so great.’ And she was like, ‘I kinda wish I’d have done that too.’ And then Everly would say, ‘no, no, no, I like yours.’ The lady did great. It was a fun experience to hear them kinda sharing how they express themselves with their hair.”

YouTube video

After learning of this new data shared by Great Clips and being a well-seasoned dad himself, Walker Hayes shared some advice that he’s learned from his experience as a parent with six kids who are all still in school. 

“As it pertains, to hair…look, I’m not like the perfect dad, just ask my kids, but my wife and I decided early on some battles that we just weren’t gonna choose. Growing up for me, I always had long hair and it was a battle. I mean, it was a point of contention with my father. We didn’t ever get in a fight about it, but we got in some word fights about it, and I just decided I’m not gonna fight that battle. I’m gonna give my kids that freedom.”

The “Fancy Like” singer went on to say that in his case, giving the kids this freedom to express themselves has allowed them to have a better relationship and elicit more understanding between them in the tougher moments.

“They can literally all pick their hair,” he continued. “If my son Chapel wants to buzz his hair off tomorrow, go for it, that’s you. That’s a great exercise in ‘hey, you’re not me. I’m not living vicariously through you. If you want a mohawk, wear a mohawk.’ Learning how people look at you, maybe it matters, maybe it doesn’t, I’m just not gonna fight that battle. So I would advise parents to do the same ’cause it hasn’t been a point of contention with any of my children and we’ve been able to invest our time and energy in things that Laney and I feel are more important.”

Walker Hayes and Family; Photo Provided
Walker Hayes and Family; Photo Provided

As part of the campaign, Walker Hayes also gets to showcase his new song, “Haircut,” which coincidently was written with his favorite Nashville songwriter, Shane McAnally just one week before he was approached for the campaign. 

The tune hones in Hayes’ signature style with its catchy chorus and sing-along lyrics that replicates the excitement of “feeling fresher than a haircut.”

“It’s hilarious because Shane, basically when his label and his publishing company signed me, they recommended that I get a haircut and I wasn’t really open-minded to that because I had always had shaggy hair. When they cut my hair, I became obsessed. I mean, it felt so good to have a real haircut that actually looked good and clean,” Hayes admitted. “Ever since then, I’ve been obsessed with haircuts. So he brought me that song idea and lo and behold, the next week Great Clips approached me and my family.”

Walker Hayes is currently balancing his dad duties with life on the road for his Duck Buck Tour. This headlining run kicked off April 13 in Rosemont, IL and is slated to continue through August 5, when he will wrap things up in Sterling Heights, MI. 

Once he closes the chapter on this stint of shows, Hayes explained that he hopes to continue writing music, give more attention to a few side projects he’s got in the works and maybe even enjoy some uninterrupted downtime at home. 

“I’m always writing. First and foremost, my favorite thing is just writing songs…It’s been a while since I’ve put a big chunk of music out. I put a few songs out here and there, but this will probably be at least six or seven,” Hayes explained. “And then, I love extracurricular projects like this. I’m actually working with my producer Shane on kind of an animated film thing on the side, so I’m definitely gonna have some more time to dive into that.”

He continued, “But really, sometimes it’s fun to come completely off the road and while people in the town I live in they know me and they’re very kind and they know that I have stuff on the radio and songs and stuff, but it’s kind of fun to just step away for a minute and just be dad. I definitely don’t mind seasons where I get to do that, but then those seasons, they also get me fired up to get back out there and start playing in the next tour.”

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Madeleine O’Connell graduated from North Central College with a bachelors degree in Journalism and Broadcast Communications before deciding to pursue her studies further at DePaul University. There, she earned her masters degree in Digital Communication & Media Arts. O’Connell served as a freelance writer for over two years while also interning with the Academy of Country Music, SiriusXM and Circle Media and assisting with Amazon Music’s Country Heat Weekly podcast. In addition to Country Now, she has been published in American Songwriter, Music Mayhem, and Holler.Country. Madeleine O’Connell is a member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.