Photo: Mike Coppola/Getty
Walker Hayesand Laney Beville Hayes' love story is one for the ages.
Although the “Fancy Like” singer has known Laney since they were kids, the pair didn’t officially start dating until high school. In June 2004, Walker and Laney tied the knot and went on to have six children.
“We’re a unit,” Hayes told PEOPLE in February 2022, ahead of his family joining him on tour. “We lean on each other. We’re gonna be together as much as we can. Laney’s my best friend. I mean, I want to tell her about everything. Honestly — he corrects himself — I don’t even want to tell her about everything. I just want to do it all with her. And then that way, I don’t even have to tell her. She can see it for herself, and then we can just sit and smile about it.”
“Laney and I have cried a lot,” Walker told PEOPLE in August 2018. “But one thing that makes me the happiest ishow much love there has been around us.”
On June 12, 2022, the longtime couple celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary, with Walker penning a sweet note to Laney on Instagram.
So who is Walker Hayes' wife? Here’s everything to know about Laney Beville Hayes and her relationship with the Grammy-nominated country star.
She met Walker in elementary school
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Laney and Walker have known each other since childhood. They met in elementary school in their hometown of Mobile, Alabama, according toSouthern Living. However, the couple did not start dating until high school; Walker was a junior, and Laney was a senior.
“My true first memory of him is we were doing rehearsals — this is after we’d already made the cast. He had a solo — well, he was a lead in it, so he had a lot of solos,” Laney said. “He started singing the first part of his first solo. I remember looking down the aisle and going, ‘Who is that guy? That guy can sing!'”
Walker shared athrowback photo on Instagramon May 2019 of he and Laney snuggled up together back in 1997.
She and Walker briefly broke up
Walker Hayes Instagram
The couple also went through a brief breakup, which ultimately made them realize they wanted to be together forever.
“I didn’t know I wanted to marry Laney until we actually broke up for about nine or 10 months right after college, and it was the hardest, it was almost like a divorce,” Walkertold Sounds Like Nashvillein July 2019. “We had been together for six, seven years, [but] that volatility that made us so beautiful also made us explosive … I wouldn’t have said a lot of peers or families thought we were the greatest match, but we knew there was something we couldn’t duplicate.”
She and Walker got married in 2004
After reconciling, Walker and Laney wed on June 12, 2004.
In 2019, in honor of their 15th anniversary, Walker shared athrowback photo from their wedding dayon Instagram of the couple dancing together. “💤 #2004,” he captioned the sweet image.
She shares six children with Walker
Laney and Walker are the proud parents of three daughters — Lela, Everly and Loxley — and three sons — Chapel, Baylor and Beckett — whoregularly appear on Walker’s Instagram. Their seventh child, daughter Oakleigh, died in childbirth after Laney suffered a uterine rupture. Walker told PEOPLE in July 2017 that the couple originally planned on having four children, but they “just kept going.”
He added, “Everybody thinks I’m crazy having six kidsand chasing this dream.”
The family also has two dogs,Magnolia and Hazel.
She often joins Walker on tour
Laney, the kids and dogs joined Walker on his 19-date “Fancy Like” Tour in 2022. The family hit the road on his 12-bunk bus with a tiny bathroom and a kitchenette. When he shared the news with Laney, Walker said they all cried.
“We were so happy.It was better than a Grammy nomination,” he told PEOPLE in February 2022.
He added that their children “lost their minds.”
Walker shared photos on his Instagram of his family’s adventures on tour, includinghanging out backstageand evenjoining him onstage.
She inspires Walker’s songwriting
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Laney is also Walker’s creative muse, with their relationship and time together inspiring his songs, which are “really just journal entries” from his life.
“I quit trying to write a song about Friday night thatJason Aldeanmight cut,” he told PEOPLE in July 2017. “I started writing songs about dollar stores, my kids, experiences with [wife] Laney. I just started writing about the truth because really that’s my expertise.”
Walker credits her for his career success
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Beyond serving as his creative inspiration, Walker has credited much of his success to his wife. In his 2017 interview with PEOPLE, he noted that her constant belief in him kept him going.
“She has a way of looking at me and remembering what’s best about me,” he explained. “Even though it’s nowhere close to coming out … Her faith in my gifts and my talents are beyond my own faith in them.”
She opened up about her faith and family onThat Sounds Funpodcast
In August 2022, Laney made time to chat with Annie F. Downs during an episode ofThat Sounds Funpodcast, where she discussed her relationship with Walker as well as her “journey of being married to an unbeliever, and so many other good conversations about faith, family, life and friendship.”
She dances to Walker’s songs on TikTok
“I mean I would say she actually danced right here 💪💪💪💪 @walmart #yalllife,” Walkercaptioned the TikTok video.
Walker, however, loves to participate in TikTok dance challenges, especially with his kids. Heposted another video of himselfon Instagram on Aug. 18 and two of his kids dancing to Rah Bando’s “PRAISE GOD.”
source: people.com
