Today we’d like to introduce you to Lia Hayek.
Hi Lia, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was raised in Hong Kong by Lebanese parents and attended a French International school, so I
grew up surrounded by different cultures, languages, and religions. That multicultural upbringing
shaped how I understand identity and belonging, and it naturally found its way into my
songwriting.
Music has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. Before I even started taking guitar
lessons, my dad bought me my first guitar. Looking back, I think he saw the musician in me
before I did. As I got older, I joined a rock band in Hong Kong, performing at bars and
restaurants from a young age. I knew early on that making music wasn’t just a hobby, it was what
I wanted to dedicate my life to.
I was constantly learning. I taught myself drums and bass, spending countless hours on YouTube
watching drum covers. Every weekend, my dad would take me to Tom Lee Music in Wan Chai,
where I’d spend hours playing drums and trying every guitar I could get my hands on. Those
weekends became some of my favorite memories. I wasn’t thinking about a career, I simply
loved making music and couldn’t get enough of it.
As I became more comfortable on guitar, I naturally started writing songs. At first, there was no
end goal. I just loved writing and expressing myself. During my senior year of high school, I
became more aware of my struggles with anxiety, and songwriting became the place where I
could be completely honest. I often felt misunderstood by the people around me, so I turned to
my guitar and a notebook. That was the year I truly started taking myself seriously as a
songwriter.
The Beirut Port explosion on August 4, 2020, also had a profound impact on me. Being
Lebanese but living so far away, I felt helpless. I started writing short stories about the tragedy
and sharing them on social media because it was the only way I knew how to process everything
I was feeling. Connecting with the Lebanese diaspora through those stories gave me a sense of
belonging during an incredibly painful time.
Moving to Los Angeles for college felt like the beginning of a new chapter. It gave me the
freedom to fully embrace my creativity and start building a life around my art. That experience
ultimately led me to create my debut album, Coffee on the Floor.
Coffee on the Floor is a coming-of-age record capturing the years between 18 and 22, the
experiences that shaped my identity, my relationships, and the way I navigate the world. The
album moves through anxiety, first love, heartbreak, homesickness, self-discovery, and the quiet
moments that often define us more than the big ones. It’s about growing up while trying to make
sense of yourself, learning to live with uncertainty, and finding beauty even in the messiest
chapters of life.
Every song represents a different version of who I was becoming. Rather than chasing
perfection, I wanted the album to feel honest and intimate, like reading pages from a journal. My
hope is that people hear their own stories reflected in these songs and feel a little less alone, the
way music has always made me feel.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road.
My dream for as long as I can remember was to move to Los Angeles and work in the
entertainment industry. I had built this idea in my head of what LA would be like, so when I
finally moved there at 18, I was shocked by how different it was from what I had imagined. I
arrived feeling very innocent and inexperienced when it came to real-life challenges. Looking
back, Los Angeles became the place that taught me about hustle, resilience, and what it truly
takes to pursue a dream.
When I first moved to Los Angeles, I struggled more than I expected. I was 18 years old, moving
across the world completely on my own from Hong Kong. I didn’t know anyone in the city, and
everything felt unfamiliar. The culture was so different from what I had grown up with, that for
a long time I didn’t feel at home.
I realized I wasn’t just adjusting to a new city, I was rebuilding my identity. For the first time, no
one knew me. I had to figure out who I was without my family, my friends, or the life I’d always
known.
That discomfort affected my creativity. I went through a period of writer’s block because I felt
disconnected, not only from the city, but from myself. I kept questioning whether I belonged in
Los Angeles, and there were many moments when I wanted to pack my bags and go back to the
life I knew. Home felt comfortable and familiar, while LA often felt overwhelming and, honestly,
a little scary.
At first, I felt like I didn’t belong anywhere. But eventually I realized that growing up between
Lebanese, French, British, and Hong Kong cultures gave me a unique perspective. It became one
of my biggest strengths as a songwriter because I naturally write about belonging, identity, and
finding home, not just as a place, but as a feeling.
One of the biggest challenges was building genuine relationships. I often felt like everyone was
chasing the same dream of “making it,” which sometimes made connections feel transactional
rather than authentic. Coming from a culture where community was such a big part of everyday
life, adapting to the more individualistic nature of LA was difficult. I struggled with loneliness
and wondered whether I had made the right decision.
The hardest part was knowing that moving here had been my choice. I had chosen to leave my
family, my friends, and everything familiar to pursue a dream. Going home would have meant
comfort, but to me, it also felt like giving up on something I deeply believed in.
Resilience wasn’t one big moment. It was waking up every day, continuing to write even when I
didn’t feel inspired, introducing myself to strangers, taking opportunities that scared me, and
believing in my future even when I couldn’t see it yet.
Looking back now, I’m incredibly grateful that I stayed. If I had left Los Angeles, I truly believe
I would be a completely different person than I am today. I don’t think I would have developed
the resilience, determination, drive, and passion that define me now, nor would I have
experienced the success I’ve been fortunate to achieve. Every challenge pushed me to become
stronger, not just as an artist, but as a person. Those difficult years taught me how to trust myself,
persevere through uncertainty, and keep creating even when things felt impossible.
Over time, I found my people, built meaningful friendships, and developed genuine working
relationships. I slowly began to feel at home in Los Angeles, and with that came my creativity
again. The success I’ve experienced so far, both personally and professionally, has been built on
those moments when I chose to stay instead of giving up. In many ways, Los Angeles didn’t just
shape my career; it shaped the person I’ve become.
Looking back, I don’t think Coffee on the Floor could have been written anywhere else. Every
song carries pieces of that transition, leaving home, navigating adulthood, questioning who I
was, falling in love, feeling anxious, and ultimately finding my place. The album exists because
of those difficult years.
Los Angeles gave me far more than a career, it gave me character. It taught me resilience,
independence, patience, and belief in myself. I arrived as an 18-year-old chasing a dream, and
through every challenge, I became the person capable of living it.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m an instrumentalist, songwriter, filmmaker, and creative storyteller based in Los Angeles. My work explores themes of identity, nostalgia, love, anxiety, and belonging, often drawing from my multicultural upbringing. I was born in London, raised in Hong Kong, and studied Screen Arts at Pepperdine University, experiences that have given me a global perspective and shaped the stories I tell.
I specialize in creating emotionally driven music and visual storytelling. Whether I’m composing music, writing songs, directing films, or developing creative campaigns, I’m interested in capturing honest human experiences in a cinematic and intimate way. My debut album, Coffee On The Floor, is the project I’m most proud of. It’s a deeply personal collection of songs and instrumentals that I spent years writing and refining, documenting my transition into adulthood and the quiet moments that shape who we become.
Growing up in Hong Kong, I was also deeply involved in charity work through music. One of my earliest performances was opening a charity event with nothing but my guitar and a microphone. I also volunteered by performing for orphaned children, creating musical sets specifically designed for young audiences. Those experiences taught me that music has the power to comfort, connect, and bring joy, and they’ve continued to shape the kind of artist I aspire to be.
Alongside my artistic work, I’ve worked in business development and public relations within the entertainment industry, helping develop media strategies, partnerships, and storytelling for brands and creators. This combination of creative and strategic experience allows me to approach projects from both an artistic and business perspective.
What sets me apart is my ability to blend multiple creative disciplines into a cohesive vision. As both an instrumentalist and filmmaker, I think visually when I compose music and emotionally when I create films. My multicultural background also influences everything I make, giving my work a perspective that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable.
Above all, I’m most proud of creating art that is true to my heart. I believe the most meaningful work comes from honesty rather than trends, and my goal has always been to create music and stories that make people feel seen, understood, and a little less alone.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
One thing that surprises people is that I’m an extreme perfectionist. I think people assume that
because I pursue creative work, ideas just flow naturally and I’m eager to share them. In reality,
I’m incredibly hard on myself. I struggle to trust my work, and I have a difficult time letting go
of a project because I always believe it could be better.
That perfectionism followed me throughout college. Whether I was making short films or writing
songs, deadlines forced me to finish projects, but I rarely felt satisfied with the final result. Even
after something was complete, I’d find myself thinking about everything I could have changed. I
hold myself to a very high standard because I genuinely believe I can create meaningful,
beautiful art. If I’m going to put something into the world, I want it to feel completely authentic
and unmistakably me.
That mindset is one of the reasons my artistic journey has progressed more slowly than people
might expect. While I’m confident in many areas of my life, my art is where I feel the most
vulnerable. There’s always the fear of releasing something before I feel it’s truly ready, or
wondering whether I’ve said exactly what I wanted to say.
Finishing Coffee on the Floor was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. Even after years
of writing it, I kept revisiting songs, rewriting lyrics, and convincing myself there was more
work to do. At one point, I had already started writing my next album because I couldn’t bring
myself to fully let go of the first one.
Eventually, I realized that moving on was part of being an artist. I don’t think I’ll ever feel
completely “ready” to release something, because perfection doesn’t really exist. In many ways,
that’s reflected in my life as well. Letting go has never come naturally to me, whether it’s a
person, a place, or a chapter of my life. That’s where so much of my songwriting comes from.
But I’ve learned that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is decide that your work is finished,
trust the person you were when you created it, and allow yourself to move forward. That’s often
where growth begins.
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