The Hails Show The World What Tampa’s Made Of

Robbie Kingsley and Zach Levy first met in the dining hall at the University of Florida, and the fellow musicians hit it off immediately. The Tampa scene was rife with garage bands back in the mid-2010s, when both were in college, with acts like flipturn starting to make waves and tour out of state. After yet another band breaking up, Levy enlisted his former high school bandmates, Franco Solari for guitar and keys and Andre Escobar on bass, to join him and Kingsley. They rounded out their lineup with Dylan McCue, a friend from music camp down in Miami, on guitar and formed The Hails, with Kingsley as vocalist and Levy on drums.

The pop-rock band, which is represented by Forge Ahead Touring’s Troy Lawton, cut their teeth at house shows and fraternity and sorority events, and The High Dive in Gainesville. The first time they played at the venue was alongside fellow Florida band, flipturn. The room meant a lot to The Hails, who felt it was the first venue they could ever consider home, and they were devastated when the owner learned earlier this spring that they had 30 days before the building was going to be demolished.

“That place is such a part of our story,” Kingsley tells Pollstar. “And especially our live music story. It’s the place we’ve played more than anywhere, probably like 40 or 50 times. We had a chance to do a last show ever and make a documentary about it. So, if there’s one place I associate with The Hails and how we started then how we grew, it’s the High Dive in Gainesville.”

When it comes to The Hails’ favorite venues, they note that many of the places they loved to play are no longer around. They used to play at Miami’s High Dive (another beloved building getting demolished), which was the first venue they played outside of their college campus. The five of them moved to Miami for the summer and went through the process of recording and playing shows. The city quickly became a second home base for them, the band having a writing retreat in the area early this summer. They no longer live in the same city, spreading out along the East Coast with some members in Miami and others in Washington, D.C., or New York City.

While the band has moved out of Tampa they don’t forget where they came from. Kingsley emphasizes The Hails wouldn’t exist without Tampa and its music scene, and, as someone who grew up in the area, he knows just how special the community can be. Despite the damages from the recent hurricanes, he has no doubt that Tampa will come back stronger than ever.

“Tampa is always home,” Kingsley tells Pollstar. “Growing up in the area gives you the best of it all – from seeing shows is St. Pete and Ybor to hanging with friends on the beach or playing sports in the suburbs. I was raised by a lot of great experiences. As we’ve toured the country after the two hurricanes, it’s been nice to hear some fans ask me how my family is doing. I was happy to let them know my family was alright, but I’ve been sad to see so much damage to friends of friends’ homes or places Tampa natives love. Overall, Florida is such a special place that has so many hidden gems, and I hope all the communities of the Tampa Bay region that were impacted can start thriving once again very soon.”

The Hails are gearing up for their spring tour, which finds them co-headlining with Never Ending Fall and stopping in clubs across North America from Feb. 21 to March 29, where they’ll play in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Salt Lake City, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and more. Each of the band members will also perform in their current hometowns with shows in Brooklyn, New York, Washington, D.C., and wrapping up in Miami.

Their last tour supported their debut album, What’s Your Motive, with shows in Denver, Gainesville, Salt Lake City, Seattle, San Diego and more. Midway through the trek, while stopping in San Francisco, the band was robbed of $13,280 worth of gear and personal items, which had the potential to set them back tremendously from being able to record their sophomore album. They explained their situation to fans online and received an outpouring of support that allowed them to remain on track for both their tour and for their plans to record their next album. They wrapped up their tour at New York City’s Governors Ball, with the band reflecting on how much they enjoyed festival plays.

“Things run like clockwork,” Levy says of festival plays. “Everybody’s such a professional. It’s really enjoyable and so easy for us to do, because we leave it into the hands of the crew and professionals, and all we have to do is show up and play. So, that’s always nice.”

CONTACT
MANAGEMENT
Dionysian Artist Management
Benji Sheinman [email protected] Andrew Idarraga [email protected]

AGENCY
Forge Ahead Touring
Troy Lawton [email protected]

PUBLIC RELATIONS
Big Hassle
Madi Florence [email protected]