Walker Hayes of 'Fancy Like' fame hints at opening Applebee's in Nashville
After country star's celebration of Applebee's, he says 'there is talk' about serving Bourbon Street steaks and Oreo shakes in Nashville
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Country music sensation Walker Hayes might soon be dishing out Bourbon Street steaks and Oreo shakes at his own Nashville eatery.
"There is talk of us really opening an Applebee’s downtown on Broadway in Nashville," Hayes said recently on the "Gunner & Cheyenne" morning show on KMLE 107.9 in Phoenix.
Hayes was promoting his latest song, "Y'all Life."
Hayes, 42, was a country music journeyman when he released "Fancy Like" in June 2021.
His catchy tale tells of using his payday cash to "spoil my baby with an upgrade" — meaning dinner at the family-friendly casual-dining chain eatery.
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"Yeah, we fancy like Applebee's on a date night/Got that Bourbon Street steak with the Oreo shake/Get some whipped cream on the top/Two straws, one check, girl, I got you" — his lyrics say, in part.
The song became in instant sensation, rocketing to the top of digital sales lists before the end of the month.
![Country star Walker Hayes](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxbusiness.com/foxbusiness.com/content/uploads/2022/08/931/523/GettyImages-1395409627.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Walker Hayes visited "The Story With Martha MacCallum" at Fox Studios on May 4, 2022, in New York City. (John Lamparski/Getty Images / Getty Images)
It topped the Billboard country music rankings and reached no. 3 on the pop charts.
A viral-sensation TikTok video, created on a whim, shows the star and his teenage daughter Lela dancing cheekily to the tune with loosely choreographed moves.
Copycat videos of people doing the "Fancy Like" dance sprang up instantly, generating hundreds of millions of views last year on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and other social media platforms.
"I just wrote about my family." — Walker Hayes
Celebrities including Amy Adams, Candace Cameron Bure and Shaquille O'Neal were all seen grooving to the "Fancy Like" dance.
The song and accompanying music video were re-released in October with pop star Kesha, a testament to its crossover appeal.
"Fancy Like" launched Hayes into the pop-culture stratosphere and helped reinvigorate the struggling Applebee's brand.
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The restaurant chain had closed hundreds of units in recent years, now numbering about 1,500 locations, according to parent company Dine Brands.
Applebee's last year released a series of ads featuring Hayes and even brought back their Oreo Cookie shakes, which had been discontinued before the song was released.
![American Music Awards with Walker and Laney Hayes](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxbusiness.com/foxbusiness.com/content/uploads/2022/08/931/523/GettyImages-1354773965.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Walker Hayes and Laney Hayes attend the 2021 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Nov. 21, 2021, in Los Angeles. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Applebee's currently operates one restaurant in Nashville.
FOX Business reached out to the company for more information.
The song also popularized Walker's very human story and his struggles to succeed as a musician in Nashville while raising a family of six children with his wife Laney.
"People honestly just see the Lord in us."
Among other challenges, he and Laney lost their daughter Oakleigh Klover during childbirth in 2018.
"I just wrote about my family," he told CMT of the success of "Fancy Like."
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"There’s no pretentiousness there. It’s just who we are," he also said.
"When you get to be that honest and the public reacts, it’s a real magical thing. And the dances, that’s just me being a dad. I mean, that’s just how we roll around here."
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Walker along the way found sobriety and faith in Christ, which he discussed earlier this year on the Dana Perino podcast "Everything Will Be Okay."
"It was me and Laney verse the free world," Hayes told Perino.
He said he was an alcoholic and was working at Costco when he and his wife had their sixth child.
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"To be quite honest, people honestly just see the Lord in us," he said during the Phoenix appearance.
"They do. That’s miraculous. Without his light I’m nothing. I gotta give all glory to Him."