With Pride Month in full swing and Hayley Kiyoko’s new film now playing in select theaters, there’s no better time to revisit her incredible visual catalog.
While many first discovered Kiyoko through her roles as Stevie in Wizards of Waverly Place and Stella Yamada in the Disney Channel Original Movie Lemonade Mouth, she has since built an impressive career as a singer, songwriter, and director. Affectionately dubbed “Lesbian Jesus” by fans, Kiyoko is known for her unapologetically sapphic music and cinematic storytelling, often writing, directing, and starring in her own music videos.
Now, with a feature film inspired by one of her most iconic music videos hitting theaters nationwide, it feels like the perfect moment to look back at some of Hayley Kiyoko’s very best music videos.
5. “What I Need”
“When we’re all alone, girl, you wanna own it. When we’re with your fam, you don’t wanna show it. You try to keep us on the low. I only want a girl who ain’t afraid to love me. Not a metaphor of what we really could be. I ain’t puttin’ on a show.”
Released in 2018, “What I Need” is a song from Hayley Kiyoko’s Expectations album and features Kehlani on both the track and in the accompanying music video.
In the video, Hayley and Kehlani portray romantic partners. After Kehlani leaves behind an unsupportive home, she finds herself on the road with Hayley. A montage shows the pair enjoying carefree moments together: playing pool, dancing, talking, sharing drinks, and cuddling, capturing the excitement and freedom of their relationship. But when they almost get into a car accident, their car breaks down on the side of the road. Frustration boils over, leading to an argument and Kehlani hopping in the truck of a creepy driver, while Hayley continues on foot. Realizing she made the wrong decision, Kehlani runs back to Hayley with a passionate kiss.
While the video may not carry the same overtly powerful social message as some of Kiyoko’s other music videos, its themes are still deeply relatable. Many LGBTQ+ people who have experienced unsupportive families or environments understand the fear of expressing their true selves or showing affection for someone they love in public. The song is also just an iconic collaboration between two beautiful queer artists who are unapologetically themselves in everything they do.
4. “Gravel to Tempo”
“I’ll do this my way, don’t matter if I break. I gotta be on my own. Lost in this feeling, don’t never need a reason. I gotta be on my own.”
“Gravel to Tempo” was one of my favorite music videos in high school and still is one of my favorites to this day. In the video, we see Hayley aggressively and confidently dancing in the school hallways right in front of the popular girls, refusing to conform to the expectations of what’s “cool.” This video created a fan favorite character, “Headphones Girl,” aptly named after one of the popular girls in the video who wears headphones. While Hayley dances in her own expressive way, Headphones Girl appears increasingly intrigued by Hayley, creating a subtle flirtation.
But beyond the charm of Hayley’s seductiveness, this video also feels relatable for a lot of young queer people. This feeling of being out of place or not like the popular kids in your class. An even worse feeling when you have a crush on someone who is so popular and appears straight. At its core, the video is about self-acceptance and realizing that you can’t hide your true self forever. By being unapologetically authentic, Hayley not only embraces her own identity but also inspires and intrigues those around her. The video suggests that confidence and self-expression can be attractive, sometimes even to the people you might least expect.
Above all, “Gravel to Tempo” is simply a lot of fun. Its energy, choreography, and message of self-confidence make it one of my favorite Hayley Kiyoko music videos
3. “Sleepover”
“Even when you’re next to me it’s not the way I’m picturing. I’m just feeling low, feeling low. You wanna be friends forever?I can think of something better. I’m just feeling low, feeling low. Sleeping here right next to me, but will you ever mess with me? No.”
Perhaps one of Hayley Kiyoko’s most relatable songs for queer girls, “Sleepover” tells the story of someone secretly in love with her best friend, who likely is straight and doesn’t feel the same way. Throughout the video, Hayley imagines their sleepover unfolding differently from reality. She daydreams about kissing her friend, cuddling together in her bedroom, and spending time as a couple. Meanwhile, the video repeatedly cuts back to Hayley alone, highlighting the painful gap between her fantasies and reality as she wonders what could be if her friend shared her feelings. The video’s honest portrayal of unrequited queer love helped make “Sleepover” an important and deeply resonant video for many fans.
One of the most beautiful aspects of Kiyoko’s music videos is her commitment to representation and inclusivity. She features women of different races, body types, and identities, allowing a wider range of viewers to see themselves reflected on screen. In “Sleepover,” for example, a Black woman with visible stretch marks appears without having those features hidden or altered.
Many viewers appreciated this authenticity. As one commenter wrote: “They didn’t cover her stretch marks, they didn’t straighten her natural hair, they didn’t make her lighter. They let her be her and that’s amazing. I love you Hayley.”
2. “One Bad Night”
“Heart beat is razor thin. Hot heat, you make me high. Get underneath my skin. Just give me one bad night.”
Although Hayley Kiyoko is best known for her lesbian and women-loving-women (WLW) music videos, this video tells a different but equally important queer story. It follows a trans woman and a Black man whose lives unexpectedly intersect, leading to a meaningful connection between two people who both feel like outsiders in different ways.
The story begins with a valet who impulsively steals a car, seemingly trying to escape a job and life that leave him feeling trapped. At the same time, a trans woman is violently attacked and mugged in an alley after being kicked out of her home. When he intervenes to help protect her, the two find themselves brought together by circumstance. Bruised and bloodied, they end up at a diner, where they share a meal and begin to open up to one another. The two find a connection and appreciation for one another, as they both saved each other in different and unexpected ways.
I think this music video is often overlooked within Kiyoko’s catalog. It is a beautiful and emotional story that showcases the power of compassion while focusing on real issues like violence against trans women and LGBTQ+ and POC representation.
1. “Girls Like Girls”
“Saw your face, heard your name, gotta get with you Girls like girls, like boys do, nothing new.”
At number one is Hayley Kiyoko’s most iconic music video, “Girls Like Girls.” With more than 163 million views on YouTube, it became a defining piece of LGBTQ+ representation for many young queer women growing up in the 2010s.
For many Gen Z viewers, “Girls like Girls” felt like one of the first major lesbian music videos to truly go viral. The video, featuring familiar Disney Channel faces, follows two best friends, Coley, who is clearly in love with her friend and Sonya, trapped in a relationship with an abusive boyfriend. At its heart, the story is about self-discovery, love, and coming to terms with your sexuality.
The end of the music video is one of the most beautiful moments. After the two girls finally share a passionate kiss, Coley rides away on her bike wearing an expression of pure relief and peace. Despite everything she has endured, there is a sense that she has finally shared who she is and as a bonus, had romantic feelings reciprocated. To me, that is the video’s most powerful message: no matter what challenges we face, there can be moments of relief, freedom, and acceptance waiting on the other side.
If you ask many Gen Z sapphics what helped them realize they were queer, there is a good chance “Girls Like Girls” will come up in the conversation. Its impact on a generation of LGBTQ+ youth cannot be overstated. The song and video provided representation that many viewers had never seen before, helping them feel understood and less alone. (and it still gives me butterflies to this day!)
The story’s influence eventually extended far beyond music. A decade later, it inspired both a novel and a film adaptation of the same name, introducing the story to a new generation of audiences. Kiyoko also created a new album for the film filled with collaborations with other sapphic and queer artists. If her past work is any indication, there are sure to be more memorable music videos on the horizon.
Honorable Mention: “Chance”
“That I don’t wanna go home and leave as just friends. But I keep letting her go, and then it just ends. I was a no, never maybe. I knew she’d never take a chance on me. How did it go? We’ll never see. I knew she’d never take a chance on me.”
Making this list, I couldn’t leave out my personal favorite Hayley Kiyoko music video.
“Chance” feels like a cottagecore lesbian dream. It’s sweet, tender, and beautifully captures the uncertainty of having feelings for someone while not knowing whether they feel the same way. That fear of saying the wrong thing, or saying anything at all, keeps both people stuck in place. At the same time, the song carries an important message: if you never share how you feel or take the risk of asking someone how they feel, nothing can ever happen. Sometimes, you have to take the chance.
The video itself is a warm and wholesome portrayal of a domestic life shared between two women on a farm. Beautifully shot, it captures a series of tender moments between a couple, cooking together, enjoying picnics, sharing kisses, and simply finding comfort in one another’s presence. Every scene radiates a sense of love, peace, and intimacy, and is one of Kiyoko’s most visually beautiful videos.
The Impact
If you haven’t already grasped the impact of Hayley Kiyoko’s artistry, consider this: I personally cannot imagine growing up queer without her music, acting, and music videos. At a time when lesbian relationships were rarely centered in mainstream pop culture, Kiyoko created songs and visuals that normalized queer love and identity within the music industry. And years later, her work is still so deeply important to me.
Her work makes these relationships, experiences, and identities feel natural, relatable, and worthy of celebration. For many LGBTQ+ people, especially young people who are still figuring out who they are, her music provides a sense of visibility and representation that can be life-changing. Seeing themselves reflected in her stories helps them feel less alone and more confident in embracing their identities.
What makes Kiyoko’s work so powerful is how personal, authentic, and intentional it feels. Her art is not simply about entertainment; it creates connection, understanding, and belonging. For countless fans, her music has offered comfort, validation, and hope during some of the most important moments of their lives. If art has the power to change lives, then Hayley Kiyoko’s work is a remarkable example of that, and there are few greater achievements an artist can hope for.
