An Inspired Chat with Nancy Hays of Chicago

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Nancy Hays . Check out our conversation below.

Nancy , a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
I am chasing a dream to make my passion project, Riding for America, the story of the greatest jockey who ever lived who was the son of slaves in Kentucky into a major motion picture, based on an existing screenplay written by Eddie and Nancy Heffernan. Riding for America is already a YA novel, a Chicagoland middle and high school program and a stage play. It is also a picture book for ages 5-9 in development with an award winning Black illustrator, Jan Spivey Gilchrist. But Isaac and America Murphy’s story deserves to be an Oscar winning film that educates the masses and brings recognition to the greatest athlete of the 19th century and the single mother who raised him that is a hero.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I own a Chicago based company, Nancy Hays Entertainment, Inc. that produces celebrity talent and speakers for private and some public events. I am also a professional Artist– singer, dancer, actress, songwriter, and entertainer. I am a wife and mother of four outstanding young adults who are also professional artists in addition to succeeding in other endeavors. We raised a social worker, a writer/director/actor an ER doctor and current Harvard Law student.

Our family is evidence that being involved in the arts contributes in a positive way to education, culture, faith, and everything that makes life worth living. I have a passion for elevating the arts and artists in everything I do professionally and personally.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What breaks the bonds between people—and what restores them?
What breaks bonds between people are judgements of others– whether political or personal. Based on ignorance, prejudice and surrounding ourselves only by like minded thinkers, we close ourselves off to the possibility that we could be misguided or not fully informed in our thinking. As Atticus Finch states in To Kill a Mockingbird (my favorite book), “you can’t understand what a man is going through unless you consider things from his point of view…until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it”. Through artistic expression, and through reading, watching and listening, we can start to experience how others might feel, before passing judgement on them.

Music, drama, dance, poetry, film, and the arts in general are the only universal language that has the power to enlighten people and move them from one set of beliefs to another. Through art, we see other perspectives and we feel them. Once our emotions are stirred, change is possible. There is also no foreign language barrier to dance and music. These two art forms in particular can bridge cultural divides and heal people.

Do you remember a time someone truly listened to you?
My father, Dr. Ed Hays, who died in 1989 is the best listener I have ever known. He used to say to me, “Nan, do you realize that we never learn anything when we are the one talking?”. This is very true. I wish I could be more like my father. He was a former Navy man, a devoted husband, father and physician who lived with a terrible disease and chronic disfiguring pain for the last 15 years of his life. My dad never complained about his condition. He showed me what grace looks like. He was a father and physician who enjoyed listening to the stories of others, lifting them up to heal them and caring about what they had to say, no matter where they came from of who they were. He was without a doubt the greatest man I have ever known.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I am committed to the telling of the Riding for America story I spoke about in the first question, no matter how long it takes. Other than raising my four kids, it is the most important investment of time and passion I have ever had in my career, even though it is coming later in my life. I believe that telling the Riding for America story could change lives for the better and enlighten people of all ages about the real history of thoroughbred horse racing in our country and the Black jockey’s place in its origins. It is also an opportunity for me to share my creative passion for songwriting, since I am also contributing music to this project.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you laid down your name, role, and possessions—what would remain?
What would remain is my lifetime of music, six albums (so far) of music that I have recorded over the course of many decades, including my own compositions that tell the story of my life. Some day, I hope my great, great, great grandkids hear my singing voice as though I am standing next to them and learn a little bit about their roots from the words and stories communicated through my music.

The other thing that I hope remains when I am gone from the earth is that my four children and their children inherit my energy and incredible drive to pursue passion with purpose. My faith tells me that all things work together for those that love God. In some small way, I hope that God sees my pursuits as worthy of my limited time on earth.

My favorite Bible passage is this one and I try to live by it as much as I can.
Philippians 4:8-9 , “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Side Head Shot with wool blanket background, Brian MConkey, Blue sparkling dress, Burns Photography. All others taken by friends or family and do not require credits. The photo of Isaac Murphy on the front of the book, was licensed from the Yale Archives.

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