A mutual friend brought singer Haley Grant and bass guitarist Kaylee Jasperson together in 2012 while they were students at Belmont University.
Jasperson was majoring in bass guitar and Grant in songwriting. Since graduating in May 2014, they have been making music.
They call themselves the Harmaleighs - a combination of Kaylee plus Haley plus harmony, says Grant
The friends, both 25, released their EP, "Hiraeth," on May 5. They'll perform their mix of folk, pop and Americana in Chattanooga on Saturday, May 20, at 8:30 p.m.
Chattanooga House Shows, a company that holds concerts in nontraditional locations, is hosting the performance. The show's location is never revealed until two days ahead, meaning it will be announced later today.
"It's usually an intimate, acoustic setting like a coffee shop or someone's living room," says Grant.
A portion of the proceeds will benefit the nonprofit Chattanooga Girls Rock, funding summer music camp for girls ages 10 to 17 on a sliding scale.
"About a third of participants pay nothing. Most students pay something, even if it's $20," says Amelia Rodgers-Jones, founder of Chattanooga Girls Rock. "These little benefits really add up for us. We have a small budget; we rely on folks in the community just thinking about us when they're putting on an event."
Although the Harmaleighs are a duo, sometimes they'll perform with a full band and sometimes they'll perform with singer and guitarist Myles Baker. Baker will join them at Saturday's show.
The Harmaleighs are so committed to their craft that they sold their Nashville apartment in 2015, bought a van, put a bed in it and slept in Walmart parking lots for nine months as they drove up and down the United States exposing listeners to their music.
"Hiraeth" is a result of that experience, says Grant.
"It's a Welsh word that means to have a longing for a home," she explains. "We just kind of felt that rootlessness while we were gone because we didn't have anything to come back to."
Jasperson and Grant pick "Lady Brain," their first single, as their favorite song because of its message. The women wrote it in response to comments a few people made after seeing their show.
"It's a sassy little number," says Jasperson.
"We wrote the song after hearing so many times, 'Oh, you guys are great for girls,' or 'I didn't know a girl could play bass,'" says Grant. "It's just one of those sarcastic songs that says, 'That's kind of messed up that you're saying that' and that girls can do anything."
Tickets for the benefit concert are a suggested donation of $10 to $20. Tickets are sold online at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2920691.
Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.