Angelica Hairston
Renowned as a Harpist, Educator, and Change Maker, Angelica Hairston's mastery of the harp and commitment to equity position her as an internationally-coveted artist. She serves as a 2023 Artist in Residence at Palm Heights Resort in Grand Cayman and is a recipient of the Sphinx Organization’s prestigious MPower Artist Grant; granting her the invitation to perform and conduct groundbreaking research at the distinguished University of Ghana, Accra.
An Atlanta-based harpist whoes influence extends across continents and cultures, Angelica has performed concertos alongside esteemed orchestras including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Nashville Symphony Orchestra, Montgomery Symphony, and the Daytona Solisti Chamber Orchestra, along with performances at the International Harp Academy of the Pacific in Vancouver, Canada and the Judith Liber Harp Academy in Lake Como, Italy.
With years of intensive artistic training, Angelica is a recipient of From the Top’s Jack Kent Cooke Award and an alum of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Talent Development Program.
Beyond her music, Angelica is an unwavering voice for justice. In 2016, she founded Challenge the Stats, an organization dedicated to empowering BIPOC artists and she currently serves as an Artistic Consultant for the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble; a nonprofit that provides free harp instruction to over 80 students in Atlanta's urban center. Her commitment to equity through the arts has garnered recognition, including being one of the youngest recipients of the Georgia Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities and the 2020 Atlanta Magazine’s Women Making a Mark Award; both accolades celebrating her significant contributions to Georgia's civic and cultural vitality through excellence and service.
Angelica’s ease on camera, engaging personality, and culturally relevant approach make her an in-demand speaker, presenter, and performer for both virtual and in-person engagements. She has left her mark as a presenter for institutions such as the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Morehouse and Spelman Colleges, the Sphinx Organization, Boston Conservatory at Berklee, NPR’s From the Top, and the European Network on Cultural Management and Policy.
Angelica holds Certification in Music Therapy and Sound Healing from the University of the District of Columbia, a Master of Music Industry Leadership as a 2015 MLK Fellow from Northeastern University, and a Bachelor of Music from The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Canada, where she studied under world-renowned harpist Judy Loman.