Briley King is the daughter of a long-haul trucker, the wife to a touring musician, and the heart behind Little Bird Trucking. Born and raised in North Carolina, Briley was taught the importance of drive and dedication at a very young age. At seven years old, her parents told her if she wanted to take singing lessons, she would have to fund the money herself. That day, she cut the top off a milk jug and sang on the street until she raised enough money to do so. Her work ethic later earned her a degree in Communications from East Carolina University, where she began working in Corporate Litigation before moving into finance.
A true daddy’s girl, Briley recalls the awe she felt when her dad would come home after long days on the road as a truck driver. “He came in like a superhero… I danced, sang, did gymnastics, theater, basketball, softball - anything I could get involved in growing up - and my dad was always my biggest fan.” This year, her dad will be hitting four million miles out on the road.
For her thirtieth birthday, Briley planned an evening out with friends to go to a Marcus King concert. She only knew a few songs – one, specifically, that she noted helped get her through a hard breakup. After the show, Marcus found a post she made on Instagram and immediately messaged her, inviting her to another one of his concerts. “I walked on his tour bus wearing a big, huge caftan and Mignonne Gavigan bird earrings,” she shares. “I said, ‘What’s up, y’all, I look like Big Bird,’ and Marcus looked at me and said, ‘No, you’re a little bird.’”
After a night of singing and dancing, Marcus told Briley to quit her job and marry him, but it had always been instilled in her to have her own thing going - her own identity – even when she was to get married. Seven months later, the lovebirds were engaged and living in Nashville. While in a bliss - between life on the road, planning the wedding, and getting to watch her fiancé pursue his dream - Briley was up at all hours, taking phone calls in different time zones, sending emails, and beginning to brainstorm a career that allowed her to be creative and align with life on the road.
While living on the tour bus, and unsure of when she would be able to wash and style her hair next, trucker hats became a wardrobe staple for her. She started collecting them through eBay, vintage stores, gas stations, merch stands, friends, and beyond. One night, while Marcus was on stage in his signature feather cowboy hat, Briley had the idea to make her own trucker hats detailed with a feather. When it comes to the design and style, Briley shares, “I love color! [I enjoy] putting neutral-colored feathers on to lilac, pink, red, and blue hats to encourage the wear of more color... keeping it preppy, girly, and fun has always been a priority for me.”
After the pair wed in February of 2023, Briley began pouring her heart into making these hats for herself, her family, and her friends. Once she posted videos to social media wearing dresses, heels, and her new trucker hat – styled in what she refers to as “things that don’t look like they should go together” – people began taking note of her signature look and asking how they could get a hat of their own, giving Briley the motivation to share Little Bird Trucking with the world.
Briley hand-makes every hat, usually around two hundred per day, in addition to boxing up packages, shipping each order, handling all customer inquiries, and running the social media account. She has gotten to collaborate with the iconic Houston Rodeo, celebrities, and - to make it all full circle - Mignonne Gavigan, the designer of the earrings she wore the night she met Marcus. With many accomplishments and orders to all fifty states, her absolute favorite part is watching others rock their Little Bird Trucking gear. She also acknowledges she couldn’t do it without her incredible USPS mail carrier, Samantha Knox, who has gone above and beyond to help her with each order.
While the idea behind starting a trucker hat company began as an ode to her dad, it has since flourished into reflecting many aspects of her own life. Birds have always signified a lot to Briley; in addition to always having a fascination for Cardinals, her grandfather loved birds. She shares, “he had a chair by the window and a bird I.D. book… all day, he would sit on his porch and identify the birds that would come to the bird feeder.” Ten days after Briley and Marcus met, her grandfather passed away. She adds that Marcus and her grandmother have an incredible relationship, and that she truly believes her grandfather sent Marcus to not only her, but her whole family.
From the feather design to the name of each product - which are inspired by the titles of Marcus’ songs – the thought and love that goes into each item does not go unnoticed.
littlebirdtrucking.com
@LittleBirdTrucking
“I said, ‘What’s up, y’all, I look like Big Bird,’ and Marcus looked at me and said, ‘No, you’re a little bird.’”