Haley Baylee Opens Up About SI Swimsuit Open Casting Call Experience on ‘Zach Sang Show’

Haley Baylee stopped by the Zach Sang Show this week, and during their candid chat, she opened up about her first experience with SI Swimsuit.

Over the years, Baylee has cultivated an impressive social media portfolio as both a model and content creator. Known for her viral comedy sketches and fashion-forward Glambot moments, the star has also hosted several Netflix shows, including the Let’s Marry Harry reunion and the forthcoming Win the Mall, and was also listed as a Forbes Top Creator for 2024, 2025 and 2026.

Of course, Baylee’s also a prolific member of the SI Swimsuit family, appearing in the magazine four times following her debut—a story she recounted on the aforementioned Wednesday, Oct. 21 episode.

Speaking with hosts Zach Sang and Dan Zolot, Baylee recounted her early days in the fashion industry, revealing that SI Swimsuit was “the way [she] got into modeling.” Specifically, the star referred to her experience with Swim Search, SI Swimsuit’s annual open casting call. For those out of the loop, Baylee won the inaugural Swim Search in 2018 alongside brand legend Camille Kostek, making her first in-print appearance the following year with a radiant rookie feature in Kenya.

“I posted a video on Instagram to my, like, maybe I had 500 followers at the time [...] and just told Sports Illustrated, like, ‘I’ve been obsessed with you forever’—because I have—‘and I really want to be a part of this, and you don’t even have to put me in the magazine, just let me come behind the scenes and see what’s going on,’” Baylee recalled. From there, she received a DM from the magazine while she was moving from Minnesota to Charlotte, N.C., inviting her to participate in the New York-based casting. Of the moment, she said in part, “I literally cried. It was a dream come true. I couldn’t believe it was real.”

Baylee then noted that the invite was the first major milestone in her modeling career, revealing: “I didn’t have a modeling agency. I went to New York, I did the casting, I was nervous as heck. [...] I didn’t know what I was doing. I had no idea how to pose—and then they ended up picking me.”

To check out Baylee’s full interview on YouTube, click here.

And the rest, as they say, is history! After she was selected as one of the first Swim Search winners, Baylee returned in 2020 for a sophomore shoot on Scrub Island, BVI, and in 2021, she joined the magazine again for a fabulous Hollywood, Fla., feature. Most recently, the model reunited with SI Swimsuit in Loreto, Baja California Sur, Mexico, for the 2026 issue, and she also walked in the 2026 SI Swimsuit Runway Show in Miami during Swim Week.

Interested in following in Baylee’s footsteps and checking out SI Swimsuit’s Swim Search open casting call? Well, we have good news! The magazine is headed to New York City this November for the first stop of this year’s open casting call, and you can register right now!

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