Siblings Arejay and Elizabeth "Lzzy" Hale have been actively writing and performing original music since 1997 when they were 10 and 13 years old, respectively. Lzzy started learning piano at the age of 5; she later progressed to a keytar, and Arejay the drums. She took guitar lessons at 16. The teen siblings released two EPs titled "Forecast for the Future" in 1997 and "(Don't Mess With The) Time Man" in 1999. In 2003, Joe Hottinger joined the band. In Halestorm's earlier days, Lzzy and Arejay's father, Roger Hale, played bass before Josh Smith joined the group in 2004.