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SOPHIE B. HAWKINS |
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FEATURE:
SOPHIE B. HAWKINS: CALLIN’ HER OWN SHOTS & LOVIN’ IT…
by Ernie Thomas
Hawkins is even surprising herself with how perseverance, resilience and chutzpa have been paying off lately –– with a back to back pair of hit singles, a strong-selling new album, being hand-picked by superstars Chris Isaak and The Corrs to open selected dates of their respectives U.S. tours, and stepping in front of a camera while fielding a variety of film offers. After making a documentary on her career, filmmakers saw how camera-friendly the singer/songwriter could be and some initial offers to do “guest shots” have since turned into fairly major on screen roles. Hawkins is soon to start filming on two high profile, major film projects –– “West Memphis Three” (with Gina Gershon and Michael Madsen) and “Walk On” (with Jessica Simpson). Hawkins is also set to play the on-screen mother of worldwide boxing champ, Tommy Morrison (“Rocky V”) in his upcoming biopic which chronicles how testing HIV positive K.O.-ed his fight career. She is also in talks for a possible reality show tentatively titled –– “Sophie B.: On Her Terms” –– that gives a behind the scenes look and the life of a successful independent music artist. “That kind of stuff is really cool and fun and all that, but my focus is my music, because that’s what is really important to me. I’m really happy right now with the way everything is going in my life. I feel like I’m starting over from the beginning,” Hawkins said during a phone interview from the road, where she has been spending a lot of time promoting her fourth career album, Wilderness. “Right now I’m doing dates on my own, then I join up with Chris through early August. I like Chris and admire him so much. Sure, he’s handsome and all that, but it’s his personality. He’s so funny, down-to-earth and sweet. I’m really thrilled that I’ve been asked to do shows with him,” she said, noting they first met when she was a guest on his television show.
In mid-August, Hawkins
begins sharing the road with hot Irish Adult Contemporary act, The Corrs,
for a series of more North American dates. Released via her own label imprint, Trumpet Swan Records, the 13-song Wilderness collection has already spawned two chart-topping Hot A/C (adult contemporary) radio hits with “Beautiful Girl” and “Walking On Thin Ice.” Hawkins produced about half the album on her own and co-produced the remainder of it long-distance with Christian and Frank Berman (Baha Men, Real McCoy). “I was working in my home studio [in California] and they were in Germany the whole time,” she mused. “We were never once in the same room or even in the same country!” Hawkins would Fed Ex them her tapes, they would tweak them accordingly, then return the revised songs as MP3 files over the internet. “It was a pretty unique way to work, I must admit,” she said. “It’s amazing that the record is doing so well and I’ve gotten these great tour offers, because I am truly on my own these days. I don’t have a record label pushing for me and there’s a lot of competition out there,” she said. Hawkins explained that she remains involved via email and phone calls with the day-to-day operations of Trumpet Swan Records, which she co-founded with her manager, Gigi Gaston. After finding much commercial success as a Sony artist, Hawkins found she was asked to make too many compromises as a songwriter and artist to stay part of their well-oiled machine. Around 1999, during the making of her third album, Timbre, Hawkins asked to be released from her contract. “Everything was done in a very friendly manner with them [Sony],” she said. “There was nothing ugly about it and I do not regret anything about my time there.” Hawkins loves her new independent artist status. “It’s really individual, independent artist,” she stressed. “There’s always new mountains to climb every day when you are doing things all on your own. But I love it, I actually thrive on hardship and thrive on challenges. Being all cozy and getting all kinds of support from a major record label was just not my destiny. Being an indie artist has been a really a good thing for me, because I have to evolve all the time to stay spiritually invested in something. This is all uncharted territory for me, so it is very challenging and a constant evolution for me.” Hawkins is grateful that her fans have stayed loyal and supportive through all the changes she has made and over the years between her albums. “When I see people’s response to the new record and to the shows, it is very fulfilling for me,” she concluded. “It reassures me that I’ve done the right thing and that I’m doing okay... no... better than okay... I’m doing great!” Sophie B. Hawkins will perform at Ravina in Highland Park, Illinois with the Coors on August 19 |
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New York born and bred
singer/songwriter Sophie B. Hawkins has proven to be quite the
“do it yourself” gal in the two years since parting ways with her former
major label home, Sony Records, where she had once enjoyed Top 5 chart
hits like “Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover” and “As I Lay Me
Down.” 