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JPR Live Session: Dawn and Hawkes

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Miranda Dawn and Chris Hawkes first met in 2010 when he crossed an Austin barroom floor and asked her to dance. A modest beginning became an undeniable attraction the first time they sang together.

Hawkes, a recording producer and touring artist, had a handful of solo records, while Dawn, a performing singer-songwriter, was hosting her own songwriter group showcases, literally setting the stage for their fateful convergence. “I went every week to Miranda’s showcase to hear friends play their new songs. That’s where I really heard Miranda’s lyrics.” Hawkes recalls. “One night, after closing time, a few of us were still sharing songs, and a great mandolin player — who I later learned was Miranda’s dad — asked her to play her song called ‘Forever Happily.’ It felt familiar so I picked up a guitar and played along.” Miranda Dawn admits “Our harmony just fell in and that was the moment we both felt that we should sing together. Something happened and it was as if there was suddenly this third voice.” She continues with more than a hint of genuine wonder “I’d sung harmony with other people before, but this was definitely its own beast.

Dawn asked Hawkes to record her debut solo album and he joined her onstage at the 2012 Kerrville Folk Festival where Dawn was a finalist in the prestigious New Folk Songwriting Competition. Their first duo effort, Golden Heart EP, released shortly after, kicked off a whirlwind three years of constant cross-country touring, co-writing, and even a run on The Voice. Judge Adam Levine called their version of the Beatles’ “I’ve Just Seen a Face” his “favorite performance on the show - ever” and the single reached No. 1 on Billboard’s rock chart. Their original music followed climbing to No. 25 in Billboard’s Folk chart and landed at No. 2 in iTunes singer-songwriter albums.

After filming, Dawn and Hawkes headed home to their humble studio abode in Austin Texas and immediately set to work recording Yours and Mine in between tour dates with the likes of Dawes, Patty Griffin, Chris Isaak, Jim Lauderdale, Robert Earl Keen, Valerie June, and showcasing at festivals including Austin City Limits, Folk Alliance, South By Southwest and TEDx.

As FM Network Program Director and Music Director, Eric oversees many aspects of JPR's broadcast day. He still hosts the occasional Open Air or classical music shift, and is the driving force behind JPR Live Sessions - our popular series of live in-studio music performances and conversations.