Sophie B. Hawkins
Sophie B. Hawkins is an exceptionally talented singer, songwriter, musician, and painter whose songs have been said to ‘heal’ people through their raw and truthful lyrics and rocking melodies. She won a Grammy nomination in 1993 for Best New Artist, and she is probably best known for her songs "Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover" and "As I Lay Me Down."
She is set to perform at The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children 2010 Gala on November 18. In this interview, she discusses her decision to perform at the gala, her upcoming album, her music career, and thoughts about the superficiality of life.
TheCelebrityCafe.com: You will be performing at The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children gala on November 18th. How important is this cause to you and why?
Sophie B. Hawkins: [This cause and this organization is] very important because of what they do for children. They give children long-term healing potential and they also educate parents and teachers. The organization is very hands-on, dignified, committed and disciplined. I’m very in love with this charity because there is very little you can do for sexually abused children in the short-term, and they are willing to put in the time to make a long-term difference.
I actually researched [this charity] because I was looking for a way to get involved for my upcoming album. I had gone to the Gulf [of Mexico] on my own time and helped with the spill, and I was sitting on a plane and a woman said that I have to do something that resonates with my life experience. So I’m very happy to be [working with this charity].
TCC: Do you have any personal experience with child cruelty?
SBH: Yep; but I wouldn’t call it cruelty. Gigi Gaston actually made a documentary about my life called The Cream Will Rise. Sundance bought it and it was at a lot of film festivals and it is now used in clinics all across the country and the world. It is a very inspiring and moving documentary, not just because it is about me but also because it presents something that is very typical [of people who have dealt with abuse]. I was in denial about the whole thing [the abuse].
It is a very raw and true documentary and the emotions that are expressed are definitely present in my songs.
TCC: How did you cope with the abuse?
SBH: I never would have dealt with [my abuse] without my songs. Really as an artist, music is what I needed—the money, the success, it didn’t matter. That’s why I love communicating to people through my music because I’m not a victim at all. We all connect through suffering, and my music is my gift. I don’t want people to feel sorry for me because I don’t feel like a victim—everyone goes through suffering and that is how we connect.
That is what is so amazing about this charity: we can create and open doors for children and then help them walk through those doors. Maybe I can be an example of that, [of overcoming my abuse].
So many kids never want to talk about the abuse or tell and that is certainly my story because I loved the people that were involved. The kids don’t want the relationship to stop, they want the abuse to stop. That’s why it is a very difficult situation to get past.
TCC: Your upcoming album, Dream Street and Chance, deals with you getting passed a lot of personal struggles. Any advice on how others can do the same?
SBH: Yes, and you know, the burden is always going to be on you…fortunately! No matter what happens to us we really have to accept everything as our tool shed. You have to go in there and create what is the truth for you. My advice is to not ever look and say I am going to be ‘less than.’ I am going to be ‘more than that’ is what you have to do [and say to yourself].
It’s a challenge but it’s a demand. We are not just flesh and blood; we are spiritual beings. If you’re finding the truth within you, you have to take responsibility for your healing so you can help other people. It’s easy to look back, but hard to look forward. I’ve always been successful as an artist because I commit to the truth and fight the fight within me that wants to get out of the oppression; that’s how I create love and trust. If you don’t take responsibility [for your struggles], no one is ever going to trust you.
Q: Could you talk a little about Dream Street & Chance? What was the inspiration behind this album and what makes it different from your previous work?
SBH: I love this album. I’m probably going to change the title because it’s way too airy for what the album sounds like but, you know, I didn’t really know how to make this album. I don’t know how to conceive success anymore. This album was a great turning point for me—I was always trying to pursue success and trying to be great, but it’s impossible to measure success.
At one point I was in a no win situation and I was writing songs and never putting them out. I was totally impractical about it. I didn’t know the road to take for my songs anymore [since in this day in age], it’s difficult to get people to hear anything.
So I had the opportunity for a musical, and I threw myself into that having finished the album but having no body or heart [to release it to the public]. That was 2 years ago—I engineered the whole thing in my studio [without Columbia Records]. I stuck to the truth and it is a very emotional and very raw album but it does rock and have an edge. I also wasn’t pursuing any standard while writing it.
[Also with this album], I wanted to be the kind of person who waits for the right opportunity. There’s a lot more I can do now as a singer/songwriter if I can tap into things. You can throw yourself away cheaply in this day in age [if you aren’t patient].
TCC: How do you think you and your music have evolved over the years?
SBH: I don’t think I’ve gotten better [as an artist]. I’ve evolved as a human being and I’ve taken more risks. I’ve let go of judgement. I don’t know when the best stuff is coming—I sink into the process in a different way. I paint more, and my vision is stronger, but I don’t think my music is better because nothing is ever better than your first material.
TCC: How did you first deal with success back in the ‘90s?
SBH: Success was one of my weakest points. I was so ill prepared for it. I never appreciated within my self the gift of success. I never accepted it. People gave me so much momentum and love and people really got my music but I didn’t accept it. That’s probably one of my biggest regrets.
I actually went to a psychic, the only one I’ve ever been to and she said that I was going to make a lot of money but I was never going to keep it. And she was so right! Most people who are successful don’t keep their money. One of the rarest things in the world is to maintain success and integrity—the kinds of things that seem so easy just starting out. But that’s the human predicament.
Nowadays, people put too much stress on the success and not enough on the struggle. Maybe that’s why things have gotten more superficial because people don’t accept the struggle. [I believe that] artists aren’t born—even the best artists had bad paintings. You have to be passionately in love with what you’re doing and then sit with yourself and allow for all the ups and downs of it.
People around me are pushing Baby Einstein and pushing preschool; I have a son, Dashiell, and we read books and we go outside—I don’t stick him in front of a television. By pushing children and wanting quick success, parents are producing followers, not leaders.
To learn more about Sophie or if you are a person struggling from abuse or know someone who is, please check out the documentary, The Cream Will Rise,or visit The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children at www.nyspcc.org.