Shawn Mullins (born March 8, 1968) is an American singer-

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

who specializes in

folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...

instrumental rock Instrumental rock is rock music that emphasizes instrumental performance and features very little or no singing. Examples of instrumental music in rock can be found in practically every subgenre of the style. Instrumental rock was most popular f ...

, adult alternative, and Americana music. His 1998 single "

Lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...

" hit number one on the Adult Top 40 and was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

Early life and military career

Mullins was born in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. He cultivated an interest in music beginning in his days at Clarkston High School in

Clarkston, Georgia Clarkston is a city in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 14,756 as of the 2020 census, up from 7,554 in 2010. The city is noted for its ethnic diversity, and is often referred to as "the most diverse square mile in Ameri ...

(where he made the acquaintance of friend and mentor

Amy Ray Amy Elizabeth Ray (born April 12, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter and member of the contemporary folk duo Indigo Girls with Emily Saliers. She also pursues a solo career, releasing ten albums under her own name, and founded the independent ...

of the

Indigo Girls Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duet (music), duo from Atlanta, Georgia, United States, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. The two met in Primary school, elementary school and began performing together as Secondary school, hig ...

). Later, he honed his craft in his college days at

University of North Georgia The University of North Georgia (UNG) is a public university with multiple campuses in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. It is part of the University System of Georgia. The university was established on January 8, 2013, through a m ...

(then known as North Georgia College) as a solo acoustic musician and bandmaster of the military marching band ( Golden Eagle Band). He attended the University of North Georgia on an

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

ROTC The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC; or ) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. While ROTC graduate officers serve in all branches o ...

scholarship with an intention of possibly pursuing a military career. Although he quickly abandoned this notion in favor of songwriting, the contract nonetheless obliged him after graduation to serve a short term as an inactive

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

in the

Individual Ready Reserve The Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) is a category of the Ready Reserve of the Reserve Component of the Armed Forces of the United States composed of former active duty or reserve military personnel. Its governing statute is codified at . For sold ...

component of the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

Reserve. He served in an inactive status, reaching the rank of 1st lieutenant before fulfilling his service obligation and resigning honorably.

Career

Shawn Eric Mullins with Twice Removed and solo career

Soon, he added a drummer (Mickey Hendrix) and bassist (Carlton Brown) to form the

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a subgenre of rock music and form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, ...

trio billed as "Shawn Eric Mullins with Twice Removed", a combo that would help carry him to campus-wide and regional renown. Eventually the "Twice Removed" trio parted ways under amicable terms, and Mullins began using a variety of collaborative lineups while building his reputation as a solo artist.

Commercial success

His critical breakthrough came when his song "

", from the album '' Soul's Core'', became a radio and video hit. In the video for "Lullaby", directed by Roger Pistole, actress Dominique Swain appeared. His song, "All in My Head", featured on the sitcom '' Scrubs'', was written in response to an e-mail sent by producers of the show searching for a theme song. Mullins wrote a demo version and sent it in within 24 hours. It wasn't selected as the theme song, but the demo version was used in a season one episode of the series. Another single, "Shimmer", was included on the soundtrack for ''

Dawson's Creek ''Dawson's Creek'' is an American teen drama television series about the lives of a close-knit group of friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts, beginning in high school and continuing into college. It aired from January 20, 19 ...

'' and was a minor hit. "Shimmer" was also used in Australia as part of its promotional campaign during the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

, and is still considered in Australia as the unofficial anthem of the games. To date he has yet to match the overwhelming commercial success of "Lullaby", which was also released as a live performance on the charity album '' Live in the X Lounge II'' in 1999. In early 2002, he formed the band The Thorns with

Matthew Sweet Sidney Matthew Sweet (born October 6, 1964) is an American alternative rock/power pop singer-songwriter and musician who was part of the burgeoning music scene in Athens, Georgia, during the 1980s before gaining commercial success in the 1990 ...

and Pete Droge.

Vanguard Records

In 2006, Mullins released his first album on new label

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the so ...

, '' 9th Ward Pickin Parlor'', as well as a new single, entitled "Beautiful Wreck", from the album. The single enjoyed modest success by reaching number one on the Americana and AAA (Adult Album Alternative), and was featured in the Cities 97 Sampler Volume 18. On March 11, 2008, Mullins released his second album on Vanguard, entitled '' Honeydew''. On October 12, 2010, Mullins released his third album on Vanguard, '' Light You Up''.

Sugar Hill and Rounder Records

On October 23, 2015, Mullins released his new album, titled '' My Stupid Heart'', under Sugar Hill and Rounder Records.

Personal life

Mullins has been married and divorced three times. He has one son.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Better Days'' (1992) * ''Big Blue Sky'' (1994) * ''Eggshells'' (1996) * '' Soul's Core'' (1998,

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

) US number 54, Platinum * '' Beneath the Velvet Sun'' (2000) * '' 9th Ward Pickin Parlor'' (2006) * '' Honeydew'' (2008) * '' Light You Up'' (2010) * '' My Stupid Heart'' (2015) * ''Soul's Core Revival'' (2018)

Other albums

* ''Shawn Mullins'' (1990) ndependent album* ''Ever Changing World'' (1991) ndependent album* ''Jeff's Last Dance, Volume 1'' (1995) ive album* ''Jeff's Last Dance, Volume 2'' (1995) ive album* ''The First Ten Years'' (1999) ompilation album* '' The Essential Shawn Mullins'' (2003) ompilation album* ''Live From Portland Bootleg'' (2004) ive album* ''Jeff's Last Dance, Volume 3'' (2005) ive album* ''Lullaby: Hits, Rarities, & Gems'' (2007) ompilation album* ''Live at the Variety Playhouse'' (2008) ive albumref>

Singles

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mullins, Shawn 1968 births Living people Singers from Atlanta American country singer-songwriters American folk singers American male singer-songwriters American rock guitarists American male guitarists United States Army officers Vanguard Records artists People from Clarkston, Georgia Guitarists from Georgia (U.S. state) 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from Georgia (U.S. state) 21st-century American guitarists American folk guitarists 20th-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American singer-songwriters 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers The Thorns members Singer-songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state)