THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Mayer Hawthorne cut his teeth in his hometown of Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he started making beats and DJing at the height of Detroit hip-hop. Since his debut heart-shaped single Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out dropped via Stones Throw in 2008, Hawthorne has released four LPs, raking in accolades from esteemed publications as his authentic soul artistry has captured the hearts of critics and fans alike.
Your favorite artist’s favorite artist, Hawthorne opened for Amy Winehouse on her tragic final tour and served as direct support for Bruno Mars twice. He crafted modern yacht rock jams with Pharrell poolside in Miami, while John Mayer dubbed his debut the “album of the year” on Twitter. His songs have soundtracked episodes of Girls, Ugly Betty, and his is the only non-Kanye song in Spike Jonze’s short film We Were Once A Fairytale. Hawthorne has written and produced the lion’s share of his catalog, and apart from his solo work, he collaborates with producer Jake One on their boogie funk super-group Tuxedo, which is now three albums and multiple world tours deep.
After the release of his album Man About Town in 2016, Hawthorne launched the next phase of his career as a producer and writer for fellow artists. His recent credits include Jordan Ward’s single Lil Baby Crush,Truth or Dare by Chika with Freddie Gibbs, and most notably Options from Doja Cat’s double platinum album Planet Her, which earned him another Grammy nomination. When the pandemic struck, Hawthorne took to YouTube, where he started the Wine & Vinyl Hour live streaming series, spinning rare records for his global community of viewers and reaching them in the most intimate of settings; at home.
Though he’s lived in Los Angeles for over a decade, Hawthorne has not forgotten his blue collar roots. His photo hangs on the wall at Lafayette Coney Island in Detroit, and he performed for over 100,000 people at the Big House in Ann Arbor in the middle of heavy snowfall during the 2014 NHL Winter Classic. While Hawthorne got his start making hip-hop and neo-soul, his aesthetic sensibilities balloon beyond any genre parameters, and beyond music itself. Anyone who remembers that early heart-shaped seven-inch — and the Grammy-nominated How Do You Do album packaging — knows he’s attuned to design. (A look at his renovated Los Feliz bungalow says as much.)
This summer, Hawthorne debuted Without You‘s The Pool, a swirling, smoke-filled slapper that guides the listener towards transcendence. Written and produced by Hawthorne, this song is where rebelliousness and carefree living intertwine, inviting you to embrace the thrill of psychedelic adventures. “I wanted this song to feel dangerous. Like you’re screaming down a hot desert road on a Harley, high on mushrooms and you might lose control.”
