Thea Hopkins

PRAISE FOR THEA HOPKINS and her new AMERICANA / CONTEMPORARY FOLK ALBUM, CHICKASAW“Thea Hopkins’ new recording, "Chickasaw," puts her haunting voice front and center, and especially on her lovely self-written ballads, it's a voice with the mystery and power of the late, great Nick Drake.” -- Susan Werner“This is what making good music is all about! I especially liked ‘Jenny Danced.’” -- Tom Rush“Thea Hopkins is one of the most literate, poetic and emotionally moving of the new singer-songwriters to arrive on the scene in the last few years. Her song, 'Jesus Is On the Wire,' is a compelling composition with a riveting story-telling style. This is one of the most important songs we have sung in recent years." – Peter, Paul & Mary“Thea Hopkins possesses a voice and style that are so unique and brilliant that you wonder why the rest of the world has not yet caught on. She is sultry and sensuous, serious and playful, mysterious and fascinating all at once. She is reminiscent of the great torch singers, but also has a modern and contemporary sound which she shares with the likes of Sarah McLaughlin and Natalie Merchant. The bottom line is that she knows how to take an audience on a ride that touches the full range of human emotions. The beauty of Thea's voice is matched by the brilliance of her lyrics.” -– Robert B. Schwartz, The Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange“Immaculately played and produced, with narratives that drip with metaphor and imagery… Thea Hopkins possesses a voice that stands up to her material… The title track showcases the style perfectly, evocative and with a hint of menace. This is folk as it should be: dark tales, poetry and protest.”— Americana-UK.com“Thea Hopkins is one of Boston's treasures. Her brand new CD "Chickasaw" is pure delight from beginning to end.”— Kathy Sands Boehmer, me & thee coffeehouseThea Hopkins is blessed with a creamy, clarion voice and a vivid observational eye. Hopkins' poetic impressions and dusky vocals recall Mary Chapin Carpenter. Her gorgeous voice wraps itself like mist around country-folk songs of tenderness and substance. -- Sarah Rodman, Boston HeraldIn February of 2005, the nationally syndicated radio program "Acoustic Café" selected Thea Hopkins' music for their monthly feature devoted to a new artist, "One To Watch." Thea was named as a finalist in the 2004 Boston Folk Festival songwriter contest. There were 350 entries. She won 2nd place in the contest. Her song "Jesus Is On The Wire," a topical ballad about gay hate-crime victim Matthew Shepard, was recently included on Peter, Paul & Mary's first album in nine years, "In These Times." Called by numerous music critics around the nation the most powerful new song in their repertoire, the famed folk trio have performed the song at every one of their concerts in the last three years. Thea's song is the only new song to be performed in its entirety in the trio's recent PBS-TV special, a career-overview called "Carry It On." In the Washington Post, Richard Harrington wrote that "In These Times" showcases "several promising new writers. The standout here is Thea Hopkins." Peter, Paul & Mary have recently written that "Thea Hopkins is one of the most poetic, literate and powerfully moving of the new singer/songwriters to emerge on the scene in the last few years. Her song, 'Jesus Is On the Wire' is a compelling composition with a riveting story-telling style. This is one of the most important songs we have sung in recent years." The All-Music Guide, in their review of "In These Times," devoted nearly half the review to extravagant praise of Thea's song: "The obvious highlight this time around is a song by Boston-based songwriter Thea Hopkins' "Jesus Is on the Wire," which tells the chilling story of the murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard in Wyoming. With sparse, jagged, and highly cinematic lyrics, the song builds the same kind of quiet horror as Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit," and its matter-of-fact tone, even on the powerful chorus, makes "Jesus Is on the Wire" absolutely unforgettable. "In These Times" is valuable for that song alone." Thea Hopkins' debut album, "Birds of Mystery," was named one of the Top Ten local albums of the year by the Boston Herald. "A gorgeous dusky voice wraps itself like mist around country-folk songs of tenderness and substance," wrote Herald staff-writer Sarah Rodman. In 2004, Thea's song "Western Town" was included in the CD "The Best of Boston Songwriters." In 2003 and 2004, Thea won ASCAP Plus awards for song-writing. She has opened this past year for Maura O'Connell, Richie Havens, Cheryl Wheeler, Susan Werner, John Hammond & Ellis Paul. She has performed at Club Passim, Johnny D's, The Sundance Film Festival,The Natick Center for the Arts, Fall River's Narrows Center for the Arts, Vermont's Middle Earth Music Hall, the Stone Soup Coffeehouse and in New York City at Cornelia Street Cafe, CB's Gallery, Kavehaz and The Bitter End.