The Songster’s Story: An Interview with Jen Hawley

I had a great time interviewing this insightful, generous, and talented singer-songwriter. After reading, you'll want to check out more from her. You can do that here:

Jen’s link tree: https://linktr.ee/jenhawley

and website: www.jenhawley.com

Thanks for agreeing to this interview, Jen. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better. I’ve known you mainly as a great singer from Open Mics around MoCo. In researching for this interview, I’ve gotten to know you better as a phenomenal singer-songwriter as well. Congratulations on your second place win at the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards this year! That’s a huge and well-deserved honor.

Jen:

It was such an honor to be selected as a finalist and get to play at the Strathmore! Wow. Really surreal. And then to receive second place and share the stage with so many amazing songwriters. It was a highlight of 2025 for sure.

Kristin:

I bet! What is your musical background? Were you involved with music as a kid? Did you study music in college? 

Jen:

My mom required each of her kids to take at least one year of piano. For two of the five of us, it stuck and we played for many years. And then in fourth grade when it was time to pick an instrument at school, I wanted to play flute - like every other girl. But my parents said I had to play what the school had to let me borrow. And they only had a French Horn. I swear that the case was about as big as my 10-year-old self. I would lug it home from school on the weekends and blast it early on Christmas mornings to make the rest of my family get up - they absolutely hated that! Haha. I ended up playing all through high school. And trumpet in jazz band, mellophone in marching band. I always loved to sing, but we couldn't do both band and chorus in high school, so I stuck with band. My first time at college, I studied education. And I sang in one of the college's traveling groups. I was in their orchestra as well.  I always wondered if I should have majored in music. But honestly I equally love teaching and that time gave me a strong foundation for what I do now. It wasn't until several years after college, when I was playing keys in my church worship team that someone in the congregation asked me if I would teach piano to her daughter. And instantly I realized I loved combining my love for teaching and music. As I picked up new students it gave me a desire to go back to school to grow in musicianship and technique specific to piano and voice. So, I attended Montgomery College and got an AA in music. They have a great music department there! 

Kristin:

I love this story! It’s amazing in life how we sometimes just fall into things. I’m curious, do you find the business side of it fairly easy or is it a bit of a struggle?

Jen:

I learned so much as I went. And I learned a lot from my mistakes. Lol. I found and joined a few groups for music teachers and they were so life-giving to me. I also get free coaching from a business mentor through score.org. A great organization for anyone starting a new business. And then my husband, Dave joined my teaching business about 5 years ago. That was a big risk for both of us to both be self employed.  He finished his full time job and joined me a week before COVID hit. That was a crazy time but thank God we were able to maintain lessons even during COVID.

Kristin:

Can you describe what your lessons look like? What ages of students? Do you have a focus, either by design or just as things shake out, like preparing students for auditions or students aspiring to make careers in music or...? 

Jen:

I have had students as young as 4 and as old as 82. One of my favorites was a man who started taking piano with me in his mid 70's. He was an accomplished architect who all his life had wanted to play the piano. It's never too late to start and I had the privilege of working with him for several years. Mostly all my lessons are one-on-one with the student. So I can tailor the lesson to their needs, learning style and goals. I have at different times pulled students together for ensembles - rock band ensembles and caroling during the holidays. All of that is fun, too. In individual lessons, I consistently touch on several skills to help students grow in their development of technique, musical concepts, reading music, strengthening their ear and then of course preparation for auditions, performances and enjoying the music they love. 

Kristin

What wonderful work and you’re a natural. You have one of the beautifulest voices around, which is saying a lot around here. When did you start performing?

Jen:

Thank you Kristin. You are sweet!!!  I've sung in church for years. I led worship at Seneca Creek Community Church for over 15 years and love that community of people.  Dave and I started playing at Farmers Markets in 2022 to push ourselves to build up our set list and then from there started finding other venues to play - including some of the open mics where I got to meet you! There's such a great community of musicians in our area. We have loved getting to know everyone.

Kristin:

When did you start writing music?

Jen:

I wrote a couple of silly love songs when I was in middle school. But really started writing seriously in my mid to late 20's. I finally got my own piano as an adult and couldn't stop coming to it. I also was enticed to take home a free banjo (against my will and distaste for banjo :). I started playing and songs just started coming out. 

Kristin:

How does music usually come to you? Do you usually start with a lyrical inspiration or does a melody or musical phrase come to you first?

Jen:

Most of the time, if I get a lyric idea, I'll write it down in my notes app on my phone or quickly record the idea. Sometimes there's a melody, sometimes there's not. And many times I flesh out my lyrical ideas in my journal to get to a concept for an entire song. Separately, I'll sit with the piano, banjo or guitar and find something interesting to me musically and record clips of ideas. The magic happens when I take the time to find a link between a lyrical idea and musical feeling. And that's the start of a new song...

Kristin:

I spent about an hour doing parallel art to your music with my kid this weekend and we agree you're a vibe. That’s a good thing and my kid asked for a link to your music. Your songs really are amazing. Can you share a bit about your process in writing music? Do you have a schedule or ritual around writing or do you write only when inspired? About how long does it take you to craft a song?

Jen:

Oh my goodness! I would absolutely love to see the art you created!! It means a lot as an artist that you spent time with my music. When I first started writing songs, I definitely waited for the inspiration to hit. I also had more alone time back then which helped me get in the mood. I have found as time goes on that I have to create the moments to be inspired: build in downtime, make sure I'm journaling and putting myself in creative spaces.  As far as how long it takes to write a song .. a couple songs I wrote were done in a night. And then the title track on my album, Fragile literally took 5 years to finish. I fought with that song so much. haha. And, then finally the producer of my album, Matt Williams (and amazing bass player) laid down a bass track that pulled everything together and took the song to the finish line. Willie Nelson said once that if the song doesn't come quickly, then it must not have been meant to be. And also, Leonard Cohen took five years to write Hallelujah!! I think every song has its own birthing process and timeline. The main thing is to get it to a place that feels right ... And then get it out ASAP so you don't beat it to death. :)

Kristin:

I totally get that. I mean, I wrestle with almost every song, in composition of music and playing, if not lyrics. But I completely relate when it comes to writing poetry. Sometimes it’s near instantaneous, like magic. And sometimes… I like that you keep wrestling with songs that aren’t forthcoming — because they’re so good — and that you know when to leave it. I’ve seen good pieces ruined by over-editing, taking all the vitality out of them. Your music is rich with vitality.

Do you compose mostly on piano, and then also banjo? Does the different instrumentation have you thinking of different musical organization?

Jen: 

I have composed on both piano and banjo. And then more recently, guitar.  I wrote my song, "Strawberry Moon" using the guitar. Many times I will write on one instrument and end up shifting it to another. On my Fragile album, the first track, "Handed Heaven" - I actually wrote that song on banjo, which is kind of funny when you hear it. Definitely doesn't sound like a banjo song. And I don't even play banjo at all in the final recording. 

Kristin:

You’ve been playing guitar too. How’s that going? What specific skills are you working on now? How do your practices look?

Jen: 

Right now I'm trying to nail the Bm chord. Lol. And then I'll continue on to F major.  It's handy having a guitar teacher living with you! Dave is always willing to show me new things. For practice, I try to not make a big ordeal about it.  If I can pick up the guitar for 5-10 minutes between lessons, or in the morning, then I do.  And as I always tell my students - more frequency will get you there quicker than a couple times of sitting for an hour. One of my 2026 goals is to accompany myself on the guitar at an open mic for 3 songs. You can hold me to it!

Kristin:

Bm is so hard! And so pretty. I can’t find an easy cheat I like. But I’m okay enough with my cheat F, ha! Good luck with those!

Tell me about production. How long have you been working with Matt Williams? What’s the studio like? Do you have particular preferences in how you lay down tracks? I don’t yet know enough about the process to know what to ask, so feel free to describe and share thoughts on any aspect.

Jen: 

My first project was "Spend Your Heart" This was a present for my mom when she turned 80 - a set of old songs that she would sing to us as kids. We worked with our friend John Spicer at Broken Soul Audio. I pulled in friends to play with us (including Matt Williams) and my nieces and nephews to play/sing on the album. We recorded alot at my house. We use Studio One, an Apollo Twin interface and an AEA Ribbon Mic to capture almost everything. And then we sent the stems to John and he mixed and mastered the album beautifully. It was my first real experience working on a record. I'll always remember it fondly. 

My EP, "Think on These Things" - Dave and I worked on that on our own. Dave did a fantastic job mixing and I am proud of those 3 songs. One of them, Wage War, was one of the two songs that I submitted to Bernard/Ebb. "Cant Go It Alone" is a favorite for me. We recorded this during covid and got some friends to sing along on the chorus which made it that much more special.

Then, when I was getting ready to work on "Fragile," (an album processing grief in the midst of my father's passing) Dave and I decided to ask Matt to produce it for us. He has worked with other musicians for many years producing and mixing great music. We were excited to get his ears and expertise on these songs. And he really helped shape them in great ways. We started with taking scratch tracks of each song and recording drums at Matt's home studio, Clubhill Media. Steve Widenhofer, a long time friend and drummer for One Eyed Pug laid down the drum tracks in two days. Then, Dave and I recorded alot of the guitar, vocals, banjo, keys at our house.  Matt during this whole process was shaping the sound, spending a CRAZY number of hours editing every track, and also adding percussion, bass, drums and even a spectacular whistle (check out "Eloise" for the whistle!). It's a time consuming process. But he is so excellent at what he does and wants it to be good. And he made it great. I could go on and on, but I think I've already reached my word limit. haha.  But if you or anyone else is getting ready to record - I am happy to sit down and chat about it all. It's a huge undertaking and needs alot of focus and energy. But taking the time makes it well worth the effort.

Kristin:

Thanks! I have 100% enjoyed getting to know your music and you better.

Please humor me while I share an early exchange we had when I first asked if I could interview you.

K:

I think one of my interview questions will be -- Are you really as nice as you seem or do you have an alt mean side that comes out in private? Maybe you kick kittens or punch puppies?

Well, you can think of how honestly you want to answer that. ha!

J:

Haha.... you can ask Dave about my dark side. lol.   

I do feel like I try to remember every person/living being is a unique, complicated and beautiful creation.  I also imagine how I'd want to be treated and want to give every person that same dignity. I think I get into trouble when I feel like my dignity or someone else's is being threatened.  

Such a funny, sincere, and forward thinking response. Indeed, while your music always gets me, your kindness is equally disarming.

What’s next for you? Any big events or musical projects coming up?

Jen: 

I am looking forward to a new set of songs that I am eager to record. One of which I mentioned already, "Strawberry Moon." I'm hoping to put out a set of maybe 5 -7 songs this year. And, it has been a joy to be performing regularly with Dave and Matt as the "Jen Hawley Trio" - we'd love to see anyone at our upcoming gigs in 2026: www.jenhawley.com/livemusic.  I do believe I'll be playing at a Songwriter Circle led by Annette Wasilik and Focus Music in the new year. Stay tuned!

Kristin:

Great! Is there anything else you’d like to share?

Jen: 

I believe music is one of God's great gifts to us.  In a day and age where the market is flooded with new music... ie: when AI is starting to spit out amazing songs in seconds...sometimes it may be hard to find a "why" for doing it yourself. Dave and I have these conversations alot... The creative process of making the music can by itself stand alone. Finding joy in the journey of writing, fighting with it, expressing a thought through lyrics and melody, textures of sound - all these things are fulfilling and, as my faith informs me, an expression of the creativity of my Creator.  And then - mix that hard work with the moments that an original song is received by and even needed by another human being - I believe that truly makes the world a better place.  Music is good. Keep writing!