Dawn has developed a singing style that can bring you back to the early 1900s when black gospel music first came to Britain from the USA.  But she can equally hit you with a hard hitting contemporary sound that is both fresh and modern.

 

1970s

At the tender age of 7 my cousin Claudette and I began singing in the Seventh Day Adventist Church.  The members were overwhelmed to see children so young harmonizing with voices that resonated and resembled that of adults.  The experience for the members was so uplifting, spiritual and inspiring that several people dedicated their lives to Jesus.
I cannot speak for Claudette but as for me I always felt the presence of an angel when I sung and sensed a tingling vibration within my soul that triggered an inner voice that I vocally expressed for all to hear.   Many of the listeners were drawn to Christ and people would offer to place money in the offering plate to hear me sing once more.

As a teenager I became curious as to what the world could offer and briefly left the church for a spell and was almost persuaded to sign a contract with the recording company CBS.   But in obedience to the Holy spirit I made a 360 degree turn back to the church, my roots and spiritual foundation. I am a living Testimony of the bible text 'Grow up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he’ll not depart’,  Proverbs 22:6.

1980s

The 1980’s for me was considered as the golden age of gospel music, certainly in the Adventist Church.  We were on the verge of experimenting with drums which was practically unheard of in the early 1970s, we were also experimenting with electric instruments such as the electric acoustic and base guitar and a revival was taking place in how church music was sung, played and performed.    At this time I was the lead singer for the Advent tones later re- named Second Birth. 

Second Birth was one of the flagship gospel groups in the Adventist church at the time and we toured in concerts all over the UK.  We were well received due to our collection of songs which were all original, the skill of the accomplished musicians and the unique arrangement of the harmonies and my rich soulful style of singing.

1990s

A number of solo artists and groups emerged in the late 1980’s that paved the way of taking British gospel music out of the church and into the world so we could share the message with a wider more secular audience.

I started a Gospel group called Viceroy.   At the time we as group members had a mission and our aim was to be a representative of God and his supreme government.  Our main objective was to establish a music ministry that would spread the message of good news up and down the country.

We were young full of enthusiasm and spiritual excitement for this project and Viceroy became well know in the Adventist circuit for our music composition and artistic flare and style in music.

The group disbanded after several years and many of us went on to various music projects, academic pursuits and raised families.   The work we accomplished was fantastic and the memory of that period and people I performed with still holds a special place in my heart.