Tracy Hamlin – Artists With Adam

Tracy Hamlin – Artists With Adam

Masters Radio – conversations that honor the artists who shaped our musical lives. In this episode, Adam sits down with Tracy Hamlin to discuss her extraordinary journey from performing at age 11 in Baltimore to becoming an international recording artist with No. 1 hits on the UK Soul Charts and Official Indie R&B Chart, surviving breast cancer, writing the memoir Nothing Can Stop Me Now, founding the Sweet Jazz Festival, and building her independent label DMH Records in honor of her late mother.

“What I’ve done equates to success to a lot of people, but I’m not a household name or mainstream artist. When I’m able to be featured on platforms like this, it really means the world.” — Tracy Hamlin

Episode Highlights

  • The story behind DMH Records: industry rejection, a tax return, and building a label named for her late mother
  • Her secret parallel career in dance and house music: 60+ international singles, roots in Baltimore’s house scene via Crystal Waters and the Basement Boys
  • Surviving breast cancer while touring with Peabo Bryson and producing a two-day festival – scheduling chemo on Tuesdays so she could gig by the weekend
  • Ten years teaching music to students with dyslexia at Jemicy School – including the story of a student with mobility issues and the one-note xylophone
  • Opening BayouNOLA restaurant in Martinsburg, WV with husband Nat, featuring his grandparents’ recipes from Arnaud’s in New Orleans
  • Sweet Jazz Festival 2026: Parkview High School Jazz Ensemble, Loudoun Cares, and Young Kings Movement
  • Plans for a vinyl-only release of her 7th album – in yellow or pink
  • Competitive axe-throwing: three named axes, trick shots, and knife throwing

Chapters

  1. 00:00 – Welcome & Masters Radio intro
  2. 00:51 – Tracy Hamlin introduction
  3. 01:20 – Building DMH Records in her mother’s name
  4. 03:24 – The 11-year-old who auditioned for Fragile Glass
  5. 04:48 – Inside Def Jam with Russell Simmons
  6. 06:30 – The secret dance music career: house music and Italian producers
  7. 08:42 – Working with Italian producers and language barriers
  8. 09:45 – Classical training at Baltimore School of the Arts & Peabody
  9. 12:02 – Breast cancer diagnosis and choosing mind over matter
  10. 14:38 – Sweet Jazz Festival 2026: Parkview HS Jazz, Loudoun Cares, Young Kings Movement
  11. 16:13 – Teaching music to kids with dyslexia at Jemicy School
  12. 19:51 – “When the spirit moves you, hit it”: the one-note xylophone story
  13. 21:09 – Balancing it all: one day at a time
  14. 23:08 – “No is a complete sentence”
  15. 23:48 – The axe-throwing hobby
  16. 25:16 – BayouNOLA: Cajun cooking with Nat’s family recipes from Arnaud’s
  17. 26:38 – European fan base and touring
  18. 27:06 – 7th album: vinyl-only release plans
  19. 28:07 – The vinyl revival and the billion-LP milestone
  20. 29:02 – Masters Radio’s Song Forge and music education mission
  21. 30:57 – Closing and thank you

Key Quotes

  • “Let me create my own destiny” – on starting DMH Records after industry rejection
  • “No is a complete sentence” – on setting boundaries
  • “When the spirit moves you, hit it” – to a student with mobility issues
  • “Pursuing my passion as a singer led me to my purpose, which is service”
  • “We are music therapists, and every song has a message”
  • “I don’t think about that part, I just do it” – on performing through 6 months of chemo

For more, visit Tracy Hamlin’s website and follow her on Instagram at @tracyhamlinmusic.

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