Singer/songwriter Wayne Hamilton has been performing music of one kind or another since his childhood years. Born and raised in the Washington, DC area, Wayne started working in rock & roll bands as a drummer, singing lead and banging out R&B rhythms for dance audiences all over the DC Metro area. In the days before electronic samplers and synthesizers, he learned the value of a steady beat and a strong voice.

A VERY early picture of the Tor-Kays.
Seated at drums: Wayne Hamilton, lead vocals
Standing, L-R: Tom Germaine, bass, backup vocals;
Ernie Bickers, lead guitar, backup vocals; 
Kirk Bressler, rhythm guitar.
Kneeling: Mike Dattilio, tenor sax, backup vocals.
Not Pictured: Bill Lowe, tenor sax, baritone sax, backup vocals.

When he went off to Emory & Henry College in the southwestern corner of Virginia, “soul” music was all the rage, and the lessons learned in his high school years helped him put together a blue-eyed soul group with powerful horns and tight vocal harmonies.

Surrounded by string-pickin’ musicians in the southern Appalachians, he naturally also picked up the guitar and the sounds of the then-popular folk movement. He met Pete Seeger and Elizabeth Cotten, who inspired him to begin writing his own music. He also received formal training as a tenor and sang in the college's touring choir.

Wayne later earned an MFA degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, where he also worked in what was then the only 16-track recording studio in the state. He sang radio jingles, did voiceover work and wrote backup vocal parts for many commercials. He continues to write, perform and produce music and voiceovers for Internet, radio and television commercials at JingleMasters.com.

After finishing his degree work, he began a career as a college theater professor and actor/singer, performing in and directing a wide variety of musical productions. Wayne taught at VCU, in the Music department of Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland and was the entire Theater faculty at Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, Maryland, the oldest independent Catholic college in America. He was also on the theater faculty at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities before he left the teaching profession. Throughout those years, he performed and directed professionally when his teaching schedule allowed.

In May of 2006, he released a new CD (titled The Present), and he continues to write songs and jingles and market all of his CDs. He also performs regularly in the active acoustic-music circuit in the Twin Cities region. Wayne is a member of ASCAP (The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) and currently serves as President of the Minnesota Association of Songwriters. He has also served on the board of the Twin Cities New Folk Collective, which produces concerts that feature nationally known acoustic acts.

Wayne with personal hero and folk great Tom Paxton.

Wayne founded the local chapter of Just Plain Folks (JPF), an international music networking organization, in 1999. JPF named the Twin Cities Chapter as "Chapter of the Year" and Wayne as "Coordinator of the Year" in its 2000 JPF awards. JPF nominated Wayne's debut CD, Lucky That Way, as "Best Traditional Folk CD" in 2001; the title cut was also nominated as "Best Traditional Folk Song."

He was a finalist in the New Folk Songwriting Contest at the Minnesota Folk Festival for three years running (1999 - 2001), in the Highway 61 Folk Festival for two years running (2001-2002) and in the 2001 UNISONG International Songwriting Contest. In addition, his song titled "Lucky That Way" was featured in a 2005 commercial for Holland Casinos on television stations throughout the Netherlands. He is working on other film and TV placements for vocal and instrumental versions of his songs.

Wayne has played in most of the acoustic venues in the Twin Cities area, and has toured to cities like Atlanta, DC, Los Angeles and Dallas.  Wayne’s performances give him a chance to try out his original music on the people who come to listen. Most importantly, the songs and the audiences keep Wayne close to the music he loves to play and sing. Wherever there’s a song and people to listen, that’s where you’ll find him (and you can find him by viewing a list of his upcoming gigs).