Shawn Colvin Steady On

This major exhibition celebrates the career and music of Shawn Colvin.  Colvin, who settled in Austin more than 30 years ago, is best known for her Grammy-winning debut album “Steady On” and the shimmering murder ballad “Sunny Came Home,” which won Song of the Year and Record of the Year at the 40th annual Grammy Awards.

Those end-of-night Grammy wins for the same song puts the 10-time Grammy nominee in such company as Kendrick Lamar, Amy Winehouse and Billie Eilish. Her enduring and insightful music, with its echoes of Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and Paul Simon, bridged decades and made her an icon to the Taylor Swift generation.

Colvin’s rich archives -- which she donated to The Wittliff in 2025 -- provide a rare look at an artist whose inspirational story connects Texas and The Wittliff to the ascension of women to the top of the pop music charts in the 1990s.

The South Dakota-born singer was part of the wave that included Tracy Chapman, Suzanne Vega, Alanis Morisette, Sheryl Crow, Erykah Badu, Sarah McLachlan, Natalie Merchant, Destiny’s Child, Sinead O’Connor and so many others.

That seismic shift culminated with Lilith Fair. Her three-year association with the groundbreaking all-women festival tour bolstered her mystique. She became a mom while on the ’98 Lilith tour, performing while pregnant with her daughter, Caledonia.

Colvin’s collaborations with artist Julie Speed and photographers Kate Breakey and Alexandra Valenti elevated her work. Her appearances on The Simpsons (she voiced the animated Christian rock character Rachel Jordan), Sesame Street (Elmopalooza!) and on The Larry Sanders Show add yet another dimension to her wide pop culture appeal.

"STEADY ON" is a major exhibition and runs through December 2028. It corresponds with the 30-year anniversary of Colvin’s milestone years,1996-1998, which captured our imagination and our hearts.