In London, he played small clubs and pubs by day and West End cabaret nightclubs at night.
They soon came across a solo singer playing local pubs and clubs doing his own songs and a few Bowie covers.
The rest of the summer was spent with the band playing small clubs and pubs all across the UK to build their fanbase.
Hawkins began playing clubs and pubs with The Darkness until they were signed by record label Atlantic Records.
From there he moved to Sussex, England for another two years, playing pubs and restaurants.
The band gained much popularity playing such local pubs as Bridget's and Greensleeves.
They have played festivals, pubs and theaters across the United States, Ireland and other parts of Europe.
This led to honing his skills playing bars, restaurants and pubs until taking out a loan in 2006 to cut an independent album.
We were playing pubs and clubs and had a sort of underground following - we put out our own records and stuff.