The Dixie Cups

The Dixie Cups The Dixie Cups were an American girl group from New Orleans, formed in 1964 by sisters Barbara Ann Hawkins and Rosa Lee Hawkins, plus their cousin Joan Marie Johnson. Signed to Red Bird Records (Leiber-Stoller label), they scored their breakthrough with “Chapel of Love” (1964, No. 1 Hot 100), a joyful wedding anthem written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector that sold millions and knocked The Beatles from the top. Follow-ups included the iconic “Iko Iko” (1965, Top 20, a Mardi Gras standard adapted from traditional chants), “People Say,” and “You Should’ve Seen the Way He Looked at Me.” Their bright harmonies and New Orleans R&B flair defined mid-1960s girl-group soul. Label disputes and lineup changes (Johnson left in the late 1960s for religious reasons) led to decline; the group disbanded in the 1970s but reunited for revivals. Rosa Lee Hawkins died in 2022; Joan Johnson in 2016. As of 2026, Barbara Hawkins (the last original) continues performing with Athelgra Neville and Naydja CoJoe, including occasional dates and New Orleans Jazz Fest appearances. Inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame (2007), The Dixie Cups remain celebrated for their joyful, culturally rooted hits and role in preserving New Orleans musical heritage.