Each and every artist in country music has their own story and path. Some artists have luck on their side, some preserve through a ton of trials and tribulations, and others have a slow rise to stardom. Today, spotlight artist, Alexandra Kay is the true epitome of hardworking and relentless dedication to her craft. We chatted with Kay about her journey to where she is now, her new record coming out soon, and everything in between. Keep reading to learn more about her inspiring story.

“I grew up right outside of St. Louis in a smaller town in Illinois called Waterloo, Illinois, I  didn’t grow up in a family of musicians, not at all,” began Kay. “I just kind of listened to what my parents listened to on the radio growing up, and that was country music, I really fell in love with the storytelling, and became infatuated with music in general.”

The songstress recalls music being a huge part of her childhood. She was a huge music fan. I  loved everything from rock music like Kiss, AC/DC, The Rolling Stones. I also loved Michael Jackson, The Jackson Five, The Supremes, Muddy Waters, I loved that era of music,” she shared. “I remember the first CD I bought with my allowance money was the Jackson Five Greatest Hits and I became really into Motown when I was younger and I think that’s when my parents were like “oh okay. Lexi’s in some interesting music.” After that I just kind of started seeing myself in the entertainment business. I told my parents when I was pretty young that I wanted to try out for Disney channel and get into acting. I was always very theatrical.”

With a love of music in her heart and a gift for writing too, Kay spent her free time cultivating her craft, all the while, priming herself to play collegiate softball. “I had a gift for writing when I was younger and I placed in some big Young Author’s contests, and I think that was when I started to develop my song-writing skills. As I got older, I played a lot of softball, that’s what my parents focused on. We were all set to be collegiate athletes,” she shared, adding, “We all played for these elite national teams. I did that from when I was eleven until I was eighteen, and then I chose to take my first year off of college and to chase my music career.”

The Turning Point:

Despite being multi-talented in both music and sports, Kay’s heart was set on music. She found inspiration in 90s country music like Faith Hill, George Strait, and Alan Jackson, but also found herself deep in the St. Louis music scene, enjoying hip-hop and R&B too.

“That’s when I dipped my toes into the St. Louis musical scene. […] I did a lot of hooks for rappers in the area, and then I did some work for Nelly and Huey, and then I signed my first record deal in 2012 to a St. Louis-based record label, and I’ve been going ever since,” shared Kay.

Towards the end of 2013, early 2014, Kay ended up leaving the label, and social media became a huge part of her career. ” I decided that I really wanted to hit social media hard, and that’s exactly what I did.” She went viral on Facebook early on, and decided to try to repeat that momentum during the pandemic, when TikTok became a vital platform for artists.

“I just tried to go with the times, and I was like “why not give it a try.” I made a coffee and sang a song by The Chicks, and it had 3 million views by the end of the day, and before I knew it I was singing with Randy Travis and Tim McGraw, and I was on tour with Tim McGraw as a completely independent artist. I had millions and millions of streams, and I had a real fanbase. […] I’ve been on eight tours in the last two years, we haven’t stopped touring since then, and the fans keep showing up, and I’m so grateful.”

For six years, Kay surprised everyone besides herself and worked relentlessly to make it a singer-songwriter in country music. “The time period in my life that I’m the most proud of is definitely those six years of being independent. […] Instead of quitting, I would drive to Nashville ever Monday, it was about a 4.5 hour driver, and I’d come home Friday, and I’d be with my then husband for two days and drive back on Monday. I would just couch surf and hopefully meet people that would let me stay with them, and I’d write songs while I was out there, and I did that for two years.”

Earlier this year, Kay finally found her “home” in a record label with BBR Music Group / BMG Nashville. “I would take label meetings every year. […] I made a very, very conscious decision, and we took our time to decide what label we were going to go with, I knew it with every fiber in my being that BBR was my home.”

Today:

Flash forward to today, Kay is embarking on arguably the biggest moments in her career as a signed artist. Her record Second Wind is slated to be released on October 24th. The record is an incredible project that is sure to garner even more fans to her music.

“I started writing ‘Second Wind,’ the album last year,” began Kay. “What I really wanted to do and what I kept at the forefront of my mind when it comes to this record is I didn’t want the fans to listen to it and think it was so incredibly different from ‘All I’ve Ever Known’ the album because the truth is that’s not how healing happens. You don’t go from feeling how I felt in ‘All I’ve Ever Known’ then jump to pure happiness and love again. So what’s really cool about this record is you get these songs that happened during this transition period. I’m really excited for fans to feel my healing through beginning track one all the way to track fourteen. […] I really take everyone on a ride on how to transition to trusting someone with my heart again and really living in that.”

The released tracks showcase so much growth, fearlessness, and maturity. Songs like “Straight For The Heart” and The Last” are just another piece of Kay’s story, something that fans time and time again seem to find themselves in.

“”Straight For The Heart” is actually my first outside cut by myself, so I actually heard this song while sitting in a pitch meeting for some songs. As soon as it played, I had to have that song. I love it. I love that it really describes how I felt with this kind of female intuition of knowing that things were going south and being strong enough to know that I didn’t have to get let down easy. […] Even though I wasn’t a creator of it, I’m really excited to be a vessel for it, and take it out into the world.”

Kay is laying her heart out on the line for her music and her fans. Second Wind is a record that every fan should gear up for. Kay is a true superstar in the making!

Connect:

To keep up with Alexandra Kay, follow her on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook.

Alexandra Kay’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.