Love at First Listen with Alex Hughes

With her pop-country style and emotional edge, breakthrough artist Alex Hughes is breaking all the way through. This summer, she has turned years of growth, grit, and self-discovery into a bold statement of intent, signing with full-service Phase Entertainment Group and sharing her magnetic new single, “Break All The Way.” Produced by long-time collaborator Dan Swinimer and co-written by an all-star trio including Madeline Merlo, the song blends Hughes’ country roots with the irresistible swagger of early-2000s R&B, capturing the chaos of a love you can’t quit—even when you know you should.

We caught up with Alex to go behind the scenes of her hard-hitting, hooky heartache and uncover the tea about her upcoming debut album.

How would you describe “Break All The Way” and what do you want it to represent in your discography?

“Break All the Way” is a song that I’ve always wanted to be able to cut in style [and] in sound. I’ve always wanted to have sort of a sassy breakup song and the lyrics in this one definitely hit home for me, but I [also] loved the more R&B and pop influence of the production of the track. I always wanted to be able to show those sides of my artistry in my country sound, so this song’s really special to me. It’s the kind of song that I’ve always wanted to be able to have, and I’m really proud of it and excited to finally have it out in the world.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Alex Hughes (@alexhughesmusic)

You’ve said the song is “for anyone who’s been in a relationship they know isn’t good but can’t help but keep going back.” What is the message you wanted to send — “get out of that toxic cycle, bestie!” or “if you’ve been here, I have your back”?

I’ve definitely been playing around with some of the videos saying like, yes, send this to your girlfriend that needs extra help getting out of that bad relationship. But also, … we all kind of go through [those] moments where we’re in this relationship we know is maybe not going to go anywhere, but there’s just something about that person that keeps pulling you back in. I know I really related to that. I know a bunch of my friends really related to that too.

As Phase Entertainment Group’s newest signing, what does having their representation and backing mean to you and your career moving forward?

Honestly, it’s been a complete game changer for me, just being able to have a team behind me helping me strategize and release music in a way that I have never been able to do before. I’ve been independent for a long time, and I’ve worked really hard towards that, but I think you get to a certain point where you can no longer really help yourself – or at least that’s how I’ve been feeling for a little while now. I’m so grateful to be able to have Jeff Ojeda (the founder of Phase) on board and [everyone to] help me to try to take my music up to that next level. So, it’s been really exciting, and … sharing the wins and losses too with the team … takes a lot of pressure off of yourself.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by JEFF OJEDA (@jeffojeda)

This single also offers an early preview of your forthcoming debut album. What can you share about the album, and where does this single fall in the sonic universe you’ve built so far?

I love that question. I’m so excited about the album. It’s the project that I feel like I’ve been working towards my whole life. All these songs feel like they’re a piece of me and a piece of my heart, and I am so excited to finally be able to start releasing them with “Break All the Way” first. [T]he whole album is sort of relationship stories, starting with heartbreak, so that’s why it’s “Break All the Way” first, and then we will move all the way into full on gushy love. [It’s] cool to be able to start with this tone [that is] a little bit sassy, a little bit edgy, but we’ll kind of work our way through heartbreak and love and all those emotions. [A] lot of them are autobiographical and the things that I’ve been going through over the past 10 years. They’re a really special collection of songs.

When might fans be able to hear more?

The full album, not till next year, but we’re going to be rolling out the singles really quickly. So, there’s new music and it’s coming very soon.

To take a quick walk back down memory lane, your 2023 single “Until This Fire Dies” was a massive success, helping you build a loyal following and garnering playlist and editorial support. How would you compare and contrast that single with “Break All The Way” in terms of the sound, vibe, and how you approached writing them?

I think “Until This Fire Dies” is what put me in the position where I felt like I was ready to record a full project because I worked with Dan Swinimer, the producer on all of my new songs, and I finally found … somebody [who] gets me and gets the sound that I really want to be putting out there. So, “Until This Fire Dies” is a special song because it was the first song I did with Dan and it kick started this whole journey, and sonically, all the songs have that same vibe. There’s a little bit of edginess, there’s the country part, but they sort of move around and are almost genre bending, I would say, just [that] they live in different areas of me because I have been influenced by so much different music throughout my life and sing everything from country to jazz to some R&B, and this album will kind of be able to show all of that. “Until This Fire Dies” is actually going to be part of the album, so spoiler alert, but [it] fits in as part of the whole story.

You touched on the importance of finding musical partners that really understand you. One of the cowriters on this new single, Madeline Merlo, is a familiar face to Love at First Listen readers and is just fantastic. Was this a song that was pitched to you or were you able to collaborate with her in the studio?

This one was pitched to me, and I’ll be perfectly honest, I have never cut a song that I wasn’t a writer on before, and I had no intentions of really doing that with this project. But I said to Dan, the producer, “I’m totally open to hearing pitches of great songs. I want to hear them.” So, he sent over a batch of songs and the instant I put on “Break All The Way,” I thought to myself, I want this song to be mine. I want to be the voice that sings this song and shares the story. And I’m so honoured that it gets to be me … because it’s such a special song. [I]t’s the kind of boppy, sort of country pop sound that I’ve been looking for forever, and I fell in love with it. And yeah, Madeline Merlo is so insanely talented, such an incredible writer, and to have her send some of her songs, which are so personal and special, and present them to me to be able to cut, I feel incredibly honoured.

When you speak about this new single and album, you frame them as the things you’ve been working towards your whole life. How did you first fall in love with making music and decide it was the path for you?

It’s funny because it’s almost hard to put a finger on exactly the moment I was like, this is what I want to do. … [I]n kindergarten, I got a solo in our Christmas concert in choir, but it was like a minute long solo. It was a huge part of a song. I remember I spent so much time memorizing it. … Then, when I was about seven years old, I started entering in local singing competitions, especially with the Calgary Stampede, and I fell in love with the stage and performing and sharing my voice. I was always singing, but when I realized that it was something that I wanted to do forever was probably in high school when you’re starting to figure out, like, what am I going to do with my life? I picked up guitar and I started writing. … I thought, you know, I just can’t see myself doing anything else. … The sound, the songs, [and] my artistic vision [have] taken a long time to get here, but it does feel like I’m finally starting to land in the path that feels right.

To go with all this new music, of course there are going to be some live shows. What is this summer looking like for you?

[Calgary] Stampede will be crazy. I’m playing Nashville North July 7, 8, and 9, so I’m really excited about that. We’re playing almost all the songs on the album sneak peeking them, so that’ll be really fun to play with the band. As far as the rest of summer goes, I have some cool shows, but we are [also] gearing up to release more new music.

Lots to look forward to! Speaking of Calgary Stampede, you’ve already shared some great fashion tips for your followers on social media. Can you share any with our Love at First Listen community?

I love fashion and I love going kind of all out with the outfits, and the Calgary Stampede, just like festivals all over, is a really fun place to get to experiment with fashion. What I would say, though, is that the last few years, it has just been so hot, so it’s finding the pieces that you feel comfortable in in the heat. One of the pieces that I shared was this skirt that was actually a workout wear skirt. I feel like it’s those type of things that are cute and look good, you can wear with boots or a hat, but are actually comfortable. That’s my biggest tip for summer festivals, especially in the heat.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Alex Hughes (@alexhughesmusic)

Is that fashion philosophy helping dictate your stage outfits? Have you picked those out?

I have my stage outfits all picked out, and they definitely, hopefully, will keep me cool, but I do feel like I definitely sacrifice a little for the looks.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Alex Hughes (@alexhughesmusic)

Thank you, Alex! “Break All The Way” is out now. Follow Alex on Instagram and TikTok to get a front row seat to what’s next.

See you back here soon with another artist and music release for you to love at first listen! Have a suggestion or pitch? You know where to find us!

Happy listening xx

(Header photo credit: Aaron Reimer)