The Sit Down with Alexandra Kay
Since we last spoke to Alexandra Kay in Berlin, Germany during C2C: Country to Country, things have been really busy for the Waterloo, Illinois native. She hit the road in north America with Jelly Roll, headed down under to Australia and New Zealand with Old Dominion, signed a record deal with BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville, released her sophomore album “Second Wind” and even found some time to open up her own coffee shop in her hometown.
This Saturday will mark her fifth trip to play shows in the UK as she returns to American Express presents BST Hyde Park for the second time where she will be performing on the Great Oak Stage as part of a bill featuring Ashley McBryde, Mae Estes, Jackson Dean, Zac Brown Band and headlined by Garth Brooks who is playing his first UK show in nearly three decades. Prior to the day at the festival, AK joined us on Zoom for a long overdue catchup to look ahead to the festival, talk about her decision to move from being independent to signing a record deal and hear all about the album that she released at the back end of last year.
This Saturday will mark her fifth trip to play shows in the UK as she returns to American Express presents BST Hyde Park for the second time where she will be performing on the Great Oak Stage as part of a bill featuring Ashley McBryde, Mae Estes, Jackson Dean, Zac Brown Band and headlined by Garth Brooks who is playing his first UK show in nearly three decades. Prior to the day at the festival, AK joined us on Zoom for a long overdue catchup to look ahead to the festival, talk about her decision to move from being independent to signing a record deal and hear all about the album that she released at the back end of last year.
Thank you so much for hanging on a travel day and you’ll be getting on a plane back over here to play Hyde Park for a second time.
“I know, can you believe it?”
What can you remember about the last time and what madeyou enjoy it so much that as soon as they asked, you said, yes, please.
“Oh my gosh. Well, first of all, I played the side stage last time and the fact that there were so many people that even if they didn't want to watch me on the side stage, they had to because they literally couldn't go anywhere else. That's how far back the crowd went! I was like, this is really, really cool because I made so many fans that day, people who didn't know who I was, then by the time we came back to London, we sold out a two thousand capacity room in days. It was just such a great introduction to so many new, incredible people over there. I was so excited about that, I remember connecting with people in the crowd, crying with them as they're singing “Everleave”, I can't wait and also, Garth Brooks is my favourite of all time, so are you kidding? Like, I might faint.”
Like you said, you played on the Rainbow Stage at the back and it was packed out, then you’re coming back for the fifthtime but it’s not just coming back again, you know you will that stage is a lot bigger and you really are seeing the growth right in front of you.
“Yeah, It's gonna be incredible. I have so many nerves going through me, thinking about the second before I step on that massive stage but also just so much excitement. Honestly, when I think about it, I'm overcome with emotion already, I'm like, okay, am I going to cry on the stage? I definitely might. I'm just so excited to finally get to be going over there again, it feels like it all came together in the perfect time and I'm just excited to make a lot of new memories.”
Whilst it was such a big day with Morgan (Wallen) the other year for fans over here, but Garth hasn't played in the UK for nearly thirty years, so it really is a special day for this audience, but for you as fan, a young artist and someone that grew up listening to him, how iconic is Garth Brooks as somebody you were able to look up to?
“Oh, absolutely, he's my favourite of all time. I have thosecassette tapes of all of his biggest shows, like It's got his Dublin show on there from the nineties and I know he hasn't played in England for like thirty years, so it's a piece of history that we get to be a part of. So, not only am I getting to check off that big bucket list moment for me, which is to open for Garth Brooks, but also, it's playing the main stage at Hyde Park and wrap it all up in a historic moment, the energy is going to be insane. I think about my excitement, but t's been thirty years since he's been there for them to be able to see him, oh my gosh, the energy is going to be crazy!”
It's going to be such a cool day with Zac and his guys as well, then you've got Ashley (McBryde) on the main stage too, Jackson Dean, Leah Blevins and Mae Estes who every time you mention her name, everyone in Nashville kind of just lights up and gets so dreamy about. It will be a great day and we all can’t wait. I want to ask about the big change in your career since we last spoke a couple of years ago in Germany and that’s the fact that you’ve signed with a label. One of the things we talked a lot about last time was about being independent and wanting to stay independent for as long as you could, so when the opportunity to sign with BMG came about, why did it feel the right time? Then also, I guess there were probably some other potential suitors for you but what made you feel that BMG was the right fit for you?
“So, the whole reason why I ended up signing the record deal to begin with is because I thought that I had hit my ceiling as far as what I could accomplish as an independent artist and that's what I tell everybody to work towards, right? Now my next step felt like I wanted to go to country radio and you can't do that without a label. Well, you can but it is EXTREMELY expensive and you need to hire the right team. The reason why I chose BMG is because they have the best radio team in Nashville and that is essentially what I was signing for. I was looking and reaching for that number one and we've been able to run “Straight For the Heart” up the chart, it's number twenty-eight right now so the whole reason why I signed with the label was exactly the right move.”
“I know, can you believe it?”
What can you remember about the last time and what madeyou enjoy it so much that as soon as they asked, you said, yes, please.
“Oh my gosh. Well, first of all, I played the side stage last time and the fact that there were so many people that even if they didn't want to watch me on the side stage, they had to because they literally couldn't go anywhere else. That's how far back the crowd went! I was like, this is really, really cool because I made so many fans that day, people who didn't know who I was, then by the time we came back to London, we sold out a two thousand capacity room in days. It was just such a great introduction to so many new, incredible people over there. I was so excited about that, I remember connecting with people in the crowd, crying with them as they're singing “Everleave”, I can't wait and also, Garth Brooks is my favourite of all time, so are you kidding? Like, I might faint.”
Like you said, you played on the Rainbow Stage at the back and it was packed out, then you’re coming back for the fifthtime but it’s not just coming back again, you know you will that stage is a lot bigger and you really are seeing the growth right in front of you.
“Yeah, It's gonna be incredible. I have so many nerves going through me, thinking about the second before I step on that massive stage but also just so much excitement. Honestly, when I think about it, I'm overcome with emotion already, I'm like, okay, am I going to cry on the stage? I definitely might. I'm just so excited to finally get to be going over there again, it feels like it all came together in the perfect time and I'm just excited to make a lot of new memories.”
Whilst it was such a big day with Morgan (Wallen) the other year for fans over here, but Garth hasn't played in the UK for nearly thirty years, so it really is a special day for this audience, but for you as fan, a young artist and someone that grew up listening to him, how iconic is Garth Brooks as somebody you were able to look up to?
“Oh, absolutely, he's my favourite of all time. I have thosecassette tapes of all of his biggest shows, like It's got his Dublin show on there from the nineties and I know he hasn't played in England for like thirty years, so it's a piece of history that we get to be a part of. So, not only am I getting to check off that big bucket list moment for me, which is to open for Garth Brooks, but also, it's playing the main stage at Hyde Park and wrap it all up in a historic moment, the energy is going to be insane. I think about my excitement, but t's been thirty years since he's been there for them to be able to see him, oh my gosh, the energy is going to be crazy!”
It's going to be such a cool day with Zac and his guys as well, then you've got Ashley (McBryde) on the main stage too, Jackson Dean, Leah Blevins and Mae Estes who every time you mention her name, everyone in Nashville kind of just lights up and gets so dreamy about. It will be a great day and we all can’t wait. I want to ask about the big change in your career since we last spoke a couple of years ago in Germany and that’s the fact that you’ve signed with a label. One of the things we talked a lot about last time was about being independent and wanting to stay independent for as long as you could, so when the opportunity to sign with BMG came about, why did it feel the right time? Then also, I guess there were probably some other potential suitors for you but what made you feel that BMG was the right fit for you?
“So, the whole reason why I ended up signing the record deal to begin with is because I thought that I had hit my ceiling as far as what I could accomplish as an independent artist and that's what I tell everybody to work towards, right? Now my next step felt like I wanted to go to country radio and you can't do that without a label. Well, you can but it is EXTREMELY expensive and you need to hire the right team. The reason why I chose BMG is because they have the best radio team in Nashville and that is essentially what I was signing for. I was looking and reaching for that number one and we've been able to run “Straight For the Heart” up the chart, it's number twenty-eight right now so the whole reason why I signed with the label was exactly the right move.”
With “Second Wind” as your sophomore record, what do you hope that people see about your artistry and how much you've grown since “All I've Ever Known”?
“Well, you know, I definitely didn't have any boxes to fit into, especially as far as country radio when it came to “All I've Ever Known” as I knew that nothing was going to be going because I was independent. So, I definitely tried to make sure that I wrote towards radio in a couple of instances on this new record because I knew that that's what I was signing for but I also completely kept it vulnerable and kept it very me in multiple tracks on the record. I'd really tried to just encourage people with lots of hope because I had just opened my heart to somebody else again after going through a divorce and I just wanted people to listen to it and think, wow, this is a very diverse artist when it comes to songwriting, when it comes to sonicand I think that we accomplished that really well. You know, people are coming up to me at the shows now who Iheld in my arms when they were going through their divorce during the “All I've Ever Known” days and they're introducing me to their quote, unquote “Second Wind” you know. I think that this record just inspired a lot of hope that you can make it out of a dark situation like that and be happy again.”
You worked with Andrew DeRoberts as the producer on the album, how was he to work with and compared to the firstrecord, did the process of putting the whole thing together feel different?
“It felt different because I had worked with my previous producer for four years so this was definitely a learning curve working with Andrew DeRoberts for the very firsttime on this record, but he brought an incredible pop edge to the album. He became such a great friend to me and it's in a very emotionally exhausting process, creating musicand especially with me because I am all in emotionallywith my creative process. He was not only a great collaborator, but a great friend to me through the entire process and he really opened my eyes to push the line a lot more. I think he brought that pop edge and created this really incredible sound that I didn't even know I was capable of.”
Lastly I want to talk about your other business venture backhome in Illinois and most importantly if we were going to come to The Coffee Girl, what should we be ordering? Like, what would be your go to from your own coffee house?
“Well, right now, you would need to order the Birthday Cake Latte because we just celebrated our one year anniversary of being open as a brick and mortar store. We celebrated that this past weekend and we had a block party, Rocko and I showed up, played a couple of songs, we did a huge meet and greet, they had the whole street closed off, we had coffee popsicles and we had Birthday Cake Lattes with candles in them that people could blow out. It was such an incredible day but my go-to is always just an iced vanilla latte with almond milk and sugar-free vanilla, so that is something that I've made sure we perfected that at the shop because I know that a lot of people know that that's my go to coffee order.”
Yours is almost exactly the same as mine but I have soyainstead of almond.
“I think you have very, very good coffee over there andnow that I own a coffee shop, I think I've become a little bit of a coffee snob ha-ha.”
I am looking forward to seeing you on stage on Saturday but looking ahead to the rest of the year and looking at yourwebsite, that tour diary is looking a little bit quiet, so is there something you're brewing towards? Are we working towards AK3 or are you just full on embracing hot girl summer for 2026?
“Yes, I'm working on my third album for the next, I would say probably two months and then we have something that is not announced yet which will fill up the rest of my year. So, it's all of the above and I'm very excited.”
“Well, you know, I definitely didn't have any boxes to fit into, especially as far as country radio when it came to “All I've Ever Known” as I knew that nothing was going to be going because I was independent. So, I definitely tried to make sure that I wrote towards radio in a couple of instances on this new record because I knew that that's what I was signing for but I also completely kept it vulnerable and kept it very me in multiple tracks on the record. I'd really tried to just encourage people with lots of hope because I had just opened my heart to somebody else again after going through a divorce and I just wanted people to listen to it and think, wow, this is a very diverse artist when it comes to songwriting, when it comes to sonicand I think that we accomplished that really well. You know, people are coming up to me at the shows now who Iheld in my arms when they were going through their divorce during the “All I've Ever Known” days and they're introducing me to their quote, unquote “Second Wind” you know. I think that this record just inspired a lot of hope that you can make it out of a dark situation like that and be happy again.”
You worked with Andrew DeRoberts as the producer on the album, how was he to work with and compared to the firstrecord, did the process of putting the whole thing together feel different?
“It felt different because I had worked with my previous producer for four years so this was definitely a learning curve working with Andrew DeRoberts for the very firsttime on this record, but he brought an incredible pop edge to the album. He became such a great friend to me and it's in a very emotionally exhausting process, creating musicand especially with me because I am all in emotionallywith my creative process. He was not only a great collaborator, but a great friend to me through the entire process and he really opened my eyes to push the line a lot more. I think he brought that pop edge and created this really incredible sound that I didn't even know I was capable of.”
Lastly I want to talk about your other business venture backhome in Illinois and most importantly if we were going to come to The Coffee Girl, what should we be ordering? Like, what would be your go to from your own coffee house?
“Well, right now, you would need to order the Birthday Cake Latte because we just celebrated our one year anniversary of being open as a brick and mortar store. We celebrated that this past weekend and we had a block party, Rocko and I showed up, played a couple of songs, we did a huge meet and greet, they had the whole street closed off, we had coffee popsicles and we had Birthday Cake Lattes with candles in them that people could blow out. It was such an incredible day but my go-to is always just an iced vanilla latte with almond milk and sugar-free vanilla, so that is something that I've made sure we perfected that at the shop because I know that a lot of people know that that's my go to coffee order.”
Yours is almost exactly the same as mine but I have soyainstead of almond.
“I think you have very, very good coffee over there andnow that I own a coffee shop, I think I've become a little bit of a coffee snob ha-ha.”
I am looking forward to seeing you on stage on Saturday but looking ahead to the rest of the year and looking at yourwebsite, that tour diary is looking a little bit quiet, so is there something you're brewing towards? Are we working towards AK3 or are you just full on embracing hot girl summer for 2026?
“Yes, I'm working on my third album for the next, I would say probably two months and then we have something that is not announced yet which will fill up the rest of my year. So, it's all of the above and I'm very excited.”
The sophomore album “Second Wind” from Alexandra Kay is out now and is available HERE. You can find details for any of Alexandra’s upcoming North American shows by checking out her WEBSITE or you can be the first to be in the know about any news of forthcoming new releases and what she is up to by following along on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
American Express presents BST Hyde Park takes place through June and July with Garth Brooks kicking off the festivities on Saturday June 27th with: Ateez (June 28th), Maroon 5 (July 3rd), Mumford & Sons (July 4th), Duran Duran (July 5th), Pitbull (July 10th) and Lewis Capaldi (July 11th & 12th) completing the lineup of headliners. Full festival details and any last remaining tickets for shows which are not sold out are available on their WEBSITE and you can keep up to date with all that is happening across the festival on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
OFFICIAL
American Express presents BST Hyde Park takes place through June and July with Garth Brooks kicking off the festivities on Saturday June 27th with: Ateez (June 28th), Maroon 5 (July 3rd), Mumford & Sons (July 4th), Duran Duran (July 5th), Pitbull (July 10th) and Lewis Capaldi (July 11th & 12th) completing the lineup of headliners. Full festival details and any last remaining tickets for shows which are not sold out are available on their WEBSITE and you can keep up to date with all that is happening across the festival on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
OFFICIAL