Fresh Find - Alexandra Demetree
- Freshly Brewed Country
- Sep 4, 2015
- 5 min read
We are happy to announce Alexandra Demetree as our first Fresh Find for the month of September here at Freshly Brewed Country!
She wasn't raised on a farm. Her first musical hero was Judy Garland. She did sing in a church choir … much of the time in Latin. So how did Alexandra Demetree wind up in Nashville, singing country music as if she'd been born to it? It doesn't really matter. What does matter is that this Florida-born beauty stands on the edge of stardom, her feet planted in the bedrock of country music -- right where fate intended her to be.
She's already turned heads with a sexy, elegant video, featuring one
of the hottest -- and most controversial -- hunks on TV, romancing and
singing along with her on one of her tunes, "Lay It On Me." And this
summer Alexandra followed up with "Outta My Head," a hard-driving
single that shows she can rock a dance groove too.
Maybe country wasn't in her roots, but music was in her soul from her earliest years. Growing up in Jacksonville, across the street from the St. Johns River and just fifteen minutes from the Atlantic Ocean, Alexandra assimilated the Motown classics and oldies that her father preferred while also absorbing the spirit of her mother's favorite artists, including Celine Dion and Amy Grant.
At the top of that list was the prototype for powerful, expressive female singers. "We went to see musicals a lot," she recalls. "My favorite was The Wizard Of Oz, so I was a Judy Garland fan forever. I sang in my first musical when I was in seventh grade. I began doing children's theater when I was in eighth grade. I grew up Catholic, so I sang at Mass, and Latin was a big part of that. Everything revolved around music. I don’t remember not singing!”
While all this was going on, country music also impacted Alexandra's world. She listened to it faithfully on the radio and didn't miss a single country music concert in her area as she grew up. "The more I heard, the more I related to it,” she recalls. “I started becoming aware of Shania Twain and LeAnn Rimes. I remember listening to LeAnn's Blue album and thinking, 'That's what I want to do!'"
But … she didn't, not for a few years more. First, adhering to her parents' wishes, she enrolled in college. Her choice was Northwestern University, where she carried a double major in communications and economics while involving herself in a cappella chorus and other performance outlets. "I think I put more time into the school's musical theater program than my majors," she admits, with a laugh.
Less than two months after her graduation, Alexandra headed to Nashville. She arrived with no local friends or connections, took a deep breath … and started to network. "I went to songwriters' nights," she says. "I met more and more people. Some of them stuck with me, some didn't. The ones who did helped me figure out how the music industry worked."
Soon she was coming up with songs of her own, especially via the tried-and-true Nashville practice of collaboration. “I learned how to be vulnerable to somebody you've met just five minutes before and then start writing with them from that place,” she says. “Now I'd rather write more with others than just by myself."
Armed with a budding catalog of original songs, Alexandra connected with SSM Records, who released her first single, "Just Alone," in 2012. She followed in 2013 with "Lay It On Me," which she’d written with Billy Atherholt and Dean Scallan; the recording as well as its video paired her with Wes Hayden, who had triggered up lots of talk a few years earlier during his run on "The Bachelorette." Us Magazine dubbed him "the king of ulterior motives," but to Alexandra he turned out to be not just a friend, but a terrific singing partner as well.
Now that SSM has issued her latest single, “Outta My Head,” she can look forward to even more time on-air and on stages across America.
Veteran rock and country producer Bobby Huff (Reba, 3 Doors Down, Journey, Heart) proved an ideal complement for this track. "He's very easygoing and chill until we get to the studio -- and then he gets picky, like me," she says, smiling.
Consider "Outta My Head" a preview not just of an upcoming EP but of a career based on discovery -- of a musical theater devotee's discovery of her country soul, of Nashville's discovery of an ambitious new arrival making her presence known through initiative and talent, and of the world's impending discovery and embrace of Alexandra Demetree.
Be sure to download music from Alexandra Demetree today on iTunes.
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We know you want to know more about Alexandra Demetree so be sure to check out our interview with her below.
FBC: What made you want to get involved in the country music world?
AD: I knew I wanted to be involved in country music because it is one of the only genres that places such importance on lyrics, storytelling, and love. And though it takes a lot of hard work to make it in the country industry, you're able to have a long-lasting career.
FBC: What is your favorite song of yours and why?
AD: “Outta My Head” is my favorite, because I love the way it feels musically, and it's the first song off a project that I feel really showcases me as an artist.
FBC: What do you use for inspiration to write your songs?
AD: I pull from life experiences I've had to write my songs. I think it's extremely important to be able to relate to the words you write and the notes you sing... otherwise, the song tends to fall flat. Being able to go back to that place and time that inspires your music is a must when in the studio recording it, as well as performing it live.
FBC: What has been your favorite country music memory so far and why?
AD: Performing at CMA Fest is my favorite music memory. It was amazing to see so many fans and lovers of country music together in Nashville for the weekend, and the energy I felt from the audience was unmatched.
FBC: Who is your country music idol and why?
AD: Garth Brooks is definitely my country music idol, and for a few reasons! Firstly, he is one of the only artists that I have loved listening to throughout childhood, adolescence, and now adulthood, and that's a hard goal to achieve! Secondly, his ability to relate to people when he is performing is outstanding. I recently attended one of his concerts, and talking to and entertaining the audience is just effortless for him. And lastly, how much fun would he be to have a beer with?!
FBC: If you could do a country duet with anyone who would it be and why?
AD: I'd love to partner up with David Nail. I really like his voice, relate to his music, and love his heavy use of piano in his songs.
FBC: What are three fun facts about you that you want your fans to know?
AD: My car's name is Lola, I love to play blackjack, and I have a very hard time blowing bubbles with my gum!
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Stay up to date on the latest Alexandra Demetree news by following her on social media.
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