“Reborn” Alex Irish Is Taking Dallas by Storm.
Nothing will stand in Alex Irish’s way. The 25-year-old artist making a name for herself in Dallas, Texas, with her dark, alternative trap soundscapes is a living example of turning traumatic experiences into fierce drive towards greatness. Post-recovery from the shooting incident that drastically altered her life and career’s trajectory, Alex spoke with me about her recent projects, creative process, ambitions and emerging on the other side of trauma.
This interview has been lightly edited for context and clarity.
Courtesy of Alex Irish
Evi: Could you give a brief introduction to yourself and talk a little bit about your background?
Alex: My government name is Alex Irish, so that's my stage name as well. I'm from Fort Worth — a little country town in Texas — and I'm 25 years old. I’m Afro-Latina, so I am Black and Mexican — I speak Spanish. That's just a little bit about the basics about me.
Evi: Tell me about your influences. What did you grow up listening to? What inspires your sound? Are there any artists that inspire you in general?
Alex: With my Mexican background, I grew up listening to a lot of Mexican punk rock. I grew up listening to rock in general. So I would say that would be my younger influence. Right now, as far as the music that I have put out, my influences would be like Travis Scott, Don Toliver — big Texas names. I would say those are my influences, but the music that I'm working on right now is rock, alternative, folk, maybe a little bit of country. So I feel like I'm getting back to my roots of my inspiration when I was a kid.
Evi: I do feel like that shows in your music — the punk rock roots. So how would you actually describe your sound to someone who hasn't heard of Alex Irish before, ever?
Alex: I would describe my music as hard-hitting trap, psychedelic trap. I would say hard-hitting mainly because of the beat selection. I choose songs that have very heavy bass. I choose songs that are switching up on the beat, you know? I want the beat to hit you in the face. I want you to feel my presence and my voice, like a whole experience. I would even describe it as ambient, because [of] the way that I put my voice to be moving and rotating with the speakers. I would describe it as melancholic or dark, as well. Because all of my music is kind of like me venting about my dark past, or a dark time. I channel that. So you can also add that in there, like dark, or a little sad maybe.
Evi: On that note, have you found any of your songs particularly challenging to write? What’s a creative process story that is engraved in your memory?
Alex: About two years ago, I was shot in the leg and I couldn't walk for a couple of months. So in that timeframe, “PSYCHO” was made. I will always remember that moment, because I was going to the studio in a wheelchair. I was going to the studio [with] a cane and a walker. I wasn't able to walk but I was so focused; “I have to make this song, I have to finish it.” I wanted to channel all of those “psycho” feelings that I was feeling into that song. And I feel like it really paid off because now everybody loves that song. It has a little piece of me and my pain in it. It is my most popular song.
Evi: Thank you for sharing that. I also love the music video for that song.
Alex: That music video was inspired by “Spring Breakers” — the movie. And by A$AP Rocky as well.
Evi: I was going to ask whether you have any favorite films that inspire you — or visual references, in general — because there is a very strong visual character to your music.
Alex: I have an amazing, amazing media team. And they allow me to have full control of all of my music videos, so everything that you see I plan from A to B. There is a process to it. Basically, I screenshot other movies, or videos, or just photos [and] I plan every single one of my music videos with every scene. There's a website that lets you put in moods or scenes and it will select from every movie on the planet. If you said “horse,” it'll come up with every movie on the planet that has a horse. But back to my inspirations — I would say “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” It's a psychedelic movie, from the ‘90s. I take a lot of inspiration from that. I take a lot of inspiration from A$AP Rocky — his music videos. But, mainly, it's all me, seriously. Before I made music, I did a lot of commercial work, creative directing for companies like McDonald's [and] Uber Eats. I've worked with a lot of corporate companies, so that really helped me a lot when I transitioned over to my own music [and] videos, to just have a clearer idea of what needs to be done [and] how to set it up.
Evi: I wanted to talk about your EP a little bit. It's called RENACIDA. Would you like to tell me more about the title and what that word means to you?
[Before answering, Alex points to the “RENACIDA” tattoo on her neck.]
Alex: So like I said, I'm Afro-Latina, I speak Spanish. So this right here says “renacida” which means “reborn” in Spanish. I basically got it after I got shot, because I felt like the old me had died and a new me was reborn. So I was like, “You know what? This is me right now.” I got the tattoo first, then I named my EP RENACIDA. But yeah, it just means “reborn,” like all of the other stuff before, I don't know anything about that. All I know is this Alex. All I know is this music, this EP. AlI know is “PSYCHO,” “HILLS,” and “VALLEY.” This is my intro EP and this is who I am now. And it's very special to me, because it's the first project that I dropped after I got shot. It has “PSYCHO” in it, so that song is really close to my heart. “HILLS” was inspiration for me traveling. I went to California, came back to Texas and, the same day, wrote that song. And then, “VALLEY” was a collaboration between me and the same guy who wrote my latest release, “All By Myself.” So the whole EP is so special to me, because it's just straight love, straight inspiration, straight Alex Irish, straight “reborn.”
Evi: Tell me more about your latest release, “All By Myself.” Where was your head at while making that song?
Alex: “All By Myself” was a collaboration between me and a really close friend in LA. He is one of my songwriters, but he is also in a music band himself. I think both of us were in a really dark space at the time. I selected the beat — all my beats I pick. So when I first heard the beat, I said “Man, this is so different… so strange. I think I really want to do something with this.” So I sent the song to him. A week later, he sends me the song back and I'm like, “What the hell is this? This is insane.” So I record, I do everything and “Man, something's missing.” So I get one of my closest friends, “Hey, can you do guitar on this?” He's like “Yes.” So we add the guitar. We add switch-ups, we add more and more to the production. [Typically], I can finish a song in a week, but production is going to take me like one to two months because I'm such a perfectionist. I would say “All By Myself” is like eight months old. It's an old song, but it took us so long to get it finally here. I just added the guitar like two months ago and then released it a couple of weeks ago. So yeah, that was the process of it. It was basically a team effort. I picked the beat, sent it to my songwriter, I recorded it and then the production right there was just a whole team effort. I have a big team and I'm so grateful for them.
Evi: How do you typically write, or what tends to be the moment that does it for you when you decide that “This is what I want to talk about. I'm gonna write it like this.”?
Alex: Typically, I'm just in the mood. I'm inspired by something that just happened. I'm someone who takes inspiration from everything that happens every day. I love to go traveling because I know when I come back, I'll have inspiration. I love to talk to new people. I like to experience new things, because I take that home and make amazing music. Typically, when I do write a song, it's very in the mood. It's very personal. It's what I'm feeling right now, in this moment. It's what the inspiration has created at the moment. So let's say I go on a trip; I'm not going to talk about the trip. I'm going to talk about what the trip did to me and how I'm feeling right now. I'm usually in the studio, I'm with friends, I'm having a good time. And that's when I feel I can creatively just go crazy [and] have fun. I'm also the opposite. I can be completely alone all by myself and have a very intimate moment where I'm able to say what I want to say. The creativity doesn't stop, whether there's people around me or I'm alone. I grab the mic and I do a little mumble rap, trying to figure out a melody, and then [go] right to my phone and put lyrics in, like “What can I say?”
Evi: Is there a specific feeling that you want to transmit to your listeners, or a goal that goes along with your music-making?
Alex: I feel like what's really special about my fans is that no matter what I put out, they love it. Whether it's different, whether it's something no other artist is doing, or some of their favorite artists are doing. So I think that one thing that I do want to convey in my music, to anybody, is to do what you want. Literally, do what you want. Your fans are gonna like it, your family's gonna like it, your friends are going to like it, so do what you want. In “All By Myself,” I have a part where it's just me breathing. People think a song has to be “chorus, verse, bridge, chorus.” No, do what you want to do, and your fans are gonna love it. So that's one of the things I want to convey in my music; that I'm always going to do what I want and what sounds good to me. And if you love it, you love it. You hate it, you hate it. But my fans are gonna love it because they love me.
Evi: You also do a lot of live shows. How do you find being on stage and that process of preparation before gigs? Do you have any special rituals?
Alex: No rituals, I wish I was exciting! But I do rehearse. I have my own private studio, so I go and rehearse. And as far as being on stage, it feels so validating. It feels like “Yes, this is what you're supposed to be doing. This is what you've been preparing for. This is what your goal is; to make music, make fans, reach out to them, become their friends.” I opened up for Tay Money and I wanted to get back on stage. I was like, “Let me go again!” It felt so amazing. Like “this is what I want to be doing for the rest of my life.” I got off stage and I met all the fans, and got everybody's Instagram, and I was just ready to do it again. I'm ready for my next show, so that I can make new fans, rock out the stage [and] have fun.
Courtesy of Alex Irish
Evi: Lastly, what can your audience look forward to? Any plans for the near future? And where do you see yourself in a few years?
Alex: Well, I want everybody to keep an eye out on me for sure because I will be dropping consistently. Me and my team have a calendar for the rest of the year, and everything is planned out and scheduled. So look forward to consistency. Even when I was shot in the leg and couldn't walk, this is all I wanted to do. So nothing's gonna stop me. Nothing's gonna slow me down. I want everybody to take that into consideration; don't stop what you're doing. If you love it, keep going. Look forward to more videos, because I am dropping a visual with every [upcoming] song. “All By Myself”’s music video is coming out [soon]. Also my biggest goal right now is just to make a name for myself in Dallas. Dallas is becoming one of the biggest cities in the United States and it really doesn't have any female rappers or female singers that are making a name for Dallas right now. So I think that would be one of my goals; to, at least within the next year — not five years, but just next year, — be one of Dallas’s top artists, and when people think of Dallas, they think Alex Irish or [vice versa], just how they think [of] Travis Scott [and] Houston.
