Alexz Featured on Variance Magazine
A great article on Alexz is on page 55 of the new Variance Magazine. You can download a PDF of the issue at the link. Here is a transcript of the article:
There’s an old adage that says “jack of all trades, master of none.” No one told that to Alexz Johnson–or if they did, she took it as a dare. This Canadian singer, songwriter, actress and social media maven seems to know what she’s doing on all fronts and nobody is calling the shots but her.
Her acting and singing careers took off simultaneously when she was cast as Jude Harrison, the lead character on Canada’s Instant Star in 2004. In the series, she got to showcase her songwriting, singing and acting prowess all at once as a talented teen who wins a music competition. Since then, she’s been jumping back and forth between industries, releasing her first LP, Voodoo, in 2010 after a series of industry battles.
We caught up with Johnson during a trip to L.A., as she scouted out potential managers and agents. In the car between meetings, she spoke about her successful 2011, what’s ahead for this year, and how social media is changing the game. 2011 was a major writing spree for Johnson. Much of her creativity, she says, stems from her personal life. “I think that’s why my music changes so much. I find it most authentic when it comes from what I’m experiencing or what people in my life are experiencing around me. It’s the way I can get stuff out at its most honest place.”
Having spent time writing and co-writing in her new stomping grounds in New York, as well as L.A. and Nashville, Johnson emerged into the new year with a fat portfolio of songs she’s proud to be getting out to her fans on her own. The Skipping Stone EP will be released on April 24. “This year is really about the music for me,” Johnson says. The goal is to make the tour, funded by her Kickstarter campaign, a reality.
Fans rallied to back what started out as plans for a modest domestic circuit, but, because of the extravagant outpouring of support—the campaign raised $30,000 in less than 24 hours—those plans have ballooned into a major international tour. “I don’t know how it happened; it all just came down at once!” she says. “I just wanted to get back on the road and tour, but I didn’t want to wait for another major deal, so I just launched the Kickstarter.” When her campaign closed on March 24, Johnson had raised more than $67,000.
Because of Instant Star’s international following, Johnson’s fans and sponsors are spread out all over the globe. The extra Kickstarter money is helping her build a tour around her backers.
Grateful as she is for the television and film roles she’s landed—especially the ones that also involve music—Johnson says the acting serves her music aspirations. “It’s all just about timing in my career. If I needed to film something to survive in order to keep making music, I would sacrifice and do that. Nothing’s really plotted out or planned, but the ultimate
goal is, I want to be able to keep making music for a really long time. Any way it takes to keep doing that, I’ll do it.”As someone who’s trended on Twitter four consecutive days, launched a successful YouTube channel and aced a Kickstarter campaign, Johnson knows her way around social media. “It’s a whole different industry today,” she says, newly empowered to take the reins of her career through her online following. “The Internet is the whole reason I’m even in this position. I can reach so many people I never could have [offline]. Major labels are dinosaurs. Anyone can be an entrepreneur today. We have everything at our fingertips now.”
She also recognizes that people connect better when artists choose to be vulnerable, often giving music to their fans for free. “At the end of the day, you can’t make people like what you do. The idea of giving away music for free…you’re basically as humble as you can get. It’s straight from my heart and it’s a gift. To me it’s all about engaging with people.”
As Johnson gets her footing in her music career, she has an uber-talented family to thank for the support. The sixth of 10 children, her siblings (most of whom are also artists, actors, or producers) and her parents are her biggest fans. “No matter how many hits I’ve taken, I’ve never had one person in my family say to me, ‘maybe you shouldn’t be doing this.’ I’ve said it. I’ve been like, ‘someone please stop me’…someone look at me and say ‘you’re an A student, go back and be a doctor.’ My whole family just believes in me and what’s inside of me.”
This past year of creative genesis has helped Johnson take that support and transform it into true self—confidence—as if she’s finally woken up to the fact that she rocks as both an actress and a musician. “I used to think all the extra stuff took away [from the music], but I’ve finally given up resistance,” she says. “I don’t know why I fought it for so long.”
