We recently connected with Lexi Lew and have shared our conversation below.

Lexi , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

When I’m not songwriting or performing in a Songwriters round, I fill my time with Cover gigs. Since graduating from Belmont University in 2016, I’ve been blessed to rely mostly on cover gigs for my main source of income. In 2017, I purchased my first loop station to add to my solo acoustic show. One pedal quickly turned into many more pedals at my feet. I then spent the next few years putting in many practice hours on several downtown Nashville Bar stages and that is where I learned how to be an efficient loop artist and performer. Now, during the week I write songs in Nashville and my weekends are spent traveling the US performing covers for tips as a Solo Acoustic Loop Artist. I hope to one day perform mostly my original songs and the loop station will add extra layers to my performance.

Lexi , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

First single, “Roses”: – Released only to radio in 2015
– Hit number one on Georgia’s 94.9 The Bull
– Music video earned over 10,000 views

“Back Home”
– Hit number one on Georgia’s 94.9 The Bull

“Ghost Town”
– Released across all traditional and digital platforms on February 25, 2022
– Debuted with Devon O’Day on Main Street Today in Nashville

– Produced by Grammy and Emmy award- winning producer and engineer, Jamie Tate
– Part of the book release, Guiding Spirits

On The Stage
– Mastered the foot pedal to loop her voice and instruments, which makes her one-person show sounds like a full band
– Opened for Martina McBride
– Beloved on Broadway playing some of the most popular honky tonks
– Secured a residency at Ole Red Gatlinburg
– Frequently plays The Listening Room in Pigeon Forge and The FreakShow hosted by hit songwriter, Terri Jo Box

FULL BIO
The word small being mentioned in the same sentence as the name Lexi Lew is a confusing contradiction of epic proportions. Having grown up on a small farm in a small town in Middle Georgia, Lexi is your quintessential “ big fish from a small pond” swimming around in Nashville, Tennessee, chasing dreams among those dancing neon lights. As if that wasn’t enough, she stands an unassuming 5’ tall with her feet measuring at a size 4.5. Man, that’s really small.

Nothing about this boomtown invites anything small to stay, let alone thrive. So why is Lexi Lew still standing? Why do people stumble upon a show and are immediately drawn to stay? Because when she steps to the mic and lets those larger-than-life vocals fly big things begin to happen.

In August of 2012, with her parents, Terri and Rick and her entire hometown of Douglasville cheering her on, Lexi took a huge leap of faith and moved to Nashville to pursue her dream. Following in the footsteps of such great musical success stories as LeeAnn Womack, Trisha Yearwood and Brad Paisley she graduated from the prestigious Belmont University with a BA in Audio Engineering. She credits her time as an intern with Grammy and Emmy award winning Producer/Engineer Jamie Tate at The Rukkus Room as being the highlight of her college career.

As an up-and-coming songwriter on Music Row, Lexi penned and released a bone chilling country ballad called Roses in 2015. The artistry in the writing is only upstaged by the powerful message it was meant to convey. It is a story rooted in a personal experience of a friend struggling with depression and thoughts of suicide. The music video is beautifully executed and superbly directed by Atlanta-based videographer, Dustin Blake. Along with her single, “Back Home”, an upbeat, carefree tribute to her hometown roots, “Roses”, went number one on Georgia’s 94.9 The Bull Backyard Country.

Today, Lexi is a seasoned performer and a beloved staple on Nashville’s Lower Broadway live music scene with her perfect pairing of personality and versatility. By adding her own depth and texture to the mix, she effortlessly switches genres and is an expert at recreating her own versions of all the crowd pleasing, sing-along hits in classic rock, country, pop and today’s top charted songs. Her stylistic approach to the arrangement and vocalizing of familiar songs paves the way for memorable, original performances every night.

Even with footprints as small as hers, this southern spitfire has already carved an impressive path in Music City. With a consistent presence at well-known live music staples like George Jones, The Stillery and Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, Lexi also hits the road for consistent runs in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Chicago. So whether you catch her on Lower Broadway in Nashville or in your hometown, you’ll want to take a seat and sit a spell. This small town girl with the big voice and the bold dreams has a gigantic future just waiting around the bend.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

When I first began singing on the strip in Downtown Nashville, I overworked myself with too many gigs and I was not singing properly. So I started consistently losing my voice. At the time, I mostly knew how to use my chest voice, for example: I was basically driving a manual car, but never getting above second gear. I thought that the more you “pushed” the more the audience felt your emotions. After seeing the wonderful vocal coach Sophie Shear about once a month for two years, I learned that you have three different voices you can use while singing. The key to using these voices is that none of them should hurt or be pushed. The best lesson she ever taught me, “When you strain, the audience strains”. So now I try to relax as much as possible when I sing, remembering there is a microphone in front of mouth to make me loud enough for people to hear.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I graduated from Belmont University with an Audio Engineering degree in May of 2016. I was hell bent and determined to not rely on my parents for help after graduation, but knew I wanted to explore the songwriter/artist world more than the engineering world. Though, there weren’t many jobs available in the Audio Engineering world when I graduated and it was the same for Cover gigs. Unable to find a “business” to hire me, I started my own “business” busking on the sidewalk of Downtown Broadway in Nashville. I made my own hours every week, and stuck to them rain or shine, hot or cold for almost three years. I had a foldable cart that held my battery powered amp, heater (winter time), sign, and a small stool for resting times. My “corner” was 4th and Broadway. At the time, there was a hot dog vendor that set up every weekend on the same corner – he would help keep the riff-raft away. I also made friends with the homeless and would tip them to not let anyone set up on my corner before I got down there. Eventually, managers of the venues on the strip saw me and invited me in to play their venues. And the rest is history.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.Lexilew.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/lexilewmusic
• Facebook: Facebook.com/lexilewmusic
• Youtube: YouTube.com/lexilew

Image Credits
Zack Allen