Alex Boye is a spiritual soul crooner but it hasn't always been that way. Until seven years ago he was climbing the pop charts of Europe on the fast track to stardom. Then something changed.
"I seemed to have everything, but I wasn't satisfied," Alex said. "Deep down I felt a loss."
Alex grew up mimicking the sounds of mo-town, but never considered a career in music. It wasn't until he returned home to London, England, from a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that he realized singing was what he wanted to do.
In 1995 Alex formed the pop group, Awesome. They performed locally at dances and other small venues, but in 1996 their dreams of making it big turned into a reality when they won a vocal competition on London's largest radio station, Capitol Radio. Universal Records of Europe signed Awesome for a five-album deal.
Awesome released three singles off their first album, Rumors, which made Top-10 charts all across Europe. The group was working with high-profile celebrities and touring with artists like N'Sync, Backstreet Boys, Missy Elliott, and MC Lyte.
"It really was a great experience," Alex said. "It got to the point where I had all the things I ever thought would make me happy. I had fun and money but then it really went pear-shaped."
People's priorities began to change and the lifestyle didn't fit him. When Alex left the band in 1999 to pursue a solo career he lost everything. The record company took the apartment, the clothes, the phone and the money.
Despite the loss, Alex persevered with the driving energy inherent in his soul, and in 2000 he released his first solo album, No Limits, which included pop and R&B for the new age. The album, full of uplifting lyrics straight from the heart, reached No. 12 in the European charts but again he found himself in the same dilemma.
"On my mission, the spirit was there when I sang," Alex said. "In the band it wasn't ever like that, and even though I was now on my own, it still didn't feel like I was where the Lord wanted me to be. One day I was reading the scriptures and it said to forsake this world and seek for something better and how the song of the righteous is a prayer to Him. I realized I wanted to do music that was more uplifting that could do something for someone."
Alex moved to Utah to begin a new career in faith-centered music. In 2001 he released his first gospel album, The Love Goes On, and gained a rapidly increasing fan base. In 2003 he released his second contemporary Christian album, Testimony, which features a moving compilation of soulful ballads aimed at touching the soul and lifting the heart. With his latest project, Build the World, Alex has found his niche. The album, to be released in 2005, is an R&B collection of life changing lyrics with a gospel neo-soul flare.
"I see the youth and I see their music. They desperately need an alternative," Alex said. "This album is just that. It's faith-centered music for the dance world. I hope the youth will see that there is good music out there and that you can have fun and dance while still living a clean life."
Alex's heart and soul voice and engaging personality can move any listener, but it's his deeply rooted belief in who he really sings for that makes him more than just another entertainer. His inspiration comes from the Lord and his only purpose is to have the Spirit there when he sings.
Official Website: www.alexboye.com
"When the spirit is there it inspires you to change and to think about the things the Lord wants you to think about," Alex said. "To be involved in that process is amazing. I'm not making the kind of money I used to make and I don't have the fame and notoriety I used to, but I'm doing what the Lord wants me to do." |
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