Alexa Joyce has released her debut single, I Want Ya, after a period in which she recorded with Mark Ronson, became stuck to Beyoncé at the Grammys and was told by Stevie Wonder that her album would be next.
From family parties in Aughton
"It was never quiet in my house growing up." Alexa's love of music began at family parties in Aughton, with disco from her mum, rock and roll from her dad and pop from her older cousins. She first picked up a microphone aged four and went on to perform in bars and pubs across Merseyside before relocating to London.
The 42-hour New York trip
In November 2024, a producer friend suggested she could meet Chaka Khan after a performance in New York. Alexa booked a £320 return flight for a trip that lasted just 42 hours. "I think it's the only time I've ever gone on a plane with just a carry-on [luggage]." She did not meet Chaka Khan, but backstage she met Josue Sejour, who became her manager. "I call him my music dad because he's unreal," she said. "He told me, 'You should meet Mark Ronson'. It all exploded from there."
Grammys: stuck to Beyoncé
Three months later, after signing with Sejour, Alexa was back in the US for a 72-hour trip that included a recording session with Ronson and an invitation to the 2025 Grammys in Los Angeles. She sat behind Beyoncé. "We were sat behind each other and, first of all, she smelled amazing. I was open mouthed and just thought, 'Oh my God. What is going on?'"
The encounter turned comedic when Alexa stood up. "I was actually wearing my grandad's blazer to the Grammys. She was wearing a sequin gown and when I got up, I got stuck to her. I was glued to Beyoncé because my tights got stuck to her dress. It was ridiculous." She recalled: "She was like, 'Oh my God, I'm so sorry!' And I told her, 'I'm so sorry!'" They untangled, posed for a picture, and as Beyoncé left she said, "Bye Alexa." Alexa's response: "I was like, 'Wow, aura points'."
Ronson, Bruno Mars and an invaluable mentorship
After the ceremony, Alexa went to an afterparty at The Troubadour to watch Bruno Mars and partied until 7am, before flying to New York to record with Ronson. Ronson, 50, has mentored her since. "The only way I can describe it is surreal," she said. "There's so many artists who are incredibly established that never get the opportunity to meet him. So to spend time with him, and for him to give me this mentorship, has been invaluable. It's been such an experience and I'm so grateful to him for even giving me the time of day."
She added: "I've been very lucky that he's friends with my manager. But I'd like to think that he also just believes in me. He knows that I'm a real music head. Everyone skits at me to say I'm like a jukebox."
The two share a Merseyside connection: Ronson's mother, Ann Dexter-Jones, spent periods of her childhood in Southport and Childwall. Ronson's memoir, Night People, came out late last year, and he signed a copy for Alexa's parents with the message: "Scousers are the best". He has called her his favourite Scouse popstar.
Scouse pride and determination
Alexa is proud of her roots, even though her parents live in Aughton, just outside Liverpool. "I'm gonna get called a wool now by all the Scousers," she joked, but she is quick to defend the city's influence. "I know obviously I'm from just outside the city, but this is where I've grown up. Every Friday and Saturday night, I was in Red Door, Heebie Jeebies and Level. It's the warmth and the wit. I just think Scousers are the best people in the world."
That background gave her drive. "My dad always says, 'Scousers get where water can't' and my mum's always been like, 'If you want it, go after it like a bull in a china shop.' I've always been militantly determined to make it happen. You can get told no a million times, which believe me, I did. But it takes one yes, and the right yes, and I was lucky enough to get that with my manager, who really believed in me and what I was doing and introduced me to amazing people like Mark, who I was lucky enough gave me the time of day."
Stevie Wonder's blessing
Stevie Wonder also entered Alexa's story after a Stephanie Mills gig in Los Angeles last year. She went backstage with a producer friend. "Stevie Wonder was just sitting there. My friend said, 'I'm gonna introduce you', and [Stevie] held my hand, and he goes, 'Oh, you're from Beatles Town!'" She told him Songs in the Key of Life is one of the greatest albums of all time, and he replied: "And yours is next, huh?"
"I got a bit emotional when I met him," she said.
What comes next
Alexa has quit her job at the head office of Charlotte Tilbury and performed at Abbey Road studios and New York's Stonewall Inn. She has a London show coming up, a date at The Cavern in December and another single at the end of September. "So, we're just on the climb now to hopefully going to sell out that M&S Bank Arena soon. If you can see it in your mind, you can hold it in your hands. Sometimes chasing your dreams is not easy, sometimes you feel like it's against you, but I just think if you go after it with everything that's in you, you'll do it. If I can do it, then I think anyone can."
