The New York-based, Guatemalan-born artist aLex vs aLex’s new single is a smooth bilingual love song that, with its easy tempo and cutty vocoder, seems ideally suited for cruising in some sort of slick ride. What might that ride be? We suggest something with a removable top, but you do you. Anyway: We caught up with the artist and asked her about “venus & romeo,” her musical history with growing up in Guatemala, her time in Berlin, and a whole lot more. Read the article and listen to the single below.

What kind of music were you listening to as a kid growing up in Guatemala?

I had two older siblings that were very unintentionally involved tastemakers for me. My sister was a tapped-in teenager in the early 00s, and my brother was always looking up Billboard Hot 100 to see which songs to download to the family computer. We’d either make CDs to listen to in the car or later on in our MP3s. My dad is half Cuban and has Cuban family in Miami so whenever we’d visit, we’d listen to R&B radio stations (they'd play the same hits over and over). My siblings had MTV on at home all the time, and my mom always had Laura Pausini and Eros Ramazzotti CDs playing in the car ... So it was an interesting medley. 

Then there was also the cultural exposure to the Guatemalan "party classics"—weddings, quinceañeras and graduations are all BIG, BIG parties with a wide range of Latin hits everyone is expecting to sing along to and dance to (salsa, reggaeton, bachata, merengue, 80s Latin pop and disco).  

How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard you before?

Genre-bending, playful, grounded, bilingual. It carries sonic warmth with smooth textures and an emotionally charged vocal production. It's music that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but is intentional. I want it to explore love and beauty with wit and curiosity. :~p. 

What is "venus & romeo" about?

“venus & romeo” is my take on the mythology of love, invoking all the big names with a vocoder and sultry/honest lyrics over an alt R&B beat. A song written and recorded in a day (with Noah Williamson of Perfect Person), about pouring my heart out since it’s already been struck; taking matters and cupid’s arrow into my own hands–to stike you with it. 

Could you tell us a bit about your live show? There are projections involved, right?

Yaaa… I’m interested in theatrics and tailored imagery. Music is intrinsically visual to me! I got a conservatory degree in acting and toured a lot in LATAM with the first music project I was a part of (a band called Easy Easy), and that was a huge school for me to develop my own performance style … And with aLex vs aLex my visuals are lots of snippets of my life that I think help visualize the music. I love getting scrappy and DIYing it.  I also try to incorporate movement dramaturgy and materiality to match the textures of the sound when I perform live as aLex vs aLex (I go into this in the next question about my professional life in Berlin). 

Did living in Berlin change how you approach making music?

I’ve lived good chunks of my life at all three cities of my geographical trifecta

1. Guatemala City (0-18): the city that birthed me—being in LATAM helped me develop a scrappiness and resourcefulness that is required because there’s less infrastructure in place for careers in the arts. 

2. NYC (18-22 and now 25-28) the city that made me as a young adult studying away from home, AND the city that's nurturing me, now that I understand myself a lot better and can channel it through the world building of aLex vs aLex. 

3. Berlin (22-25) the city that shaped me, taking me seriously in my artistic professions for the first time. 

I had a really cool theater in Berlin (HAU) pick a hybrid performance piece I pitched for a residency open call. I developed it alongside a few other incredibly skilled artists that had niche fields of expertise. We created a collective for which I was in charge of sound design before even knowing if I could do it or not … But my colleagues took me seriously even then. That was incredibly encouraging, and they inspired me to rise to the occasion!!

My time in Berlin gave me both this DIY approach because most things seem possible (more support and resources provided by promoters of art and culture—community and a collaborative sentiment behind creation), and an art research lens to approach projects as a multi-dimensional part of a whole. 

What have you been working on lately?

I’m based in NYC, but I recently went out to LA for a week and made an EP having a session a day with a different friend each one. I had a very clear desire to make tracks that are as strong to play live as they are for being recorded in the studio. Currently in the mixing and mastering process and making videos for them!!! <33 

I've gotten to play these unreleased songs at two NYC shows and for the West Coast leg of Chet Faker's tou r... so polishing the live show has been extremely exciting for me! 

What is your go-to karaoke song?

I was just telling someone that I’ve only ever done karaoke as an adult once, ha ha, and I did “Fergalicious.” But growing up, I had a karaoke machine at home, and my go-to back then was “Complicated” by Avril Lavigne. 

Any Guatemalan artists you want to shout out?

MABE FRATTI!!! <33 legend. ARRIBA GUATE!