Andrew Ellis, Editor-in-Chief

After going to school at McNally Smith Alex Kiel had planned on striking out with his own solo career. Instead, fate lead him to play keyboards and sing backgrounds for one of the Minnesota’s most popular singers, Chris Hawkey. It was a vital education for his path now.

“Chris has taught me a lot about being a front man,” he says. “There’s nothing better than playing behind someone that has so much energy, and in return, the band feeds off his energy.”

He says Hawkey encouraged him to pursue his own music and even helped him out with a few connections. Now he’s currently in the studio with producer and singer-songwriter Kevin Bowe working on some songs for his debut EP, which Bowe says has been pretty effortless.

“Alex has this HUGE kind of distinctly ‘American,’ voice that is a true extension of his personality,” Bowe says. “He also has an amazing falsetto and knows how to use it very well.”

The effortless feeling of working in the studio is something Kiel feels, too. He’s working on three songs with Bowe, one of which is called “Monday Kind of Love.” He teased that it has a Memphis sound mixed with a little Glen Campbell. In fact, one of the reasons he enjoys working with Bowe is his songwriting background.

“I think the best part about working with Kevin is that he doesn’t just see that producer side of things,” he says. “He has always been a songwriter and that’s something I hope to do in Nashville, so it’s great to really get his perspective from that side of things.”