Taking a breath from her busy life as not only an internationally acclaimed musician, but also a sports scholar and astrophysicist, Alex chatted about her experiences, aspirations and making time for the silly stuff with the Great Lakes Advocate.

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“It’s been a big life changing experience, getting what you’ve worked for for so long,” Alex said of her recent rise to the top of the Australian music scene.

“Everything was happening while I was still overseas. I’ve come back into an environment where everything I’ve always hoped would eventually happen is all happening, and it was a bit of a shock for me, and I think it still is.

“It’s weird meeting fans when I’ve only seen them online. We’ve released music while I’ve been in New York, so to get back and get to play in front of all these people who are there to see me, it’s so bizarre.

“It’s been really fun, and the people who like my music have all been really nice, I have really nice fans, which I’m really lucky with. It’s been a bit of a change, but a good change.”

Since returning home to Sydney, Alex has had a lot on her plate, but she is loving taking all the changes and new experiences in her stride.

“I’ve become such a yes person through this,” she said.

“I’m so excited about everything that’s happening, I just say yes to all these things and I’ve got to work out how to be the best I can possibly be at this job, and still make time for myself, just for the silly stuff too.

“The difficulties have been in learning how to be a musician really, I have a lot of support which is great. I have a lot of people reminding me that I’m super young and I have to be dumb sometimes, you can’t expect yourself to suddenly be a 45 year old just because you’ve come into this job that requires you to be quite mature.

“I try to be mature, but still have fun and make sure I’m enjoying the experience and not being this person that other people want me to be.”

Alex has released two EPs this year, conveying through the folk/pop tunes that have become a staple of her sound a pure interest in other people and what they’ve been through, while also telling tales of her own experience of self discovery.

“I just try and be empathetic and I try to be positive, that’s the most important thing for me,” she said.

Taking her music on tour to Europe in 2018, Alex is keeping her plans informal and her options open, for now just enjoying reconnecting with friends and family, and getting to know her fans.

“I can’t wait for Grow Your Own, it’ll be great,” she said.

“I haven’t been to Forster, but I’ve heard about how nice it is, and how there’s so many great things to do and great places to visit.

“It just seems like a really nice festival to do.”