Abraham Alexander performs songs from 'SEA/SONS' in The Current studio
by Bill DeVille
May 21, 2023
It may have seemed all was lost when Abraham Alexander’s college soccer career was ended by an ACL injury. But it was during his recuperation that someone handed Alexander a guitar — and the next chapter of his life began. “I could express myself in ways that I never knew I could before," Alexander recalls. “It was like one of those moments where the light shines … It just made so much sense.”
Drawing inspiration from artists like Gary Clark Jr. and Leon Bridges, Alexander set about writing songs and road-testing them at open mics. All the effort has paid off, and Alexander is now touring in support of his debut album, SEA/SONS (pronounced “seasons”), which released April 14.
Alexander’s tour included a stop at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis, and on the day of the show, Alexander visited The Current studio to perform solo versions of songs from the album. He also spoke with The Current’s Bill DeVille — including how his life led him from Greece to Texas, and how he got to collaborate on his debut album with his heroes Gary Clark Jr., Leon Bridges and Mavis Staples.
Watch and listen to the complete session above, and read an interview transcript below.
Interview Transcript
Bill DeVille: Hey, I'm Bill DeVille. We're here with Abraham Alexander. So nice to meet you, Abraham. I've been a fan in your music for a while now. Tell us about your new album SEA/SONS.
Abraham Alexander: Thank you so much for having me. SEA/SONS is, I feel like, my coloring book in a sense. And, you know, something that I never thought that would be possible for me, and just to have it out means a lot, and I'm excited for people to hear it and hopefully when they do, they hear a kindred spirit within it and kind of helps them discover things within themselves and makes them feel peace, wonder, joy. But yeah, it's a book, SEA/SONS is a book, and the book's about my life.
Bill DeVille: The album SEA/SONS, it says the wordplay is sea-slash-sons. And I saw the picture of the artwork, it's you and your brothers. Tell us about that.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, so I was born in Athens, Greece, and lived there till I was 11 years old. And the last time that we were going to be in the ocean or get to play in the waters, the moment was captured. And I saw that photo a few years ago, and instantly I knew what I wanted my record to be. And it was one that I get to talk about my upbringing in Greece and talk about just what it was like to be a minority in the only country that I've ever known and to be an outsider in the only country that I've ever known but yet, just knowing I was different but not knowing exactly why I was different, and I wanted to honor my brothers at that time, but also just pay homage to home. And so "sea," which is the ocean and being in Greece and just the vastness of the ocean and what that means, and also how significant the spiritual sense of water means to me. And then "sons" to honor my brothers.
Bill DeVille: OK, so you were born in Greece, but you were raised in Fort Worth, Texas.
Abraham Alexander: Yes.
Bill DeVille: How did you get from one point to the next?
Abraham Alexander: So my parents were immigrants from Nigeria. And they emigrated from Nigeria to Greece. And then Greece had a lot of racial tension, and just the economy was collapsing at the time. And then my parents applied for a lottery visa, and got accepted by the U.S. And they thought Texas was the best place to raise a family in the U.S., and that's how we landed. And first it was Arlington, and then I went to college in Fort Worth, and that's how I ended there.
Bill DeVille: And so, you were a soccer player then, right?
Abraham Alexander: Yes. Yeah, I was... I was a pretty good — I mean, I don't want to toot my own horn, but I was pretty good! I was pretty good. It was, it was my love language. I loved playing the sport, especially when I didn't speak English when I first came to the States. I know it doesn't sound like it.
Bill DeVille: Well, you sound like a Texan to me!
Abraham Alexander: I appreciate it. I appreciate it. But I didn't speak English at all, and sports was a thing where I could communicate with people without necessarily having to verbalize anything, but the emotion and the spirit was there.
Bill DeVille: Yeah. And then you were, was it an ACL injury? Is that what it was?
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, it was an ACL injury, and it took me out. And through that process, a guitar ended up on my lap. And it was as if someone gave me a pen for the first time.
Bill DeVille: Really?
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, and I could write things that I didn't know I was feeling, or express myself in ways that I never knew I could before. You know, it was like someone had told me to write things down. Years passed and, you know, gave me boxes, or gave me a ruler, or gave me all these other things except for something that I could actually use to express myself. And it was like growing a second, or third limb, or whatever. It was surreal. It was like one of those moments where like the light shines with a light bulb. It just made so much sense.
Bill DeVille: So you got proficient, obviously, quite fast on the guitar then, huh?
Abraham Alexander: Yeah.
Bill DeVille: Did you take lessons? Do you have a teacher? Or did you do...?
Abraham Alexander: YouTube videos.
Bill DeVille: Really?
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, YouTube videos. It's crazy! I watched YouTube videos and would watch videos of this guy named Gary Clark Jr. Not "this guy," he's...
Bill DeVille: Ah, the wonders of the computer. Well, he's a legend in Austin, Texas, and he's one of the great guitar players around, and he's so much more than just a guitar player, too.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, he's a legend, period, just within his artistry, within him as an individual. Character. Leadership. And his legacy's forever written as a player and like, the time, you know, period, just like, he's awesome. So I would watch videos of him and would try to emulate some of the things that he was doing. And yeah, just YouTube.
Bill DeVille: Tell me about Leon Bridges. He was influential in your career, huh?
Abraham Alexander: He was. He was the first person that kind of told me to try doing open mics...
Bill DeVille: Really?
Abraham Alexander: ...and see what that would get me.
Bill DeVille: How did your paths cross?
Abraham Alexander: So I was going to visit a friend of mine, and I was at his apartment; he was running late, and I saw two people hauling musical amps into a building. And at the time, I did nothing around music, but I was just intrigued by anything musical. And some voice inside me told me like, "Hey, go see what they're doing." And I went to see what they were doing, and they were producers that were working on the Coming Home album.
Bill DeVille: Wonderful record.
Abraham Alexander: Incredible record. They asked me if I could sing. I said no, they're like, "Can you hum?" I said yes, and that's how I found my way into the session of Coming Home.
Bill DeVille: So you're in the liner notes.
Abraham Alexander: No, I'm not. I'm not in the liner notes. But I was in the sessions, and my voice can be heard in some of the music that was played. And yeah, it was a surreal moment. But we became quick friends, and he inspired me to start doing open mics, and one thing led to another, and I would write songs every week and then would go perform them and then people would like it, and I would keep playing it; some people would say it sucked and I would scrap it. And that's how I got to build my catalogue was doing open mics.
Bill DeVille: I noticed you have a number of special guests on your album. Gary Clark is on your record; that must have been an honor to have somebody who you admire to appear on your record.
Abraham Alexander: It's surreal. And something that I don't take for granted whatsoever. You know, like, not only is he, like we've shared, just a legend in the spectrum of music, but just the significance of I wouldn't be playing if it wasn't for the inspiration that he gave me. And for that inspiration to continue on to him, you know, featuring on my debut record and kind of gracing me with that blessing is surreal and forever grateful.
Bill DeVille: And you have, who I like to call the voice of God and your record, too: Mavis Staples.
Abraham Alexander: Hey, look, Mavis Staples, her and Morgan Freeman, I'm sorry! Her and Morgan Freeman could go back and back on the voice of God.
Bill DeVille: How did how did you get her to be on your record?
Abraham Alexander: God.
Bill DeVille: Yeah?
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, I opened up for her in Austin back in 2021. And she was super, like, gracious about my set, and just told me after the show that, hey, if I needed anything to let her know, and already, just kind of knowing the power of the song that she's featured on, called "Déjà Vu," and just knowing that, man, just her voice on that track would kind of take it to another stratosphere. And she delivered times 10. It's like the power and the emotion that she invokes and ingests within that track is unearthly; it's wild. And, again, to have those two juggernauts on the record is surreal and something that you can even pay with money to do.
Bill DeVille: Yeah.
Abraham Alexander: And I'm just grateful. And I feel like that's just a sign for me to keep pursuing this, you know.
Bill DeVille: We named our puppy Mavis after her.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah, she... I mean, there's no words. It's Mavis Staples.
Bill DeVille: It's Mavis Staples.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah.
Bill DeVille: And you worked with Brad Cook on your record.
Abraham Alexander: I did.
Bill DeVille: He's from this neck of the woods, grew up in Eau Claire just down the road, Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah.
Bill DeVille: What was it like working with Brad? I know he's a really fun guy. I know he likes the NBA. You probably know that, too.
Abraham Alexander: So our first — that's funny, because I forgot about this — our first day to have a session, we spoke for maybe, like, two hours or so just kind of talking about music and just life in general. And I was thinking, "Cool, like, we're about to jump on the session and work," but it was like, nah, we didn't. He's like, we're about to watch this NBA Finals game!
Bill DeVille: That sounds about right.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah! And it was the Lakers playing.
Bill DeVille: Well, that's his team, if I remember right.
Abraham Alexander: Yeah. And it was amazing. He bought wings, and that was kind of our first time. But it was beautiful because it just let me know that it's beyond music. And sometimes you have to sit back and just let experience take over, and that's going to transition into the musicality. And it did. You know, we didn't have to rush into anything. We can just allow our relationship to grow, and for us to found a common ground in order for that to translate towards the music. And he's a wizard. Yeah, he's a wizard.
Bill DeVille: So another fellow Texan just turned 90 years of age, Willie Nelson. Has Willlie had an impact on you at all?
Abraham Alexander: I think... That's a great question. I think Willie has had an impact on me whether I feel it like personally or not. Like he is a voice of Texas music.
Bill DeVille: Right.
Abraham Alexander: And the Luck Reunion is one of the biggest festivals in Texas, and that's at his backyard. You know, and there's a... It's a rite of passage for any Texas artist to play Luck Reunion, which happens in conjunction with South by Southwest. And so I didn't really grow up with Willie's music, but I think the legacy and the stamp that he's put on music as a whole, and even more so, Texas, has had an impact, and I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Willie and his legacy that he's paved.
Bill DeVille: Do you hope to be making music at 90?
Abraham Alexander: I hope to be doing anything at 90! Let alone music. Yeah, I mean, that's the hand of God, you know. And Willie, hand of God or green, I don't know which one or the other! But to be doing music at 90, and they're actually celebrating his 90th birthday at a festival in, I think, the Hollywood Bowl.
Bill DeVille: Hollywood Bowl today and tomorrow, yeah.
Abraham Alexander: And tomorrow, and the lineup is insane. Leon and Gary are on there, and to... Like, you don't have the roster of artists that are on that lineup if your legacy isn't impactful; like, just genres of all kinds: blues, soul R&B. Snoop Dogg, rap. And like he's second to none. Like, yeah.
Bill DeVille: Well Abraham Alexander so nice to chat with you.
Abraham Alexander: Likewise. Thank you so much.
Bill DeVille: Congratulations on the fine new album, SEA/SONS. I want to thank producer Derrick Stevens, also engineer Evan Clark for making us sound good. And Christian Ankrum for making us look good. Thank you. Nice chatting with you, sir.
Abraham Alexander: Thank you so much. God bless.
Video segments
00:00:00 Today
00:03:47 Knee Deep
00:08:39 Blood Under The Bridge
00:13:11 Interview with host Bill DeVille
All songs from Abraham Alexander’s 2023 album, SEA/SONS, available on Dualtone Music.
Credits
Guest – Abraham Alexander
Host – Bill DeVille
Producer – Derrick Stevens
Video – Christian Ankrum
Audio – Evan Clark
Graphics – Natalia Toledo
Digital Producer – Luke Taylor
External Link
Abraham Alexander - official site