Alex Warren Isn’t An Influencer Anymore

There’s nothing ordinary about Alex Warren’s life right now. Well, except for the name of his chart-topping single, which has given him his first No. 1 hit. Despite the career peak, Warren isn’t concerned by any pressure to follow up on the success. “If I’m a one-hit wonder, f*ck yeah, I’d love it, because I never thought I’d get even one,” Warren says. “If I didn’t have another hit and it just stayed exactly like this, I’d be so OK.”

The 24-year-old singer’s enthusiasm underscores just how difficult it is to create that one perfect song. Right when he wrote “Ordinary,” he knew it was special... although not everyone agreed with him. “I was begging my label to let me put it out, and they were like, ‘No, you have stronger songs,’” Warren recalls. “I really had to be like, ‘Trust me, this is the song.’ Now they’re starting to trust my vision more.”

His instincts are already starting to pay off yet again, as his latest single with Jelly Roll “Bloodline” is climbing the charts right behind “Ordinary.” The upbeat song came from a sad family story. “I wrote about my brother,” Warren says. “He went into the military for my mom. He wanted to make her proud, and then my mom drank herself to death, and he found himself lost in life and forming his own addiction.”

I hate writing happy songs unless it’s about my wife.

Warren is used to pouring his harder experiences into his songs, and it’s a core inspiration for his newly announced album You’ll Be Alright, Kid. “A lot of my music is about the trauma I went through as a kid,” he says. Warren was unhoused after getting kicked out of his mother’s house at 18. The sole exception to his proclivity to write about life’s hardships is his wife, Kouvr Annon, whom he met when he didn’t have a home. She’s the inspiration for “Ordinary.” “I hate writing happy songs unless it’s about my wife,” Warren says.

The new album, which comes out July 18, will complete the story of You’ll Be Alright, Kid (Chapter 1) that dropped last September, adding 10 new songs. “Chapter 1 was who I was, and Chapter 2 is who I’m becoming,” Warren says. “You can listen to the whole thing in order, and you’ll know everything about me.”

After crashing in his friends’ cars as a teenager, Warren found a home in a pretty unexpected place. In 2019, he became a founding member of the Hype House, a group of TikTok’s most influential creators, where he was best known for elaborate prank videos. While he no longer sees himself in that same world (despite still having 18.3 million TikTok followers), he isn’t afraid to use his social media savvy to promote his music.

“I don’t think I’m an influencer anymore,” Warren says. “But I do want to use my platform for my music. A lot of people in my position would want to stray away from social media, or would find it cringe. And I totally get that. The act of convincing people to listen to your music kind of removes the whole intention of art. But I think I’m in my own category in that my fans just love the content I make, so they still get that, but they also get the music. I might not have time for the social media stuff one day, but I truly do love it.”

In that same vein, he is able to look back on his Hype House days only with fondness. “I don’t regret anything, and I’m so grateful for it,” Warren says. “There are things that I don’t love that I did or said. I don’t think I was an amazing boyfriend. But looking back on it now, I’m a better husband because of it. I’m a better friend because of it. I think it’s shaped me into who I am.”

He still keeps up with his former Hype House roomies, including Addison Rae, who just so happens to be having her own huge musical breakthrough parallel to Warren’s. “The Internet likes to pit us against each other just because we’re both from that era and we’re both doing somewhat great in music right now,” Warren says. “But she’s such a sweetheart. I just grabbed coffee with her in New York. So it’s just like, ‘Hey, we’re friends. You don’t need to do that.’”

They’re really upset that I’m charting, and I can understand why — their favorite musician isn’t.

The Hype House training has also made Warren uniquely prepared to deal with haters. “My music is nothing like Lana Del Rey. It’s nothing like K-pop. You’re not going to hear me write a Charli XCX record. So when those fandoms don’t like my music, that’s totally understandable, and I love that,” Warren says. “When I look at the Internet, I can be like, ‘Oh, that person doesn’t like my music, and that totally makes sense.’ They’re really upset that I’m charting, and I can understand why — their favorite musician isn’t.”

He’s just as unbothered by comparisons, particularly when people liken his work to the anthemic radio hits popular in the 2010s. “Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, that sounds like old Imagine Dragons.’ Well, yeah, that’s kind of what I’m inspired by,” Warren says. “I fell in love with that era of music. So it’s cool. Imagine Dragons is a really sick comparison, so I don’t mind it. I don’t even know what my sound is. I’m just making stuff that I like. Compare my music to whatever the heck you want. Whatever you feel like it is, put it in that box. I don’t care.”