Meet Alex McCrary | Songwriter/hip hop artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alex McCrary and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alex, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I was born & raised in Memphis, TN. I grew up in Hollywood, located in north Memphis before moving to a different area in the city by the age of 11. I lived life in the ghetto while also being able to live life in a comfortable home on the outskirts of a pre dominantly white county. Having the chance to see life on two different sides of the spectrum, groomed me into the respectable individual that i am today. My parents raised me to the best of their ability & for that, I’m forever grateful. I love who i am.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Regarding all things, the name is important because It represents who or what you are. I chose the stage name Aspire because i wanted to stand out from the general crowd & sound in Memphis. When i started creating songs & working on music, i was trying to keep up with people around me. I saw all this talent & passion, that i was thinking, “i can do that too.”. After dropping my first album “Achieving Something”, people really heard me as an artist for the first time. But while people were giving feedback & praise, i looked for improvement within myself versus following what others were saying. I thought about time & time again. What music do i want to create, how do i want my performances to go, how i should handle myself on a track in the studio, everything. I’ve been very proud of my progress and the direction my music is going. After having been making music for about 3 years now, I’ve learned a lot through other artists & their music while interacting with them & collaborating on songs together. While free thinking of music, i felt that it was hard but when i pick up the pen & start writing, everything just seems less hard & more accomplishable.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Memphis is a great tourist attraction despite not having many landmarks as other cities across the nation. Downtown will always be a place to mention for entertainment because we literally have it all. Great Blues music, awesome BBQ ribs, pulled pork, etc. and quite a few different drinking spots like Wet Willie’s & Silly Goose Lounge. Of course, you can’t say you been downtown without visiting the FedEx Forum where we host most of the basketball games for our Memphis Grizzles, Memphis Tigers & their opponents. While the city is beautiful, downtown is a different part of life as it is anywhere else.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First things first, i want to shoutout my cousin Marcus for pushing me out into the music world to create my first song with him. We collaborated on a track & received good feedback. It was the start of something beautiful. Fast forward, i met Kerry Jones A.K.A Krisiz Jay through a mutual friend & he helped me become a better artist, a better performer, and helped give a sense of direction on music when i found myself asking questions. Lastly but certainly not least, i have to shoutout & thank Toriano Workman. Our relationship started back when we were younger playing Xbox live through mutual friends. Never did i expect us to pursue music through different avenues that would end up leading us to working together. An artist is only as good, if not better than his producer & Toriano is definitely the reason I’m who i am as an artist today.

Instagram: @1shot_nosound

Twitter: @SpiNThaMix

Facebook: Alex McCrary

Youtube: Aspire ThaArtist

Image Credits
Bbagency / Ashley Brown