Dana Alexandra
Dana Alexandra to Join FLL at Lancaster Roots and Blues
We are pleased to announce that Dana Alexandra will be breaking her live performance hiatus at the FLL Lounge at Lancaster Roots and Blues this fall! Longtime readers of FLL know that we have long been supporters of the music career of Dana Alexandra in all of her many incarnations. Even prior to the pandemic lockdown, Dana had mostly retreated from live performance as the demands of family and parenthood increased in her life. But—far from abandoning music—Dana simply changed the way she approached and created it. This change of approach led to the “Buzzkill Boyfriend” project (currently available for streaming on Spotify). That project then resulted in her vocals being used in a commercial for Peroni beer — currently in heavy rotation in Italy! We recently caught up with Dana to ask her a few questions about what she’s been up to musically.
Fine Living Lancaster magazine : You retreated a bit from a regular performing schedule. What was behind that decision?
Dana Alexandra: I am a person of change. I love the seasons of life and all the new things to learn that come with each season. I felt the pull to slow down and a desire to focus on something other than myself in the form of starting a family and entering a new chapter. I certainly got what I asked for by starting a family and having next to zero alone time to focus on myself (LOL). I am currently striving to find that “balance.” I laugh at the word balance because I’m learning there really isn’t such a thing with parenthood, but I am doing my best to keep things like music sacred and close to me and make time for them.
Has "family life" changed you as a writer/performer?
It's actually renewed my love for music and writing and performing. I fell out of love with it for a while. Maybe I was burnt out. After a long hiatus of not even picking up a guitar, I felt like the sound of my singing voice was foreign to me after not singing for almost a year. It’s almost nice to feel like I’m starting over in a way.
Did the quarantine change anything for you in terms of your musical outlook or goals?
Quarantine is an interesting thing because I honestly felt like I was in quarantine long before Covid-19 since I was at home with my kids. Everyday was very similar, like the film “Groundhog Day,” and I was alone a lot. Because the world began to do everything virtually when Covid came, it actually made making music easier and more accessible to me because I could put my kids to bed and go out to my home studio and join a session with my friends on Zoom instead of missing out on an in-person session.
You'll be performing at the FLL Lounge at Roots & Blues as "Buzzkill Boyfriend." Tell us about that project.
I have been writing and working with Ethan and Todd, who are my friends and music comrades in Buzzkill Boyfriend, for years. We had many finished songs just sitting for a long time. One day when they came over and we were eating lunch together, they asked if I would be in a music project with them… one where we could create whatever made us happy. Of course, I said absolutely—and off we went. (Editor’s Note: Buzzkill Boyfriend can be found on Spotify.)
Last question... how in the world did you end up singing in an Italian commercial?
My two music friends’ day jobs are licensing and commercials. They had already been working on it and brought me in to sing on it. The ad agency and the client liked it, and now we are on rotation!
Give a listen to Dana’s contribution to Italian culture here.
Make sure to get to the FLL Lounge at Lancaster Roots & Blues early on Friday, October 15, 2021 — she and the Buzzkill Boyfriend project open the night.
