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Alex J. Robinson

At only 23, (and with the flurry of activity that accompanies a rising star,) it seems like Alex J. Robinson's bio is being re-written almost daily.

It all started when she began singing at the age of eight in her hometown of Sudbury, Ontario. All the performing for family and friends had prepped her for the competitions that were to come. At 11 she came in fourth in the Canadian Open Country Music Competition (no small accomplishment for one so young) and she returned the following year to take second place.

And she's been singing ever since.

Flash to September of 2007, when she was the first unknown artist to be asked to perform at the Canadian Country Music Awards Gala dinner, which that year was held in Regina. Her powerful performances of two songs from her then as-yet-to-be-released debut album impressed the crowd of music industry insiders and help set up the roller coaster rise that continues to this day.

By January of the new year, Breakin' On The Love Thing, one of the songs she performed that day, had cracked the top 20, (peaking nationally at number 16) when it was released as her first single to radio. The second single and first video release, That's Who I Am, made it to number 7 on CMT's Cross Canada Countdown and set up the release of Don't Waste My Time. Her fourth and current single, The Other Woman and it's accompanying video (directed by Alex Colthart) is a fan favorite and one of the crowd pleasers at the live shows.

By March, Alex was part of an Ontario Tourism television/radio/web campaign entitled There's No Place Like This, which featured her singing a song of the same name. Because her name was not supered on the screen, people from coast to coast googled Ontario tourism & there's no place like this, and soon everyone was beginning to find who "pretty blonde with the killer voice" was.

On March 7, 2008, at the Canadian Radio Music Awards, in conjunction with Canadian Music Week, Alex J. Robinson was the proud recipient of the FACTOR Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award. Breakin' On The Love Thing was also nominated for Country Single of the Year.

March 16th saw Alex perform a showcase/release party (at Toronto's famed Revival club) that was described as "nothing short of triumphant". All in attendance knew they were witnessing the arrival of a new Canadian country-star-in-the-making and she signed with the prestigious Agency Group to represent her the next day.

Her debut album, Never Say Never was released 9 days later on March 25, The album was produced by her co-writer and musical mentor Tim Thorney, whose production credits include Alanis Morissette, Jimmy Rankin, Brian Byrne, The Ennis Sisters and Chisai Jackson among others.

By summer, she and her band were supporting the album with performances across the country, sharing the bill with the likes of Randy Travis, Shane Yellowbird, Crystal Shawanda, Johnny Reid, Doc Walker, The Higgins, Aaron Pritchett, Jason Blaine and even Kenny Rogers. The entire month of July saw a two minute artist profile piece run in every Cineplex theatre in the country thanks to interest taken in Alex by SIRIUS Radio Canada.

Almost exactly one year later, having been again invited to perform at the Canadian Country Music Awards Gala luncheon (this time in Winnipeg) she showed the Canadian Music Industry just how far she had come in so short a time. Her performance was stellar, and although she didn't win the award she was nominated for (Top New Talent - Female), she proved that AJR more than deserved to be there. Alex is currently hard at work with her writing partner working on new material for her second album which begins recording this spring.

To learn more about Alex J. Robinson, visit her website at www.alexjrobinson.com