Allie X

Alexandra Ashley Hughes (born 31 July 1985), known by her stage name Allie X, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and visual artist.

Alexandra Ashley Hughes was born on 31 July 1985 in Oakville, Ontario.

Her family is of British descent.

She attended the Etobicoke School of the Arts, then studied classical piano and voice at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, and graduated from Sheridan College's Musical Theatre Performance program, and also studied musical theatre.

She began her career as an indie pop artist in Toronto in the mid-2000s, playing with local bands and writing and recording a handful of self-released albums.

Hughes first started her career under the stage name Allie Hughes in Toronto around 2006, performing indie pop, indie rock, jazz, and electronic music.

She released the 10-track demo album, Waiting for the Prize in 2006, which she recorded while in college.

In 2008, she took part in CBC Television's How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, the Canadian version based on the series with the same name which aired in the United Kingdom on BBC One in 2006.

She performed "My Favourite Things" from The Sound of Music and "It's Oh So Quiet" by Björk but was eliminated from the show after two weeks.

She released her second demo album that same year, titled Ladies and Gentlemen.

She recorded her debut studio album in 2009, collaborating with Dave Newfeld of Broken Social Scene, Leon Taheny, and Adam King of Run With Kittens.

The album was titled The Hard Way and was initially set to be released in fall 2010 but delayed to 2011 and ultimately scrapped.

She released a 4-track self-titled extended play in 2010, meant to act as a preview for the then-upcoming project.

Following the cancellation of The Hard Way, Hughes developed her synth-pop and electronic inspired band, ALX, in late 2011.

The group released their debut and only single, "I Will Love You More" in March 2012 and had their final known live performance at the Hillside Festival in July, where they performed seven unreleased original songs and one cover.

Her acting credits during this time include Canadian movies and television programmes, including The Boys in the Photograph, King, Being Erica, and Instant Star; her music was featured in Rookie Blue, Saving Hope, and Love Me.

After relocating to Los Angeles, California, in 2013, Hughes began working with producers Cirkut and Billboard and achieved success with her first single released under the name Allie X, "Catch", which peaked at number 55 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart and was well received by music critics.

The song rose to prominence after pop singer Katy Perry referred to it as her "spring jam" on social media.

In July 2013, Hughes moved to Los Angeles to pursue a full-time career as a songwriter; despite this, she did not stop working on her solo material.

She had not been satisfied with her sound and spent time learning about sound design and production.

She adopted the stage name Allie X and began working with producers Cirkut and Billboard, whom she had met during her time in Los Angeles.

Hughes was one of four musicians to receive the Canadian Film Centre Slaight Music Residency Showcase in 2013.

Despite having released albums and EPs in the past, Hughes had yet to release a studio album under the Allie X name.

In early 2014, Hughes released her debut single under the Allie X name, titled "Catch".

Upon release, "Catch" received praise from multiple sources: DIY magazine's Jamie Milton said "Allie X stepped on the scene like a bottle of wine at a wedding – everyone wanted a piece of her," and Jamieson Cox from Time magazine said the track "shines with a level of polish and craft that's remarkable" and complemented Hughes's attention to detail.

American singer-songwriter Katy Perry also praised the track on Twitter, calling it her "spring jam".

"Catch" charted on the Canadian Hot 100, peaking at number 55 on the chart.

Prior to the release of Hughes's debut extended play, CollXtion I, two singles, "Prime" and "Bitch", were put out by the singer on 18 March and 6 April 2014, respectively.

Besides working on solo music, in 2014 and 2015, Hughes also contributed to Australian singer Troye Sivan's album Blue Neighbourhood, co-writing seven tracks, including two of the album's three singles, "Talk Me Down" and "Youth".

Hughes released her debut extended play in 2015, CollXtion I, followed by her debut studio album CollXtion II in 2017, and Super Sunset in 2018.

"Catch" went on to be re-released as an EP in November 2015, featuring additional tracks.

CollXtion I was then released a year later, on 7 April 2015 in Canada, with the worldwide release being pushed back to 21 April.

The EP was well received, with Edmonton Journal's Julia LeConte calling it "a smartly written seven-song EP that offers up a smorgasboard of indelible hooks" and goes on to say Hughes's song-creating ability matches her "spectacular" voice.

She held a small North American tour in 2015.

She also supported Troye Sivan on his 2016 tour's North American leg.

In February 2016, Hughes released a free-to-download song called "Old Habits Die Hard", which was originally meant to serve as a non-album single.

On 13 May 2016, Hughes released another song called "Too Much to Dream" and announced a project called CollXtion II: Ʉnsolved, which saw her release a collection of demos and songs on Spotify over the course of the summer, in order to shortlist the songs her fans wanted to see on CollXtion II.

This project ended on 6 November 2016, with Hughes saying no new music would be released until the album is out.

In 2019, she also released an analog version of Super Sunset.

Her second and third studio albums, Cape God and Girl with No Face, were released in 2020 and 2024, respectively.