Alex Ray has the kind of origin story that sounds like a dare. Manchester, Kentucky. A home shaped by faith and learning. A path that led her to law school, graduating valedictorian, and into commercial litigation. On paper, it looked like an arrival. In reality, it felt like an erasure. “I was losing my hair,” she told us, remembering her first year practicing law. “I was working constantly. I just remember thinking, something’s gotta give.”

Alex Ray’s Messy is a short, sharp burst of pop-alt emotion, five songs, twelve minutes, and zero filler. It’s a snapshot of chaos polished just enough to shine, but not so much that it loses its edge. Every track feels like an intentional contradiction: raw yet refined, vulnerable yet self-possessed.

Credit: Shantell Cruz Singer-songwriter Alex Ray just dropped a new single, “UR KINDA LOVE,” today, on May 9th. Produced by SAYWHEN, the...