Born into a musical family as the middle of five boys and three girls in Manchester, Ga., a small town outside of Atlanta, Alexander Harris began singing gospel in his father’s church at the age of seven. The aspiring singer led the family band A7, but it was only a matter of time before he would step out on faith and become a solo artist.
Taking the stage name of ALEX, the R&B and soul singer has opened for numerous musicians including Al Green, Eric Benet, John Legend, and Kirk Franklin. He’s also released the singles Don’t Walk Away and Hope for Us (available on iTunes), and Chocolate Tears which made it onto the American Blues Network this past March.
ALEX is scheduled to perform in Boston at Fenway Park this Saturday as part of a celebration for the first-ever baseball game between the North Carolina Central University Eagles and the Florida A&M University Rattlers, two historically black colleges and universities, playing at the historic ballpark. The Eagles-Rattlers game is part of an all-day free open house at Fenway Park that includes a job and college fair.
ALEX, who previously has sung before a Red Sox-Yankees game at Fenway, says he is excited to be back.
“This time the HBCU’s are making history. This is their first opportunity to perform on a major league field,” said the performer by phone to the Banner recently. “It’s a historic event that I’m honored and humbled to be a participant of. As an artist I see it’s my social responsibility to use my talent as an arts platform to empower the community.”
For Alex, community and social responsibility are more than just words. Growing up in the Harris household, education was a priority and the value and importance of it was instilled in all the children. ALEX and his siblings are all college graduates.
Theory and practice
After earning his Bachelor of Arts in Human Services and Psychology from LaGrange College in Georgia, ALEX attended Boston University and graduated with a Master’s in Theology and Social Work. He continued his graduate studies in Adolescent Counseling at Harvard University. The singer is also working on his doctorate in Organizational Leadership at Nova Southeastern University in Florida. It’s no wonder the singer was inspired to create the organization, The Arts Conservatory for Teens based in St. Petersburg, Fla.
ACT’s mission is to educate, empower and enrich the lives of youth and teens from the ages of 11 to 18 by fostering creativity through arts education, theatrical productions, career guidance, healthy living and leadership development.
ALEX was motivated to create the nonprofit in part due to his travels throughout the world. In addition to performing concerts in the countries he traveled to, he would often hold master clinics for students and was inspired by “seeing the power and motivation happen,” says the singer. Looking to make a bigger impact in the community, ALEX founded ACT. His goal was to “integrate an opportunity for longevity, for community building and the best of human behavior in the community.”
The singer and songwriter is passionate about his music and also about empowering youth and teens through the arts. “I see the charity as my social responsibility. I think everyone has one. There are those who discover it and respond to it and others just kind of move around it.”
When asked about balancing the two careers, he says, “It’s been about finding a great team.” He goes on to add, “We have other people who work with our organization who have the same passion for community engagement and empowerment for our young leaders now. We just don’t think about it as a tomorrow gig. We think about it as a now gig. No one is island. We definitely need the support of others and great partnerships. Our model lends itself to great partnerships. We seek to maximize the existing resources in the community and then together bring about a community legacy.”
