Music has always played a central role in Ilja Alexander's life. At an early age he found his way easily on the piano, played the guitar soon after and he has been writing and composing his own songs and music throughout his life. Ambition, remarkable talent and determined willpower have taken him to where he is today: On the verge of becoming the next big thing in Pop Music with a highly personal, non-definable style and a keen vision of the total concept of his music and performance on stage.
It was not until a student exchange college course to Osaka, Japan in 2004 before Ilja realized planning a lucrative future in making music could be a rational option as well. While playing the piano on campus, Ilja unconsciously found his first fans. Fans who got him his first informal gigs at local events and festivals.
Several extended family holidays to Asia heightened his inner ambitions for a future as performer, when he found himself playing the piano accompanied by girls asking for autographs in hotel lobbies, shopping malls and restaurants in places like Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia. It was there that Ilja decided it was time to take his talent and true ambition seriously.
While the rest of his family went back to Amsterdam after a winter break at the beginning of 2007, Ilja decided to stay behind in Bangkok and blend in with the right kind of people to further his career as an artist. And so he did. He soon found himself surrounded with lots of new creative input, accompanied by movers and shakers from the Asian music, fashion, media and even political scene. Amongst them artists, producers, fashion photographers, magazine editors, movie makers and big time CEOs. It was at that time when he built the first solid pillars sustaining his career, and finished several new song texts. To pursue the goals of his redefined ambitions and turn his dreams into realistic concepts, Ilja took a networking detour via Indonesia back home to Amsterdam where he started his own production company Ilja Alexander Productions.
In the Netherlands Ilja got himself acquainted with several Dutch producers. One of them, i.e. Rutger Kroese at Cruise Control Studio in Amsterdam, committed himself to assist him with the production of his first songs. Cruise control studio produced well-known Dutch and international artists. Amongst them Edsilia Rombley, Gwen Stefani, Ali B., Lange Frans, Re-play and Sat-R-day.
A benefit of producing some songs in the Netherlands was the fact he already was approached by Lars Janssen, a Dutch movie director to make music videos of two of his songs and to provide him a fully customized website and promotional material. After several months of promoting Ilja’s tunes at Myspace he met with several managers, producers and arrangers in Indonesia. In March 2008 he assembled his production team in Jakarta and recorded his next songs at Big Knog Studio. Among the people co-operating with Ilja were Irwan Simanjuntak and Stevie (guitarist of Andra and the Backbone). With the release of his single Fire In The Rain his career enters into a new era.
Ilja Alexander's music is original in style and concept. He mixes elements and constructions from classical music, blues and jazz, applying changes in tempi and bridges containing spoken texts. While Ilja himself likes listening to the 'older' music styles from the fifties, sixties and seventies, as well as classical music, his music contains definite hints of the eighties’ musical vibe. Because Ilja uses his music as a filter for his mind and thoughts –his dreams are the greatest source for his inspiration- his music is highly personal and expresses his inner-self. What is remarkably special about his songs, is that they frame decisive periods in his recent past and can practically be seen as a personal diary in music and lyrics. Ilja's music is unique, fresh and not easy to categorise in one certain style. Above all it is timeless and straight from the heart.
Enjoy!
WWW.ILJA-ALEXANDER.COM
More
Interviews
Behind the scenes photoshoot/music video
Fan photos
My photos
