Alyssa Micaela’s long-awaited debut album, The Hard Way, is out now. The singer-songwriter co-wrote all seven tracks on her freshman project, which became a labor of love for her, as well as a powerful statement of who she is as an artist.

“I feel really proud,” Micaela tells Everything Nash of The Hard Way. “I’ve been working on it for three years, and I’ve put so much into it. Why would I not be proud?”

When Micaela began writing what became The Hard Way, she had no idea the end result would have so many songs on the project.

“It started as an EP that was supposed to be five or six songs,” Micaela recalls. “That was supposed to come out in 2020. Obviously, it didn’t, and I just kept writing. And then all of a sudden I was like, ‘Man, now I have more songs that I want to record, and they kind of fit with these.’ It just made sense to make it all an album. So it really just worked itself out.”

The Texas native moved to Nashville in 2011, with dreams of being discovered and getting a record deal. Over time, the rising star realized that her quest for acceptance and approval began marring the authentic music she wanted to make.

“You get really caught up in it, and you spend all this time trying to please people,” Micaela bravely admits. “Or it’s, ‘Which songs do I think are gonna get me a record deal?’ or whatever.  I did that for so long, and even I felt like I was chasing things that weren’t even necessarily who I am and then I still wasn’t getting a record deal.

“So I was like, ‘Well, I might as well say and write the music that I want to, so at least I’m happy,'” she adds with a laugh.

Included on The Hard Way is “Mad Love,” a song written by Micaela alongside Phil Barton and Eric Paslay, with Paslay also joining Micaela on the track.

“We wrote ‘Mad Love’ in I think 2018 or 19,” Micaela recalls. “I’m not for sure, but it was definitely summertime, and it was on one of Liz Rose Music’s writers retreats. We were in Gulf Shores; we were at the beach, just living the dream. You’re at the beach writing songs, and it’s work. That’s a huge blessing. I just randomly thought of the title ‘Mad Love.’ Sometimes things just pop in your head and you gotta run with it. I knew that Phil and Eric would get it,

“I knew they would get it, and immediately when I threw out the title, and what my thought was about the song. Eric started playing that really cool groove on the guitar, and we just ran with it,” she recalls. “It was such a fun song to write, and then Eric singing on it of course just took it to the next level.”

Micaela has an undeniable talent, but she also has a lot of tenacity, which is what she credits for never giving up on her dream, even when it was challenging.

“I’m sure a lot of people after a certain amount of time, they quit or give up, for whatever reason. But luckily I don’t really have that in me. When I want something, I want it. I’m gonna get it,” Micaela says with a laugh. “And I also have really supportive parents. My parents, they have never once been like, ‘You know, you’re getting older. Maybe it’s time for you do something else.’ My parents have literally never told me that. They want me to do this, and they want me to go for it.

“So I think that that’s a big part of the reason I’ve stuck with it too, because there are so many times that it’s been really hard and I’m like, ‘What am I doing? Why am I wasting my time? Why am I even doing this?'” she continues. “And my parents just lift me up. They’ve always been really good at building my confidence and I really think that that’s why I’ve been able to stick with it.”

Find The Hard Way at AlyssaMicaela.com.

The Hard Way Track List:

1. The Hard Way (Alyssa Micaela, Joe Fox, Tori Tullier)
2. Be About You (Alyssa Micaela, Meg McRee, Emily Landis)
3. If Texas Had a Heart (Alyssa Micaela, Ben Williams, Chris Rafetto)
4. Tie Dye (Alyssa Micaela, Joe Fox, Tori Tullier)
5. Daddy’s Daughter (Alyssa Micaela, Chris Rafetto, Carlton Anderson)
6. The Bar Guy (Alyssa Micaela, Chris Rafetto, Lauren McLamb)
7. Lose My Cool (Alyssa Micaela, Maddie Larkin, Lauren McLamb)
8. Hell in a Handbag (Alyssa Micaela, Olivia Rudeen, Tori Tullier)
9. Girls Like Me (Alyssa Micaela, Chris Rafetto, Trannie Anderson)
10. Mad Love (feat. Eric Paslay) (Alyssa Micaela, Eric Paslay, Phil Barton)
11. Jealous of the Birds (Alyssa Micaela, Brendan Cooney, Chris Rafetto)

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Elicity PR / Jody Domingue