BY SUZY STUMP for WEEKLY VOLCANO 9/12/25 |
Singer-songwriter Alex Dunaway’s journey began with piano lessons at age six, guitar at thirteen, and her very first original song soon after. “Surprisingly enough [that first song] is one of my favorites I’ve ever written,” says Dunaway. That early spark carried her through adolescence, guided by poetry and personal reflection, and eventually led her to study music across the Atlantic at one of the world’s most respected performance schools.
“I’ve always been singing, but never took lessons until I went to college at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts,” she explains. Founded by Paul McCartney in 1996, the school has earned a reputation as a global training ground for ambitious musicians. For Dunaway, it was a chance to hone her raw talent and deepen her understanding of songwriting.
After graduating, she returned stateside and settled in Tacoma in 2020, where she lived with a partner until 2023. The breakup, she says, marked another turning point. “Our breakup inspired me to go somewhere new. I moved [to Seattle] two years ago.” That move, while difficult, unlocked a new period of creativity. Dunaway’s music—introspective, unflinching, and deeply emotional—often feels like pages pulled from a private journal. “Unfortunately, my darkest moments are what inspires my creation,” she admits. “My songs are like journal entries in a way. Everything I write is based off of true events and feelings.”
This approach explains why her songs resonate so strongly with listeners. For example take “No Words,” a song she penned as a teenager grappling with disillusionment and loss of faith. “That song is about my falling-out with faith and Christianity, due to a number of hardships I experienced as a teen,” she says. Or the more recent “I Am Nothing (that I wanted),” which wrestles with melancholy in the wake of heartbreak. “I often feel lost, like I am not where, and I am not who, I thought I would be. Sometimes this motivates me to do more; other times I feel defeated—and do nothing.”
Her honesty is touching, but never bleak. What comes through most in her lyrics is the desire to connect, to help others feel less isolated in their struggles. “A lot of times people approach me after shows and say that one of my songs really resonated with them. I love hearing that. I just want people to enjoy themselves and feel less lonely in whatever they’re going through.”
The intimacy of her writing style carries over into her performances. Dunaway prefers to keep things stripped down and direct. “I will be solo and acoustic,” she says of her upcoming Tacoma show at the New Frontier Lounge. “My performances are always an intimate vibe.” Don’t expect elaborate production or flashy effects—her shows are about words, melodies, and the immediacy of voice and guitar.
For now, her creative process remains largely solitary. “I would love to collaborate more, but haven’t had success with it in the past,” she admits. “I’m also a little shy, and it’s hard for me to put myself out there enough to connect with other musicians.” Still, Dunaway is no stranger to ambition. She’s sitting on a vault of songs—hundreds, by her own count—and is finally ready to break free from perfectionism. “I’m a perfectionist, but I’m sick of it,” she says. “Pretty soon here I’m dropping an album. It will be written, engineered, produced, mixed, and mastered, entirely by yours truly.” That DIY spirit has always been central to her artistry. Even as she wrestles with doubt, she finds drive in the discipline of doing everything herself.
When asked about her songwriting process, Dunaway explains that it almost always begins with words. “Ninety percent of the time it’s lyrics,” she says. “When I was in elementary school I started writing poetry before I started turning them into songs. Ten percent is melody. I never start with production, as that is my least favorite part.” That literary streak—poetry first, music second—may be one reason her lyrics take center stage.
For audiences, the upcoming show at the New Frontier offers a chance to see Dunaway in her element: intimate, raw, and honest. She’ll rely on her ability to hold a room with her guitar, her words, and her lovely lilting voice.
As for the future, Dunaway is content to let life unfold without forcing expectations. “I have no idea,” she says when asked where she sees her music heading in the next year or two. “Right now I’m taking things one step at a time, and letting life just do its thing. Any time I’ve tried to predict where I’ll be, I’m wrong.”
If there’s one constant in her work, it’s honesty. Her songs never promise neat resolutions; instead, they dwell in the messiness of real life. That’s what makes them so relatable—and so cinematic. When pressed to imagine her music in a film, she doesn’t hesitate. “Probably some indie coming-of-age film,” she says. “Girl gets her heart broken—cue the music.”
For an artist who has spent years mining the depths of the human soul for inspiration, that answer makes perfect sense. Dunaway’s music is not about escaping the difficult parts of life. It’s about naming them, living through them, and, in the process, helping others feel a sense of connection and validation.
Her journey from a piano bench in childhood to the Liverpool Institute to Tacoma and Seattle venues has been shaped by bravery, loss, and reinvention. But at every step, her music has remained—a steady pulse, a way to turn pain into something shared. And as she steps onto the stage at the New Frontier Lounge, she carries that same mission forward: to connect, to comfort, and to remind us that even our darkest moments can become songs worth singing.
New Frontier Lounge, 301 E. 25th St., Tacoma, WA – Sept. 14, 8 p.m., 21+. Cover: $12.21. thenewfrontierlounge.com
