A Waterloo woman reached new heights in her music career over the weekend, as her new single debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes country chart. 

“It was insane,” Lexi Krekorian, whose stage name is Alexandra Kay, said of the success. “There was lots of crying, but happy tears. It was really cool.” 

Krekorian has been focusing on music for over 10 years, performing at local venues, releasing original songs and even starring on the Netflix reality show “Westside.” 

After her time with that show ended and she moved back to Illinois, Krekorian spent Monday-Thursday every week writing and recording music in Nashville, Tenn. 

She would then come back home and perform Friday and Saturday before relaxing with her fiancée on Sunday.

On one of those trips to Nashville, Krekorian was working with two new writing partners, Ryan Robinette and Hannah Mac. 

Krekorian had been listening to a song she had written years before about meeting the girlfriend of an ex who she was heartbroken over. She really liked his new girlfriend, which made Krekorian feel worse.

When relating this experience to Robinette and Mac, the writers came up with the idea for “I Kinda Don’t,” the song that would top the iTunes chart almost a year later.  

“Hannah looked at me and said ‘so basically, at this point, you’re thinking I kind of want to hate you, I kind of want to be you,’” Krekorian recalled. “And I said, ‘OK, we’re going to stop what we’re doing right now and we’re going to write that song.’” 

The trio wrote the song in about 20 minutes on Sept. 25. 

It did not debut until after “Dive Bar Dreamer,” Krekorian’s single from “Westside” that premiered April 3. 

That single performed well, which Krekorian was nervous about because much of the country was  under stay-at-home orders. 

“During quarantine, my numbers were skyrocketing so I said ‘we have to rush this now. We have to get on this next single,’” Krekorian said. 

That meant Krekorian and her team had to begin working on grassroots marketing, which included creating the artwork, promotional material, behind the scenes music video and social media promotion. 

“My fans take it from there,” Krekorian said. “They’re absolutely incredible, and they’re the reason this song went to No. 1 for sure.” 

“I Kinda Don’t” also got as high as No. 6 on the overall chart in the U.S. on iTunes, No. 38 on the overall chart in Canada and No. 85 on the overall chart in Australia. Listen to and download the song here.

Krekorian said the new single performing better than any of her previous music has already paid dividends. 

“For it to do that definitely got everyone in town talking and calling,” Krekorian, noting the song debuted on a Friday, which is when major artists release new music. “It’s been really cool.” 

The success of the song, which is one of four on Krekorian’s upcoming extended play record, is also particularly sweet for Krekorian because she has remained true to herself throughout her career and is still seeing success. 

“I worked really, really hard to be able to write and record the music I want to,” she said. “I’ve gone in and out of record deals. I told myself I wasn’t going to settle just for a deal. I wasn’t going to change just for a deal. If that made it a little bit harder to be independent so I can be who I am, that was what I was going to be. I’m just so happy it went so well and I stuck to my guns. It has opened up more doors than I could ever have imagined.”

Krekorian will have a new single called “All The Cowboys” coming out in the next few weeks ahead of the release of her EP, which should be out next month. 

That single and following album will be available on all major digital platforms, as is “I Kinda Don’t.” 

Krekorian encouraged those who like her music to give her EP a listen. 

“I think the EP is such a great representation of who I am as a songwriter, who I am as an artist,” she said.  “I just go into everything absolutely honest and vulnerable, and if people judge me for that, it’s a good thing. I’d rather not play it safe and be 100 percent myself.” 

One upcoming chance to see Krekorian perform is as part of Monroe County Tailgate Fest at the Monroe County Fairgrounds on Oct. 10. 

The drive-in concert will feature parking spaces to allow patrons to set up their own seating and viewing area. 

A portion of the proceeds benefit Songs4Soldiers. To purchase tickets, click here.

For more Alexandra Kay information, including where to find her music and live appearance dates, click here.