Many of the values that shape how I carry myself today were learned at home, particularly respect, honour, generosity, and being a blessing to others. I was taught to respect people and what belongs to them, but more importantly, I had the privilege of watching my parents live those values out. I remember my father showing gratitude and returning kindness whenever someone helped him, while my parents would often find ways to help people even when they didn’t have much themselves. That taught me that being a blessing isn’t necessarily about abundance; sometimes it is simply about having the heart to give what you can.

As I’ve grown, I’ve also learned to hold on to what God says about me. There were experiences that affected how I saw myself, but I’m learning to let God’s truth become louder than other people’s opinions, rejection, or validation. I hold on to the truth that I am wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14), blessed and called to be a blessing (Genesis 12:2), and loved by God (Jeremiah 31:3). Those truths have become a foundation for how I see myself, make decisions, and navigate both my personal life and my ambitions.

I also define success differently now. It isn’t simply about what I accumulate, how visible I become, or what I achieve. For me, success begins with the heart. Can I help someone, provide a solution, encourage them, make their life a little better, or leave them feeling valued? I want what I build to have meaning beyond myself.

I have big dreams and I’m not afraid to pursue them, but I’m learning that ambition and contentment can exist together. I can desire more while remaining deeply grateful for what I have today. I want to embrace each season, learn from it, and allow it to shape me.

Ultimately, success isn’t simply arriving at a destination. It is becoming the kind of person who can carry that destination well when I get there. When the heart is in the right place, I believe everything else finds its proper place too.

For me, letting go has happened in layers. I don’t think I’ve completely arrived at a place where I can say, “I have let go.” I’m learning to surrender every day and allow God to lead me.

I’ve had to release my need to control outcomes, expectations of how I thought my life and career should look, certain relationships, versions of myself, and the pressure of where I thought I should be by now. There were moments when I wondered if I would continue modelling or felt that my career had to unfold a certain way. I’m learning that I can have dreams and goals without becoming so attached to them that I lose my peace when things don’t happen according to my timeline.

One of the biggest things I’m learning to release is fear. Fear can make us feel like we’re running out of time, falling behind or needing to force things to happen. I now try to stop and ask myself, “What is really driving this decision? Is it faith, or is it fear?” I’ve learned that people and circumstances are not always the enemy; sometimes it is fear influencing the way we see them. People are not my enemy; fear is.

That realisation was strengthened by watching Harriet, starring Cynthia Erivo. The story stayed with me because of the way fear can stand between a person and purpose. It came at a time when God was already teaching me about fear, trust, purpose, and surrender, and it gave me another perspective on what I was already learning.

I’m also learning to trust God’s timing. I don’t have to panic because something hasn’t happened yet or compare my journey with someone else’s. I can dream without being afraid of the timing. I can work, prepare, and pursue my goals without trying to force the outcome.

For me, letting go has ultimately meant releasing the need to know and control everything, releasing the pressure to have my life figured out, and choosing trust instead. I can dream, plan, and work, but I don’t have to be afraid. I’m still learning, still becoming, and every day I’m learning to surrender a little more and trust a little more deeply.

That, for me, has been one of the greatest freedoms of becoming who I am today.

When life becomes uncertain, I run back to the One. I run back to God, His Word, worship, prayer, quiet moments, and fellowship. But I’ve learned there isn’t one formula for every season. Sometimes I need to pray, sometimes to be still, read Scripture, worship, seek wise counsel, or simply step away from the noise and listen.

For me, the goal isn’t the practice itself; it’s understanding. What is God saying to me right now? What is He asking of me in this season? I don’t want to become so attached to a particular spiritual practice that I miss what God is actually leading me toward.

That’s why the Word is so important to me. Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). I want to remain close enough to God to recognise His leading and test everything against His Word.

I’ve also learned that an answer not coming immediately doesn’t mean God isn’t working. Sometimes the waiting is part of the preparation. God may not only be preparing the answer; He may be preparing me to carry it.

And I’ve learned to love God beyond what He can give me. Even when He doesn’t give me everything I ask for, He is still God, still good, and still worthy of my trust. The foundation of my relationship with Him is not what He provides, but His presence.

I also see people as channels rather than the source. God may use a friend, family member, conversation, or circumstance to bring encouragement or provision into my life, and I’m grateful for those people, but I honor the Source, not the channel. People can disappoint us or change, but God remains God.

So when life is uncertain, I may go back to prayer, worship, Scripture, quietness, fellowship, or wise counsel. But ultimately, I go back to God.

My strength is not that I always know what to do. My strength is knowing who to run to when I don’t.

Right now, a lot of my excitement and sense of purpose are centred around The Touch of Blessings (TOB).

TOB started with makeup, but the vision has always been bigger. I envision six branches under the TOB umbrella, including TOB Makeup, TOB Jewels, TOB Skin, and other expressions of beauty, creativity, and purpose that I hope to bring to life. But I’m learning to build it one step at a time.

Moving into a new studio space feels especially significant because it represents movement. It reminds me of where I started, everything I learned along the way, and the fact that growth doesn’t always come through one dramatic moment. Sometimes it simply means recognising when it’s time to take the next step.

Right now, I’m focused on building the foundation, growing the makeup business, developing the jewellery brand, creating, learning, and serving my clients well. I no longer feel the pressure to bring everything to life at once. I want to build properly, enjoy the process, and allow the vision to unfold naturally.

And then there is modelling and creativity. That part of me is still very much alive. I’m still modelling, creating,

 and exploring opportunities when they come. I may not always create as consistently as I would like because life can be full, but I’m learning to flow with the season I’m in rather than feeling pressured to prove that I can do everything at once.

Beyond the businesses, the modelling and everything I’m building, one of my greatest dreams is to become a woman who carries God well, a woman who creates opportunities, encourages other women, and uses whatever has been placed in her hands to make someone else’s journey a little lighter.

For me, success isn’t simply building something with my name on it. It’s building something that can outlive me, something that creates value, provides opportunities, solves problems, and becomes a blessing to others.

So yes, there are big dreams, places I want to go, people I want to reach, and ideas still developing in my heart. But I’m not in a rush to become everything at once.

I am becoming. I am building. I am learning.

And right now, that journey is called The Touch of Blessings. I don’t know exactly what every chapter will look like, but I’m excited to find out and trust that, as the journey unfolds, the vision will unfold with it.

For me, beauty has become so much more than appearance. As a model and makeup artist, I understand that physical beauty and presentation matter. They can attract attention, open doors, and bring you into certain rooms. But what keeps you there is character, presence, wisdom, and the way you carry yourself.

Your appearance may create an opportunity, but what happens after you walk through that door is determined by your attitude, integrity, humility, ability to learn, and the way you treat people. I think attitude is especially important because, like a fragrance, people may not see it, but they experience it.

Beyond appearance, beauty is about who you are when nobody is watching. It is kindness, confidence without arrogance, integrity, purpose, and how you treat people when you have nothing to gain from them. For me, it is also about what God has placed inside you and the light you carry into the world.

I’ve become more interested in what people experience when they encounter me. Do they feel seen, encouraged, or at peace? Do they leave feeling better than when they arrived? Those questions mean more to me now than simply asking whether I look beautiful.

Physical beauty can attract attention, but character determines what you do with that attention. I want to be beautiful in the dark, when there are no cameras and no audience. I want my beauty to be something people can feel and remember, not simply something that photographs well.

So I don’t believe we have to choose between physical and inner beauty. Both matter. Physical beauty can open the door, but what you carry within you determines what happens when you walk through it. Ultimately, beauty is not just what people see; it is who you become, what you carry, and what you leave behind.

If there is one thing I would leave with anyone reading this, it is this: seek God first.

Seek His kingdom, His Word, His wisdom, and His heart. Invite Him into your decisions, your relationships, your purpose, and even the things you do not yet understand. As Matthew 6:33 reminds us, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.”

Whatever season you are in, keep seeking, keep learning, and keep trusting. Don’t allow fear or uncertainty to make you lose sight of what truly matters.

For me, that hope is found in Jesus. His return is a promise I hold close to my heart, and it reminds me to live with faith, purpose, love, and intention.

Keep seeking God. Keep trusting His timing. And keep becoming.

Photography: Seyipixel 

Creative Direction & Styling: Blessedsing_Claire

Jewelry: TOB Jewels

OTS Magazine is proud to present an exclusive interview with Korean-American artist, producer, and performer AleXa, whose fearless approach to music, identity, and creative freedom continues to redefine the landscape of global pop.

This editorial brings together an exceptional international creative team, with beauty creative direction by Esteban Villanueva, makeup by Stefan Rogo using MAC Cosmetics, and hair by Adam Lukacs using IOMI and Maria Nila. Together, they create a striking visual narrative that reflects AleXa's bold artistry, individuality, and ever-evolving creative vision.

From winning NBC's American Song Contest to captivating European audiences through Melodifestivalen 2026, AleXa has continued to break boundaries across music, fashion, and culture. As a Korean-American artist navigating multiple identities and industries, she represents a new generation of creatives whose careers transcend borders while remaining deeply authentic.

In this exclusive conversation with OTS Magazine, AleXa reflects on creative freedom, identity, women's empowerment, global artistry, and the lessons she's learned while building a career entirely on her own terms.

Honest, empowering, and refreshingly candid, this interview offers readers an intimate glimpse into the woman behind the music and the exciting new era she's now embracing.

When I really think about every major event, performance, and achievement that I’ve gone through in my career, I feel like the biggest moment that brought forth any substantial change was definitely doing the American Song Contest back in 2022. While it was an American broadcast centered around a European competition, I finally garnered attention back in Korea, where I live, and I truly felt seen as an “idol” for the first time in my career.

Winning ASC was such an enormous achievement for me, and there was so much love and support and many positive outcomes that came from participating in the program. Through my experience in the show, and from what came after as well, I will say that I learned that attention is fleeting; you need to make the most of the spotlight while it’s on you before it starts to fade.

I've always considered myself a bit of an outsider my entire life, never really blending in or belonging to one specific group. To this day, I’d say that sentiment still rings true – about my music and me. I feel like there’s no specific niche that I fit into. My mother, who is Korean but was adopted at a young age, had never really been in touch with her heritage, so despite my coming from a mixed background, I never felt “Korean” growing up. When I moved to Korea and got properly introduced to the language and culture, that’s when I began to feel more in touch with my roots. Even though I am mixed, I was perceived as Asian nearly my entire life by everyone around me, so having this weird disconnect between my appearance versus what/how I felt culturally was a huge identity clash for me. At the same time, I’m an American-born citizen but never really felt at “home” where I was born – Tulsa, Oklahoma. Coming to Korea, especially in the beginning, I felt all too culturally “American” and felt like such an outsider in my mother’s home country. I’ve learnt, adapted, and transformed over the years and feel so at home in Korea now. That being said, being thrust into the Swedish spotlight was another huge game changer that felt completely out of my comfort zone and really gave me a bit of an identity crisis again. I’m a Korean-American artist who debuted as a K-pop idol who’s now participating in a European competition that just happens to be Sweden’s most important pop culture event of the year. My multiverse of madness truly never ends, haha…

Back when I was actively promoting as an idol, my entire concept was based around the visuals, rather than the sound. The visuals came first, and the songs were written around those concepts. I truly enjoyed the hard-hitting and intense songs and choreographies that I got to perform in those early years, but it is truthfully hard to say that any of it felt organic. Nearly 95% of the music that was put out while I was under my former label was all provided, pre-written, and just thrown at me in the recording booth. I was rarely allowed to touch my songs, even just for lyric revisions. So now that I have complete and total freedom to try out whatever I want, it’s like I’m having a metaphorical fashion show – I get to walk the runway showcasing things I’ve always wanted to dip my toes into, sounds I’ve always liked, and lyricism that feels fun and true to myself and my life, finally.

At this point in my career, I refuse to not oversee nearly every single aspect of what goes into my artistry. Having no autonomy over myself for seven years unfortunately had a negative impact on my life, and I am trying my hardest to rectify, remedy, and rebirth myself in a way that will allow me to grow and flourish both as an artist and as a human being.

Participating in Melodifestivalen 2026 feels like the weirdest fever dream in the best way. Such an odd and unexpected turn of events with some of the most incredible people that I’ve ever had the chance to work with. I’m so grateful for my teams over at Kreation Music Rights & Sony Music. The folks in Sweden were definitely intrigued by my entry, to say the least, haha… I garnered an entire new fanbase that I never had even imagined. I’m so grateful to everyone who voted me through to the semifinals and who was supporting me every step of the way. Being able to meet Swedish fans in person, I can definitely say that they are a bit more shy and reserved than other fans, but the love and support is still ever present.

Many people see the entertainment industry as a competition at the end of the day – I refuse to see it as such. I don’t care if I’m the “best” or the most “famous”. I’m an artist because I love music and I love performing. Needing to have an ever-changing approach to your artistry is such a tiring way to navigate the industry – for me, I’m just doing what I want and having fun while making my dreams come true. It’s a blessing that I’ve been able to stay in the industry for as long as I have, and I’m only just now in the driver’s seat for the first time. I’m excited to see where my journey takes me.

Oh, no doubt about it. There were many moments throughout my career where I’d lost my confidence, my will to continue, my love and my passion for music and performing… Those moments truly felt like the deepest and darkest moments of my life. Thanks to my loving fans all around the world, who so kindly and generously give their support day in and day out, I had some positivity to reflect on during those negative times. I was also able to navigate out of that darkness because of my incredible friends. I’m someone who firmly believes that the company that you keep says a lot about you as a person. Sure, the internet may see shallow connections on social media, where celebrities follow each other and who they post, but it’s the connections that happen off-screen and the moments that you share with those people that can really be healing for the heart and mind.

I can only hope to see the future of the music industry being filled with more fearless and resilient artists. I want to see more people who reject authority, people who want to carve their own path, people who don’t care about the numbers, the brand deals, the “fame”… Artists who are passionate and refuse to let that flame die.

My fashion and aesthetic choices are ever-changing. I grew up heavily alternative, and I feel like that’s an obvious statement to make given my current appearance. The tattoos and piercings are here to stay. There are some days, however, when I want to seem softer and more digestible to the general public, and I wonder about how certain outfits would look without all my ink showing. Some days I want to dress hyperfeminine; some days I’m sitting in a masculine energy. Some days it’s alternative-forward looks with leather and spikes and hardware; other days I dress like a grandma who knits on a park bench every Tuesday afternoon. I’m all over the place – in so many aspects of my life, haha.

At the end of the day, I love every single song that I help create, and I can only hope that my fans do, too. Not everybody is going to like everything, but as long as somebody is listening to what I release, then that makes me happy. I want my fans to know that I’m having fun and I’m finally enjoying life as an artist.

I want nothing more than to see more badass women become prominent figures in the music world. We have such strong women in the industry right now who have all faced relentless criticism from the public but continue to be true to themselves and their artistry no matter what. I’m a HUGE fan of Megan Thee Stallion and everything that she stands for. She’s an entrepreneur; she’s a pioneer; she’s health-conscious; and she has accolades upon accolades for many achievements, both as herself and as an artist. I respect the hell out of her.

I would have to say Vivienne Westwood, hands down. I LOVE Vivienne Westwood. I was introduced to the brand in my teenage years through one of my favourite manga/anime, “Nana”. Teenage me could never afford it at the time, so it was always just a fantasy of mine, but now as a successful adult, I own so many iconic Vivienne pieces and am always looking to expand my collection.

I need to stop doubting myself. I’ve always been my biggest enemy, my biggest critic, and my own biggest hater. I do think a lot of it stems from external stress and negativity and pressure that I experienced over the last couple of years, but recently, I’ve stopped being so hard on myself. I still think critically and logically about every move that I make; nothing I say or do is ever approached with an “F-it" mindset, but I don’t worry myself sick anymore.

The Joys of Freedom and Living on My Own Time.