Alex Warren Was 'Terrified to Show People' the 'Real' Him After Rise to Fame — Now, He's Ready (Exclusive)

Alex Warren continues to strike chords.

If you thought you knew the viral content creator turned chart-topping musician who first hit the social media scene five years ago, think again because the person you hear on stage is “not” who you saw on screen.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Warren — who recently announced his global title You’ll be fine, Kid Tour in support of his recently released debut album — opened up about why he’s pursuing a career in music while reflecting on his viral career trajectory that got him here.

“It’s definitely really weird,” Warren, 24, tells PEOPLE as he reflects on everything he’s accomplished in his life to date, from being homeless at 17 and sleeping in friends’ cars to his current rise to stardom as a multi-talented music artist. “I don’t really look back much,” he admits.

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Alex Warren.

Hunter Moreno/Courtesy of Atlantic Records

Why? Because the California native says he “still” hasn’t “achieved” what he envisioned for himself. “I think after a few albums I’ll know where I want to be,” he predicts, explaining how his music has always come from his personal life experiences, including loss and love.

“I’m still discovering who I am. I’m 24 years old. I just got married,” he says of tying the knot with longtime love Kouvr in July. “I want to have kids. I want to write songs about my kids. I want to do all these things,” he shares, noting that the goal has “nothing to do” with “how big a show” he wants to play.

This is partly because the artist views music as an “exhaust valve” for self-expression. “It’s always been for me… It’s therapy,” shares Warren, who often writes lyrics to cope with the loss of both parents. “Since I turned 12 or 13, I turned to music to help me grieve the loss of my father.”

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Alex Warren.

Hunter Moreno/Courtesy of Atlantic Records

Around that time, he wrote the song “One More I Love You,” which later became his debut single released in 2021. “It was just the way I felt, and it still is today,” he says of songwriting. “I think I’d be completely screwed, a different person if I didn’t have an outlet like music.”

The vulnerability and complete transparency displayed in Warren’s music – and the famous, unscripted banter he has with fans on stage between songs – is his honest way of connecting with audiences effortlessly in a way he’s never done before.

Warren compared his craft today to the impact he gave his multi-million followers on social media, especially seen in the videos he made as a member of the viral Hype House. The content creation mecca, which later spawned a series on Netflix, allowed creators to film together.

Alex Warren performs onstage during the iHeartMedia New York Z100 Summer Bash at Hudson Yards in August 2024 in New York City.

Michael Loccisano/Getty

“When I was doing social media, it was almost like I was playing a character. I feel like a lot of what I was doing wasn’t fake, but it definitely wasn’t me,” Warren admits. “And music was the first time I let myself go.”

Warren reveals that at the time he was “terrified to show people who I was” by sharing everything he had “been through” in life. “I’m fine that they hate the character,” he says of himself in the past, but adds: “But when I give them my whole self and give them the real me, I’m terrified that people won’t like it.”

He continues, “And when I came out with the music, that was the first time I was completely like, ‘Hey, this is me.’ And people loved it. I didn’t see a single hateful comment from a million people, and that was really cool.”

Alex Warren.

Hunter Moreno/Courtesy of Atlantic Records

Warren left Hype House in 2022. “Leaving home didn’t make me do music. I did music and doing music is what made me leave home,” he makes clear, noting that music has always been a part of his life, but creating of comedy videos online “instantly” picked up views.

“I’ve been trying to be a musician for so long, but I’ve had no success, and the second I tried to do comedy, it worked for me right away,” he explains why he decided to do it. “I worked so hard to get to where I was, I was afraid to commit to it because I never wanted to go back to homelessness.”

Warren says his departure from Content House was when he “really started leaning” into his music. “When I left, I realized that many things were holding me back,” he says. “A lot of people told me I was crazy; and luckily, I didn’t listen to them because I’m really happy.”

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Alex Warren performs at SkyDeck on Broadway in Nashville in July 2024.

Jason Kempin/Getty

In August 2022, Warren signed to Atlantic Records, where he continues to win over fans with his vulnerable pop melodies and intimate lyrics combined with his passionate vocals featured on his singles and his debut album, You’ll Be Alright Baby (Chapter 1).

“Carry You Home,” Warren’s biggest global hit to date — boasting more than 151 million global streams, impacting US Top 40 and Hot AC radio stations nationwide and charting in more than 15 countries on Spotify — is on the album, along with his newly released track “Burning Down.”

Warren “channeled” a mix of experiences from the content house and his real home to write the song, which exploded on TikTok with more than 157 million views and became his first hit on the Billboard Hot 100 since its release in September.

Fame and musical success are hard to ignore, but Warren — who says he first picked up a guitar at about five years old, “wanted to be a Nickelodeon actor really bad” and aspired to be like the Naked Brothers Band — says he “never thought ” that he is on the trail of something.

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Alex Warren.

Hunter Moreno/Courtesy of Atlantic Records

“The truth is, making music was never necessarily like, ‘Oh, I’m going to get famous and rich with this,'” he says. “I was really lucky. People loved it,” he says, explaining that now he’s just looking for ways to “make a song that helps” him and other people.

“I think that was an important thing that I was looking for and what I’m still looking for in a new song today,” he says. And despite his decision to share his “real” self through his music, he’s still searching for a part of himself along the way.

“I couldn’t tell you who I am if you asked me,” Warren says, adding, “And I think I’ll be successful in life when I can tell you exactly who I am when you ask me.”

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Source: HIS Education