Jimmy Mallia releases “Hey Hey”: a barroom style song about overcoming the demons of drinking
By Bobby Martin
Life can be a rollercoaster ride with peaks and valleys sending you in directions that can be completely unexpected. This has certainly been the case for Jimmy Mallia- a business man turned singer/songwriter from Texas has now released his first single about overcoming his biggest demon: drinking.
Mallia has released the tune “Hey Hey”, which can be heard on all major platforms starting on Oct. 25. Anyone who knows the struggle of alcoholism will take the song to heart and understand the innuendos thrown into his lyrics. But don’t expect to be sad and blue from listening to it.
This is a song that celebrates getting through the struggle and trouble associated with drinking, in the style of a barroom singalong that with a catchy chorus and fun, dancey rhythm.
“I could have done it kind of melancholy but I thought it would be much cooler to be a singalong song,” Mallia explained. “It’s very raucous. It’s very rowdy. It’s definitely like an old time kind of country song with a standup piano and a guitar.”
Mallia explained that he had been working on the song for a long time, and it evolved after spending time in a 12 step program. He said believe it or not, people going through a 12 step program do have a lot of fun. It isn’t just going to meetings and talking about how bad life sucks and what happened to them. It is more about getting through it together, and there is plenty of happiness involved.
“It’s really a lot of camaraderie and a lot of laughter, and I wanted to bring that out in this song,” Mallia said. “So at the end of the song there is a singalong for the chorus. I really wanted to get across that alcoholism is a serious issue, but you can have fun in sobriety.”
Mallia, 59, was born and raised in the small island town of Galveston, Texas and after going to college at the University of Texas and some time working in Houston, he moved to Lafayette, Louisiana. He had three daughters with his first wife, went through a tough divorce, but eventually ended up with full custody. He essentially raised his daughters by himself, and now has three grandsons.
“My life is like a Netflix story,” Mallia said. “There are so many episodes and side stories along the way.”
The song “Hey Hey” is about recovery from the excessive drinking that he had been plagued with for about 40 years. He said unlike some alcoholics, he was able to function and live a highly successful life. But it cost him his sanity at points, and now three years clean, he said life couldn’t be better.
Mallia has had plenty to contribute to his struggles, whether it be emotional aspects from failed relationships, handling family issues and whatever life threw at him. He explained that toxic relationships and being at home during the Covid-19 pandemic hit him especially hard, which caused him to hit the bottle hard as well. One day he said he couldn’t keep going on. He didn’t go to rehab, but the program is what saved him.
“Everyone’s rock bottom is different,” said Mallia. “I didn’t end up living on the streets or anything, but my sanity was totally gone. It was not a good picture.”
Mallia said if he hadn’t gotten sober he would never had taken the steps to release the song. When he was drunk he would have grandiose ideas but never follow through with them- something he said many alcoholics could probably relate to. When you sober up with a hangover, the idea isn’t so attractive.
One of the lines to “Hey Hey” is: “After drinking 40 years, lots of whisky, a lot of tears.”
This is a good summary of what his life was like, he said. Now he is ready to move forward, release his music, and live his best life.
Be sure to check out Jimmy Mallia’s new tune “Hey Hey” available for listening now.
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