As a contestant on American Idol in 2021, Alex Miller was criticized — and ultimately eliminated, during the Showstopper Round — for digging too deeply into traditional country roots.

While his tried-and-true approach may have been a little niche to win him the title of Idol champ, it certainly won him some fans in the country realm, including judge Luke Bryan, who surprised him after his elimination with an invite to play the Grand Ole Opry.

Now, Miller has shared a new single, "Through With You," that underscores the singer's love of artists like Keith Whitley and Merle Haggard while simultaneously reflecting the advice he got during his Idol tenure to switch things up. For example, "Through With You" draws on personal heartache from one of Miller's own breakups, and the song's music video takes a look at how addiction can devastate a relationship.

"I tried to take the advice that Luke Bryan and Katy Perry gave me on Idol and that was to reach a little bit, to see who I am as an artist and what really fits," he explains. "This song is definitely a very different style for me, but at the same time it's very true to me as it comes from a real personal experience."

Admittedly, "Through With You" is still pretty dang country. But here, Miller relies less on the format of a honky-tonkin' song; there are fewer of the yodeling flourishes and two-stepping-ready guitar runs that Miller rattled off so effortlessly during his Idol days. He sounds less like the band leader of a supremely talented cover group and more like one of country music's fresh-faced traditionalists, like Jon Pardi, who incorporate their own unique style into a blend of classic country influences.

Alex Miller's "Through With You" Lyrics:

An empty bed's got only empty dreams / You toss and turn, sleeping with a memory / Waking in the morning it's so clear / She's still gone, her goodbye is all I hear

Chorus:

I'm through / She said, I'm through, through with you

She left this house with lots of empty space / Just like my heart, nothing but an empty place / If she walked back in it wouldn't be the same / You can't move on once you've heard somebody say...

Repeat Chorus

I loved her then, I love her now / She ain't coming back around / Tell me what my poor heart's gonna do / Words can cut just like a knife / Change your world and wreck your life / When someone that you love tells you that they're through

Repeat Chorus

Now that empty glass is all I've got to show / From the pain and the words that hurt the most / I only wish that she was here today / If she was, she'd get the chance to hear me say...

Repeat Chorus

Oh, I'm through with you

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