Have it all

In 2001, during an interview with MTV, AJ sang a fragment of the song “Happy,” which he worked on for a solo project. During the band’s tour in support of the album “Never Gone” (2005-2006), Maclean repeatedly mentioned in an interview that he was working on his solo album and one of the songs would be about his relationship with his father. In August 2007, AJ attended a recital by his band mate Brian Littrell and, rising to the stage, performed his own song “What If”. Before the band released the album “Unbreakable”, the singer said that the collaboration with Jaycee Chasez (a member of the band 'N Sync ) was not limited to this album. Chases also writes songs for Hey Jay's solo album. As part of a concert tour in support of Unbreakable, each member of the group performed a solo song. AJ chose the dynamic Drive by Love.

In 2007-2008, Alex worked in the studio, recording his debut album with the help of Ryan Tedder ( OneRepublic ), Jaycee Chases ( 'N Sync ) and famous songwriter Christian Lundin . He himself describes the style of the album as "completely different from the Backstreet Boys style and reflecting his inner world." Speaking about the sound of the album, Alex says: “We recorded it partly in Nashville - hence the influence of southern rock. The style of San Francisco and Los Angeles is also felt. This album really shows the other side of my personality ” ^[1] . AJ initially planned to participate only in the creation of one or two songs, providing songwriting to producers, but in the end, each song on the album was written in collaboration with him ^[2] . In the song “Sincerely Your's,” co-written with Dan Makala , AJ talks about a difficult relationship with his father. The recording of the song was not easy due to surging emotions, but the singer decided to leave the "raw" version, recorded on the second attempt ^[2] .

With concerts in Hollywood in March 2008, he began his solo tour, where he used material recorded in the studio. The tour of Europe began on May 15 in London , and continued in Germany , Sweden , the Netherlands , Denmark and France . Song “Mr. A ”, in the creation of which AJ participated with Christian Lundin, was recorded by the group for the new album “ This Is Us ” ^[3] . The singer decided to release it on his solo album, in some places there is vocals of other members of the group, Nick and Brian . In July 2008, Jayce Chase mentions in an interview that he is again working with AJ. During a group tour in support of the album “This Is Us” in September 2009, Maclean said he would give solo concerts during the break during the band’s tour. His solo concerts in Japan at the beginning of 2010 were also mentioned. In October, the name of the album, "Have It All" ^[4] became known. The artist describes the style of the album as "a combination of rock, funk and dance music." The album cover was shot by the singer’s friend, the scandalous photographer Tyler Shields.

The first single was the song “Teenage Wildlife,” written by Jaycee Chase . The music video was shot January 15-16, 2010. The director and choreographer of the video is Wade Robson ^[5] .

For the first week of sales in Japan, the album sold in the amount of 4,347 copies and took 34th place in the album charts . On February 18, album sales in Japan totaled 9,651 copies.

According to a Asia One reviewer, AJ once again identifies himself as a performer who refuses to be squeezed into pop music. There is something for everyone on the album: a fan of Backstreet Boys , rock and roll and even Eurodance ^[6] .

The main version

1. Teenage wildlife ( Jayce Chase , James Harry, Simon Wilcox) - 3:16
2. Have it all (AJ Macklin, Christian Lundin , Karl Falk) - 3:24
3. London (AJ Macklin, Christian Lundin, Karl Falk) - 3:15
4. Gorgeous (AJ Macklin, Christian Lundin) - 3:28
5. What if (AJ Macklin, Christian Lundin) - 3:53
6. Drive by love (AJ Macklin, Christian Lundin, Karl Falk) - 3:24
7. Love crazy (AJ Macklin, Jaycee Chase, David Maurice) - 3:58
8. Sincerely your's (AJ Macklin, Dan Macala , Lindy Robbins) - 3:38
9. I quit (AJ Macklin, Ben Glover, Dan Mackala) - 2:48
10. I hate it when you're gone (AJ Macklin, Dan Macala, Reggie Hamm , Chuck Butler) - 3:24
11. What it do (AJ Macklin, Mark Hudson ) - 4:06

Gift Edition

The gift edition was released on May 12, 2010 in Japan. The disc contains all the songs from the main version of the album and 3 bonus tracks (including the song “Mr. A”). A book with photographs ^{[7] is} also attached to the disk.

Special Edition

The publication includes two discs: a CD containing all the songs from the main version of the album and 3 bonus tracks (including the song “Mr. A”), as well as a DVD with a music video for the first single and other materials ^[8] .