Former Clear Lake/Mason City resident and song artist, Alyssa (Mikkelsen) Ruffin, will be debuting her brand new single “Midwest Girls,” which pays tribute to growing up in Clear Lake and Mason City, at a benefit concert at Diamond Jo Worth Casino on Sat., March 16, before its March 22 release date. Benefit proceeds will be donated to the North Iowa Youth Center in Mason City.
Ruffin, whose maternal and paternal family all live in the North Iowa area, currently resides in Colorado with her three daughters and where her husband, Charles Ruffin, serves as an active duty Weapons Officer in the United States Space Force. With Alyssa’s music career now in full force, she and husband Charles opened their own recording studio, Highway 83 Records, in Colorado.
Although she was born in Mason City, Ruffin said that she has attended schools in Mason, Clear Lake, Forest City, Rockwell, Sheffield, and Manly. “No matter where we lived, I spent most every summer in Clear Lake, swimming at City Beach and State Park, and almost every 4th of July at the carnival and fireworks show,” she said.
Ruffin said her singing career was launched at the age of six when her mother signed her up to perform at the Bill Riley Talent contest at the North Iowa Fair where she sang, “Little Girl,” by Reba McEntire. For the next two years she was entered into, and won, two more singing competitions until she performed in her first concert, while in third grade at Rockwell, for the entire Rockwell Elementary School.
Singing just came naturally for Ruffin. Her maternal great-grandmother, Grace Ketchum, the oldest living member of the Salvation Army Church in Mason City at the time of her passing, sang and played the tambourine. Grandmother, Norma (Ketchum) Carson sang Opera, Gospel, and Country, and also played church organ. But it was her singer-songwriter mother, who most people know by the name Micki, that was the driving force behind where Ruffin is today. Micki not only was a radio announcer and on-air personality at several North Iowa stations such as KZEV and KIA The Country Moose, she was best known as a singer in her own band, Justin Thyme.
Ruffin said she grew up singing, whether karaoke or live performances, all over North Iowa including the Clear Lake VFW, Rumorz, The Island, Rookies and the former Diamond K (now Rumorz). Ruffin said, “I guest performed with my mom’s band, Justin Thyme Band, at Country Crossroads in Manly and in Clear Lake at the Diamond K,” where father Roger Mikkelsen was the chef and kitchen manager and her mother would perform often.
“At age nine, I performed with my mother for Buddy Holly’s wife, Maria, at the Buddy Holly Memorial Anniversary party at the Diamond K. I remember Maria pulling up in her limousine, and complimenting my mom and I on our singing, and my ruffled polka dot dress,” Ruffin said. “My mom took me to most of her shows, and anywhere that would allow me in to perform, or sing karaoke. She’d pull up a chair and make me stand on it while I sang, so people could see me.”
Ruffin has since performed or recorded with, or opened for the former lead guitar player of Wilson Pickett, Scott Wilson of Saving Abel, Sawyer Brown, Firehouse, J.R. Richards of Dishwalla, Hip-Hop artist Coolio, and Confederate Railroad. She has also performed in the Global Green Music For The Planet benefit concert along with many Grammy award-winning artists.
“I have been nominated for more than 50 Music awards over the past three years,” Ruffin said. She released a debut single “Collateral Damage” in 2021, and EP “Pretty Boy Blues” in May 2023, as well as her brand new “Midwest Girls” to be released March 22. Currently she is working on two full length albums simultaneously, and has several more projects in the works.
To learn more about Alyssa Ruffin check out her website: AlyssaRuffin.com or find her on social media at Linktree.com/AlyssaRuffin.
