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  • Bigger Than Beyonce's Exclusive Ashley Interview
    January 31, 2011

    By: Rob Brayl
    For BiggerThanBeyonce.Com

    Recently, I chatted with Ashley Arrison. We dished on everything from working with Kelly Clarkson and Lindsay Lohan to hookers to TLC’s ‘My Strange Addiction’ — yes, I’m serious. But most importantly, we discussed the deeply rooted passion behind her heartfelt music.

    ROB BRAYL: So I know that ‘Caged Bird’ is your genuinely personal song with regards to domestic violence. Has music always been a cathartic release for you, a safe space?

    ASHLEY ARRISON: I wouldn’t necessarily call writing music my safe place, but rather my most vulnerable place. I am not super prolific, writing songs all of the time. I really envy people who can do that, but songwriting is too emotional of an act for me to be able to pull my innermost thoughts, like water from a well, out daily or weekly or on command. I have to be feeling extremely vulnerable to say what I need to say. And when that moment happens, my thoughts come out fairly clearly, and that is the most cathartic feeling in the world.

    RB: You’ve worked with numerous artists but two that stuck out for me were Kelly Clarkson and Lindsay Lohan. There has to be something interesting to say here, no?

    AA: Both are complete hookers. [Laughs] Just kidding. Okay, just Clarkson. Okay, not really. Something interesting? Well, Lindsay Lohan hates bananas but eats them for their “protein”, so she says. As for KC, all I can say is I have been privileged enough to have listened to her sing in hotel rooms and living rooms, as well as in the studio and on stage and never once have I not thought to myself, “Okay, there has to be a God.” Because her gift knows no limits and it just seems other-worldly. Having Kelly sing backgrounds vocals on your track is a humbling experience! I know people love her and think she is incredibly talented, but I don’t think the world knows just how far her vocal and writing talents stretch. If you haven’t seen her live, you are missing out on seeing a talent that no one else in the world can match. However, I have seen a homeless man reject her when she tried to give him a homemade Easter dinner.

    CLICK HERE to read the rest of the interview

  • Ashley takes on Coldplay's Fix You
    January 25, 2011

  • Happy New Year Vlog from Ashley!
    January 18, 2011

  • Ashley will be broadcasting live from her living room on January 23rd!
    January 06, 2011

    Join Ashley as she plays her first ever virtual concert through StageIt.com, a great new live-interactive fan experience! What does this mean? It means you get to enjoy a live Ashley Arrison show from the comfort of your home! The concert will last approximately 40 minutes (due to StageIt's maximum time limit) and you will be able to chat with other fans as well as Ashley herself in the live chatroom that will be available under the monitor.

    Tickets are being sold through StageIt.com (via the link above). Tickets are 100 Notes (StageIt's currency, each note is valued at .10 cents). If the show is sold out, please keep checking back or following Ashley's Twitter feed for additional tickets as we will be making an effort to release additional tickets based on demand.

    Tickets are being limited to keep this a special and unique fan experience. The show will broadcast live and will not be archived or available after the initial broadcast. If you buy a ticket, be sure and remember the event in your calendar, because unfortunately, if you miss it, you'll miss it and will have to wait until the next one.

    For more information on StageIt, please visit: http://www.stageit.com/static/faq

    Ashley is already working up a few surprises for the set list and if this is a big success, it could become a regular gig to help bridge the gap between venues near you!

     

    Hope to see you all there!

    Bob (Ashley's new Social Media Director) :-)

  • examiner.com // New York
    January 04, 2011

    New video from up and comer Ashley Arrison

    Ashley Arrison is the singer-songwriter you might not know yet…but you will. She is the complete package of gorgeous vocals, striking beauty, and a catalog of songs just waiting to be heard and cherished. Arrison offers up songs you will love immediately and cause you to wonder why no one has told you about her before now.

    Check out her new video for "Caged Bird" off her debut album "Hearts on Parade" HERE. 

    "Caged Bird"  is a personal song about her experience with domestic violence. It is beautifully done video,  directed by Weiss Eubanks, and co-produced by Aben Eubanks. 

    Like what you see and hear? Check out Ashley on Facebook and her Website.

     

    http://www.examiner.com/music-industry-in-new-york/new-video-from-up-and-comer-ashley-arrinson

  • Caged Bird (Official Music Video) is released!
    December 22, 2010

  • LIVE REVIEW :: GRAMMY.COM :: Room 5 Los Angeles (9/21)
    September 22, 2010

    Ashley Arrison

    The Set List
    By Crystal Larsen
    Los Angeles

    Los Angeles' cozy Room 5 Lounge, an intimate venue that sits right above the Amalfi Ristorante & Bar, was home to a rowdy and energized crowd as singer/songwriter Ashley Arrison took the stage on the evening of Sept. 21 to perform selections off her full-length debut album,"Hearts On Parade, and previously released EP "Talking Circles"

    "Let's just do this," said Arrison as she launched into "Winter," supported by fellow Room 5 Lounge performer Katie Cole on backup vocals. Joining Arrison onstage was songwriter/musician Aben Eubanks, whom she called a "jack-of-all-trades" as he switched from acoustic guitar to piano for several songs. The well-crafted, country-style lyrics and pop melodies on this track immediately caught my interest and I was hooked on every song that followed.

    Next up was a song about Arrison's "favorite person," appropriately titled "Favorite Thing." The sweet, catchy tune surely brought smiles from the audience, and likely drew a smirk from those in attendance who were listening closely as she sang about a few favorite things of hers: "Tulips and tequila and the number three/These are just a few things that appeal to me." Arrison then led into an impressive cover of Dolly Parton's GRAMMY-nominated "Jolene," a song she admittedly wished she had written herself. The crowd erupted into a loud applause following her performance and Arrison, grateful for the reaction, said, "Thank you. You can't go wrong with Dolly."

    The temperature in the Room 5 Lounge kicked up a few notches when Arrison introduced her next song, "Little Miss Plastic," saying, "And now I'd like to sing a song about kicking another girl's a**," before she introduced Cole to the stage again. This song, possibly one of my favorite performances of the night for its rough-around-the-edges lyrics, brought out the raw side of Arrison as she sang about a situation where a girl is trying to steal her man: "I might be 115 but I ain't afraid to brawl/What ya want first, girl, the window or the wall?"

    Arrison took a quick break to introduce the next song, "Somewhere With You." The track, co-crafted by Nashville, Tenn.-based songwriter Shane McAnally, was originally to appear on Hearts On Parade until GRAMMY-nominated artist Kenny Chesney caught word of the song and claimed it as a track he had to have on his next album. While the track doesn't appear on Hearts On Parade, Arrison promised she'd release it on an upcoming EP.

    Finally, the Tennessee-based artist (hailing from Memphis and Nashville) announced that she'd be moving back to the Golden State as she led into another track off Hearts On Parade, "California." The audience proved to take that as very good news as they erupted into more loud applause.

    Set List
    "Winter"
    "Favorite Thing"
    "Jolene"
    "The Hard Way"
    "Little Miss Plastic"
    "Somewhere With You"
    "California"
    "Hearts On Parade"
    "Last Of My Goodbyes"

    To catch Ashley Arrison in a city near you, click here for tour dates.

    (Photo information: Ashley Arrison performs at the Room 5 Lounge on Sept. 21 / Photo: The Recording Academy)


    Source:
    http://www.grammy.com/blogs/ashley-arrison

  • STAR IN THE MUSIC VIDEO FOR LITTLE MISS PLASTIC!!!!
    July 19, 2010

    Star in the music video for LITTLE MISS PLASTIC!

    Y’all were “instrumental” (hee,hee) in getting Little Miss Plastic on the album through your unwavering and astounding support for the song. I wasn’t sure it would fit with the rest of the album, but at the very end of the recording process (when we were all finished with the rest of the album), I knew we had to give it a try for you guys. We reworked it a bit and it totally worked! We are so happy with it and are glad you are, too. This song is as much yours as it is ours, so we want YOU to star in the video with me. ☺

    WHAT TO DO:

    Interpret the song however you feel inspired and film it. Use your computer camera or an iphone or a flip video recorder (if you know James Cameron or someone in film school, call on them, too!) Act out the song by lip synching (or using sock puppets) – Whatever! Just HAVE FUN, BE CREATIVE and OWN IT! POST IT on YouTube!

    DEADLINE: September 1st

    You can post the YouTube link here on my blog at any point. After compiling all submissions, they will be sent off for editing and soon after the OFFICIAL LITTLE MISS PLASTIC MUSIC VIDEO will be available for your viewing pleasure!

    Rules:

    There are no rules! Well, there is one:

    Don’t be shy, people!

    You can post a short interpretation or you can post you doing your thing to the whole song – anything goes, my friends!

    Let’s see whatcha got!

    Yeahhhh!

    AAxx
     

    Leave your videos/comments on the blog part of my site -- www.ashleyarrison.com/blog

    Illustration by Elaine Snowden

  • JULY 1 CD Release Party was SOLD OUT! Get your tickets for Atlanta JULY 4!
    July 02, 2010

  • "HEARTS ON PARADE" ALBUM REVIEW : THE ROUND TABLE
    June 30, 2010

    Album Review: Ashley Arrison’s Hearts on Parade

    What do we say about Ashley Arrison that we haven’t already said in the last 12 months? All the talk, all the promise, all the hype we’ve fed you has led to this moment – the release of her debut full-length album Hearts on Parade. And she delivers, captivating her audience from the album opener, “Trying To Help You Out,” featuring Kelly Clarkson on background vocals, to its lullaby-esque closer, “Breathing.”

    Hearts on Parade plays like a musical journal thanks to mixture of autobiographical elements and imaginative lyrics in each song that are representative of the ups and downs Ms. Arrison has faced in life, making the album truly authentic and easy to relate to on multiple levels.

    Often teased by friends for slow, depressingly-fantastic, slit-your-wrist type songs, Ms. Arrison ventures out of her comfort zone on this album as she effectively plays with tempos. But let’s not get up-tempo confused with feel-good, happy songs by any means. Take “Hearts on Parade,” an extremely catchy tune about putting on a facade in attempt to become someone you’re not just to please a significant other. It’s sure to have your foot tapping along while you unknowingly recite overwhelmingly sad lyrics like:

    “Read a book, every book that you put on your self-righteous shelf/ Lost some weight/Lost my friends, like a fool I even lost myself/But I had to make you happy/And nothing makes you happy”

    “Saw a shrink/Took a pill/Tried to kill off what was left of me/didn’t ask, didn’t tell, was a shell of who I used to be.”

    Does she have your attention yet? There’s also the equally as heavy, “Caged Bird,” a chill-inducing tale of an abusive love. The contrast of Ms. Arrison’s sweet vocal tone against a stark piano is only magnified by a beautifully eerie string section.

    And while I’m all for sad songs, and naturally focus on them (clearly, I have issues), the album is no downer as it’s peppered with light-hearted songs inspired by Ms. Arrison’s playful personality. For example, “Little Miss Plastic,” the tongue-in-cheek, witty warning to girls everywhere that her man is off limits, has been a fan favorite at live shows in recent months. And to be completely honest, it was always one of my least favorite songs, but ever the perfectionist, Ms. Arrison completely re-worked the arrangement, transforming a somewhat forgettable cheeky kiss-off into an addictive, sultry number. Well done.

    There’s also the mid-tempo “California” that details the singer’s relocation from LA to (now sometimes) home Nashville in the name of love. While the lyrics prove she longs for familiarity of LA life, it’s quite apparent that with her nomadic lifestyle, “home” can be anywhere as long as she’s with her beau, Aben Eubanks, a noteworthy producer, songwriter in his own right, and integral part of the album’s creation.

    To sum up — Hearts on Parade is an impressive debut album from Ashley Arrison as she kicks off (what we hope) will be a long career in music. The beauty of the album is that it plays extremely well as a solid piece of work as well as stands alone song for song, which is inherently difficult to accomplish, especially for an artist so young in her career.

    You can purchase Hearts on Parade via iTunes starting July 1st or you can pre-order a copy now. Ms. Arrison will even personalize it for you. If you’re in the Nashville area, you can catch Ms. Arrison performance at 12th & Porter on July 1st with at 8 p.m. with fellow singer-songwriters Shane McAnally, Rachel Loy and Jill and Kate.

     

    Source: http://www.theroundtableonline.com/2010/06/album-review-ashley-arrisons-hearts-on-parade