Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ashley Reed. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ashley, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

As long as I can remember I’ve always wanted to do music. I think I had an early fascination with playing the violin. I saw a girl my age at the time who played it so well on TV and was enamored. I never learned how to play but I definitely fell in love with music.
My Grandpa built, owned, and operated a radio station in Southern California that my whole family worked at. I was surrounded by all genres of music from birth til I was nine years old. Ever since then I knew I wanted to not just be a singer but a songwriter. I was always writing down cheesy lyrics and poems in elementary school. Which later grew into real songs in High school and into my adult years. Music has always been a part of me.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I struggled as a singer/songwriter out of high school. I was unsure of the direction I wanted to go. I tried joining several different bands. I tried working with other musicians in putting my lyrics to music. They never panned out and I didn’t really know how to get into the music industry on my own. After my dad suddenly passed away, I started writing different kind of songs. Lyrically and melodically. That event in my life lead to me challenging myself and started putting daily videos of me out there on social media. I gained a little more confidence and I was able to play more with musical styles. That lead me to the Model and Talent expo in Dallas, TX. A huge conference where I spent several days auditioning for music producers, casting agents, and Modeling agencies. I signed a deal with Onkey Entertainment/ Indasoul. I’ve been working with them ever since to write and produce over six singles and an EP.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I strongly believe that artists and creatives should be supported in whichever way they can. If you can financially help support an artist that’s so amazing. Whether that’s buying their music directly, stream their music, buying their merchandise. Sharing via social media and talking about an artist is worth so much as well. A simple like, comment and share to your story on Instagram for instance goes a long way. Some artists can’t get out there and perform and rely heavily on using these free platforms to make a living.
Finding ways to partner with local artists and creatives is also such a huge help as well.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I think the fact that I am still here cranking out music is a huge testament to my resilience. Everyone I know knew that I have always wanted to do music. Not just as a hobby. It’s always been my dream and my passion. Where some people give up that dream to get a “real job”. I have been blessed to be able to continue pursuing my dream. I never quit! Even when the bands didn’t work out, or working with other artists didn’t pan out. I never stopped “trying”. I got married at a young age and had kids and dealt with a lot of things in my personal life. But I never gave this up. It has helped me grow as an artist and as a person.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ashleymariereed.com
• Instagram: ashleyreedmusic
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashleyreedmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6nX_WP2243cTGbOSx3iTDg?view_as=subscriber

Image Credits

Sterling Grinnell