Ah...it Must be the Music I guess!

I saw my face on TV for the first time last Sunday :o and I couldn't belive my eyes...or ears!! Do I really look/speak like that LOL???
It might sound strange but no matter how many times you've looked at your reflection in the mirror nothing prepares you for seeing yourself through TV eyes. It was SO surreal...like that unruly feeling you get when you hear a recording of your own voice played back to you...you're not quite sure if it's actually you or a well-trained imposter! Not being able to control what went out to thousands of people on a Sunday night was also an uncomfortable pill to swallow!



Despite the 3 big, fat, red NO's, and that awful facial expression the camera's caught when I saw them, I really enjoyed the audition experience! The outcome of the broadcast remains true but there were several moments left out of the edit that I'll always treasure....



Being told that I 'look sexy' by Dizzie Rascal was strangely satisfying *blush* lol!! (MassivE thanks to Mum for working her magic on those trousers and to FLY 53 for my beautiful jacket)! And thankfully all 3 judges made a point of complimenting my vocal abilities! But the most rewarding memory I have from my 5mins of 'fame' is having a near packed Hackney Empire applaud my humble efforts...and actively disagree with the judges decision! Apparently even The Sun had something to say about 'a young female soul singer...in crazy blue trousers'.
So what went wrong??



As an artist there are always things in any performance that you would change in hindsight! I probably would have sung a different song - the original Stereo Addict track is on a Primo beat...so when I couldn't get clearance I had another beat made up off the cuff and ran with it! Could my 2nd choice 'Take It' have got me through?! Or maybe it's just a case of me BEING better??!





The 'what ifs' are endless but it's pointless making excuses, or ranting about which song I should or shouldn't have sung! I'm encouraged by the love I received on stage, and SO grateful for all the supporters that have emerged since the show went out! But if Ashleigh Ashley really does have the potential to break through those Lean, Mean Music industry walls it's my responsibility to make sure she always puts her best foot forward and learns from each experience! For the love of music, but also for the love of all the people that have believed in me so far (and my Mum lol!)
;)

Must Be the Music, on Sky 1

A Date with Felicities - Lets JAMM!`

In my last post Asheigh Ashley meets Fly53 I touched on the importance of 'PARTYING HARD' and I guess this is just another example of how you never quite know who you're going to meet while out and about at parties / events!
I'd encountered the owner of Felicities a couple of times on the circuit but it wasn't until we both attended an interview day @ The Hoxton Factory that we really had a chance to talk! The day was hosted by renegade interviewer TOMO for a docu-film project!


(Meet Antonio, one of the many Weird and Wonderful interviewee's from the day. You'd be surprised how many places you'll have seen this guy!!) See my interview HERE!

So Felicities is a fashion PR company! Er...excuse my ignorance but what the hell does that mean?? Owner Alice L did excuse my ignorance thank god, and went on to explain to TOMO the inner workings of Fashion PR! Using Felicities Alice endeavors (successfully I might add) to get her designers work into magazines like Vogue, Elle & iD. She does an amazing job overseeing these budding designer-lets as they make the journey from creating their first collections...to selling them to the world! Later, during the course of our conversations Alice said that she could see me rocking one of her designers creations...'spikey leggins'...that very phrase had me sold lol!!


(Alice being interviewed by Tomo)

Alice invited me down to Felicities showroom in Shoreditch to check out these legendary leggins! I figured I'd save the opportunity for a real GOOD night...so when I was confirmed to do a 30min set @ BRIXTON JAMM I couldn't wait to call Alice and set up a meet - Mum in tow lol!

I walked into the showroom with air of thrill and excitement!! It wasn't a massive space, but it had plenty of room to house Alice's team, a seating / changing area, and the 9 + designer collections on show! Comparatively, rummaging through each designers section was a MILLION times more satisfying than rummaging through the rails at TK Maxx...true stories!! My mum and I were in our element working our way through all the innovative textures & colours dripping from each rail!




(One of the pieces I tried on-top. Lall London tops, Alice Palmer shrug)

Among all of those lovely clothes I was drawn to x2 designers in particular: Alice Palmer (who created the infamous 'spikey leggins') and Lall London! I knew very little about them, but Alice had a really cool punk to her designs and wearing Lall made me feel like such a lady - perfect contrast! I later found out that both designers have made quite a name for themselves with attention from the odd celebrity, broadsheets and afore mentioned magazines. Look out for them both in London Fashion Week, Sept '10!

BRIXTON JAMM ARRIVES!

I'm out gassed about this gig so I won't go into detail, but I can confirm it was an epic success! Check out the pictory below:





(pics from sound check & me with my cuz just before I got on stage! Can you spot the Spikey tights?)

Live footage from the gig here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheAshleighAshley#p/a





(The REAL THING!)
Check out live footage from the gig here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheAshleighAshley#p/a

Massive thanx to Sammy @ Neil Raja Photography and Lairy Love for the photo's from the night! And all my love to the BAND: Ashley, Nathan, Hurriane & Jonathan

@sh.x

AshleighAshley meets FLY53 - May '10...

PARRTY HAARD!
This is a motto that most if not all of us understand! But if you work in media you'll further appreciate the benefits of keeping up with industry parties that seem to come and go EVERYday of the year!
It's important to keep a level head at these things though (ie. sober)...at least until you prove that your not a complete imbecile lol!! Anyway I attended the Random Magazine pre-issue party in May (not to be mistaken for the issue launch party which was in June)!

So there I was...smoozing around, keeping that 'level head' while trying not to gush at Lee Ryan (pictured below) and I was introduced to a lady who knows how to PARTY HARD despite a day of back to back marketing meetings all over London!! I was introduced to the Marketing Manager of FLY53, Clara D!!



Having formally greeting each other over what I think was a Vodka cocktail? (though it may have been a glass of champers) we got talking...
I'd just finished my demo cover shoot, she explained how the brand was expanding etc...you get the idea!!
On a whim I suggested that maybe I could wear a bit of Fly53 to perform, or 'party' in?! I didn't think anything of it really, but dropped her a mail a couple of days later and I was absolutely flabber-gasted when she agreed to set me up with some sexy FLY53 clothing!






Following a few months of successful nights gigging and putting my PARTY HARD skills to the test in FLY53 gear, Clara D's blogger got in touch with some rather unusual questions!! On the 15th July Ashleigh Ashley is officially welcomed into the FLY53 coup!! Click here to see the feature they put together!!

THANK YOU FLY53!!

xx@xx

Jonathon RED just cussed my rainbow background!! KMT...is Less MORE???

@x

Who is Ashleigh Ashley?...

Who is Ashleigh Ashley!? It's a question I was forced to ask myself after realizing something that artist like Beyonce realized a long long time ago...performing in Ashleigh Ashley's shoes is about bringing my kindred alter-ego out to play! Being Ashleigh Ashley is being vivacious, and spontaneous, and colourful, and imaginative...she's a chameleon who has struggled to find her identity in my paintings, films and songs over the last 10 years! Part of being her is not knowing how she's going to manifest herself next!!
Thats bordering on psycho babble lol...but how do you create an 'image' for someone who is always changing?

I brainstormed this concept of identity and how it tied me to my music. I researched obsession and colour, and looked back at the "boombox" culture where people wore their stereo's like accessories!! Ian Rankin and David LaChapelle gave me a lot of inspiration, especially with their daring use of color! I imagined BEING my music, being tangled up and surrounded by all the kit that makes the sounds I love possible! Here are some of my fave images from the research stage:







Ok, so I had the concept...'Musical Entaglement'...but what to wear??? High street just wouldn't cut it unfortunately, so it was back to my mums with a few design ideas and a prayer that my 3week deadline would be enough for us to make up a STORM! Fortunately my mum had more than a few good idea's of her own!! Here are some of the stages that we went through to create the all improtant'LOOK'!:

I found a similar design for these trousers in the Virtual Shoe Museum and after a few design modifications from yours truly my mum (pictured blinking tutt!) made them into reality!:



I wanted a wire corset lol! In keeping with the theme Musical Entanglemet this corset was to be made from all manner of music related wires and it turned out to be the piece-de-resistance of my demo shoot! My mum even left a webcam as one of the fixtures! Plug IN BABY!!




This was an experimental outfit...didn't really work out in the end, but I made the neck piece as part of an on-going project called METAL MAN!! I'll fill you in on that bad boy in a later post!:


This behind the scenes video from the shoot is the perfect insight into the Ashleigh Ashley persona. Shot by presenter JP and edited by yours truly it's a perfect summary to what turned out to be a successful shoot! You also get introduced to the make-up and hair stylists that helped me complete the look.

I enlisted fashion / music photographer TOMO to bring my concept to life! Looking at his website you'll see why! He has a fantastic imagination, and is not afraid to go bold with shapes and color! Not to mention the fact that he's portfolio includes a campaigns for C4 show Skins and promo shots for Kate Nash and Lee Ryan!
These are the FINAL SHOTS:





One sneaky image even made it into our favorite mag RANDOM!

The Magic Microphone...

I don't want to bore you all with too many pictures of me with a microphone in my mouth lol...but it's safe to say that I've made the rounds to some of the best (and worst) live music nights in London! From the snug hub that is MAU MAU in Notting Hill, to the Caribbean soul of Troy Bar in Hoxton - even in the furthest reaches of South Woodford at an amazing venue called RS Lounge!

Here a few pics from my favourite places / events / nights I've played in recent past:

Queen of Hoxton_Feb '10:


Great shot taken by a member of the audience!


Mike.Drummerboi and me. Trying to figure out what to do with my hair?!


Mike.Drummerboi's beautiful girlfriend doing my hair



Joel.Keys with one of his many inspiring hats!


Me and the band on stage!

The Future of Fashion Event _March "10 :

This event was a celebration of fashion and art! Full of daring designers and oh, so sexy models! Innocent by-stander that I am, I found myself a little corner in the model's changing rooms to change in to my outfit for the night! The energy of the place was intense as everyone rushed around to add the finishing touches to each garment and making sure each six-pack was polished with a perfect sheen! :D


Shot of some of the models before the show


Me and the band


Me doing my green singing thing lol

Elixir Bar in Camden_April "10:

A lovely little night hosted by WePlugGoodMusic. These guys really have their ear to the ground for upcoming artist in the UK and abroad.




Me and band (minus drummerboi Steve)

Queen of Hoxton_190210...

Whoa...my first proper gig!! I have only fond memories of this night and the frantic lead up to it!! After someone (I forget who now) compared my style to a cross between Lady Gaga and Missy Elliot I designed a dress that I knew would work perfectly for Ashleigh Ashely's 1st appearance! It was my mum who brought this design to life - we discovered that we actually work quite well together without pulling each others hair out lol - so part of the 2weeks leading up to this gig I was back a forth fitting and amending the design until this little number was born:


Shoes - Torn Skull by Iron Fist.

I'd only had experience singing to backing track, or with the odd house band on the open mic circuit so working with musicians for the first time was definitely a massive challenge! Especially since we only met them 3weeks and 3rehearsals before the big night - GOD knows how we pulled it off lol...but we did! The night was a London Fashion week party hosted by Random Magazine @ the Queen of Hoxton, Shoreditch! And might I say the atmosphere was amazing!! I met Miss Bleu Mae and her band Fleur di Lis amongst other bands playing on the night:


Me and Bleu Mae, Fleur di Lis

Here are a couple of vids from the night..looking back on it it's...OH so RAW! :D