2/18/10

Dear Los Angeles, the answer is NO!



Dear Los Angeles, I need you to understand that I am not Ariel the little mermaid - I will never give up my voice like she did for the man, and for the palace. I will never give up my fins and my community to live inside your establishment. For years you have tried every trick in the book to make me sign a bogus contract, and I hope that you finally realize that I am not going to be owned like a piece of property. I would rather be homeless on the streets, and I’ve been there, then to live in a castle where I have no freedom. And just because I am a woman with no financial security, and an artist and activist who needs resources to push forward her goals, don’t expect me to go in some cage while you leech off my energy and try to exploit my message. I do not need your assistance, though I do want it. It would be nice to work together, but not at the expense of losing my artistic freedom, and my status as an independent woman. Los Angeles, you have a way of mistreating women who you desire, and I will not put up with your abuse. I knew all along I would have to leave you. Since I was a teenager people told me my heart would not be fully appreciated there, but I didn’t leave. What I learned is that in fact my heart was appreciated there, but greedy and sad forces wanted to put my light in a glass cabinet. I am a human being, not a trophy. I am a writer, not a model. I am ambitious in giving love, not in receiving false riches. I do not believe you when you tell me I have to be a good little girl, shut up, and let this moral less institution mold me to what they think will be most profitable. What you see as profitable, and what I see as rewarding, is as different as gloomy grey and bright yellow. All I physically need are four walls, a roof, and a window to look out. To be honest, I am surprised that I did not take you up on your offer to be produced; most of my girl friends would have jumped at the opportunities. My feelings were confused, and my mind told me it was the logical thing to do. But it was something in my gut that saved me. A voice inside told me to say no to temptation. My mother told me to move smart, not fast. Even when you misled me, and manipulated my feelings, it must have been a guardian angel that protected me from letting you devour me. At my most hopeless point in my stay in LA, it was the grace of God, of Mother Life, that led me to new friends in LA, and that would be the activist communities, the people who were taking action for human being equality, uplifting feminine as strong, when you tried to tell me it was weak. These friends de-brainwashed me, and reminded me that everything I felt as a innocent child was the real truth. After I became engaged in so many movements contrary to your big Hollywood machine’s priorities, my hope came back to me. My dreams became resurrected, but this time, I again believed as when I was a child that they would come true. There is no going back to behaving like your victim LA. There are good parts of you, but I will not let you bully, seduce and scare me into being a prisoner on Mt Olympus, with its brutish rulers who think they are gods. You continually threaten to “blacklist” me in the entertainment industry me if I refuse to be your slave, and you should know your fear tactics no longer work on me. Where there are good intentions, there is a way. Where there is love, there are healthy options. There are people in the industry who have not sold their soul- and they will protect me from disgruntled people who have. The only authority I acknowledge is love, light and laughter.

William Rast after party/ Justin Timberlake performance!

(L-R) Ashley NYC, Ryan Phillippe, Michelle Travis

2/15/10

Happy Valentines Day- be patient, you and your soulmate will unite!



Happy Valentines Day belated! People are always using the term -hope"less" romantic-, and maybe that's how they feel. But I always identify as a hopeFULL romantic- meaning that I'm not jaded into not believing that there is that special someone in the world for me. Though other people's misery may like company, I have faith that my soul mate and I are bound to unite soon enough. What I tell my friends who identify as "hopeless" romantics-, is to stop speaking into the universe that they will not find true love. But the main thing I stress to my girlfriends is that YOU MUST LOVE YOURSELF FIRST BEFORE TRUE LOVE WILL COME TO YOU FROM SOMEONE ELSE. I was not always so hopeful though. There was a time that I was pressured from society into thinking I "needed" someone else to complete me, or to "save me". Now I know I am complete on my own, and when I do meet my special someone, he will also be complete on his own, and together we will live and love side by side, but not "need" each other. "Needing" is not a healthy thing. An emotionally healthy and aware person does not want to be the "reason" their mate is happy, they want their mate to be "independently happy", and for their union to just be an "additional happiness". Ladies- you can't wait to be saved by some knight in shining armor, you must be that knight to yourself (and yes, women are knights too!). Be patient when it comes to love, and just trust that when it's time, it will happen. And don't block yourself off from your soul mate by settling for a substitute "almost love" just because you are scared that your soul mate got lost on his way to find you. Marrying someone just for security, with no love, could be like a slow death of the spirit to some. Its not worth it! Trust me- I have given into my fears before and even convinced myself I was meant to be with someone- only to find out it was a spell meant to enslave me. Breaking away from falsehoods is the most liberating thing ever. Don't be a victim of the brainwashing of fairy tales! Just like Beyonce told Oprah "Have your own life before you marry!". I do believe in laws of attractions- so just know that true love does exist! Be kind too yourself, and take time to care for YOU too! Be your own Valentine- everyday! You are worth it! Coming to New York was the best thing for me. For a decade the city of LA told me true love did not exist- and that women are nothing but objects- and that superficial external security was all that mattered. It hurt to my feelings- but I always kept my faith and knew Mother Life had a plan for me. Even when the media attacked the divine feminine- and sought to destroy the harmonious union of yin and yang energy- I just kept reading my books that told me that love was more powerful then fear- and that I did not have to sign any bogus contract that my heart did not want to! Happy Valentines Day, big bear hugs,and unconditional love always, Ashley

2/10/10

"The Robert Verdi Show" Premieres!



I'm so happy fashionisto Robert Verdi finally has his own show! I met him years ago at Mark Jacob's fashion show after party, and Verdi sure can dress! I saw the premiere episode tonight, and he is so fun and a laughing riot! In his show he aims to not just do fashion related endeavors, but to take over the world!

"Follow the incomparable Robert Verdi as he tries to take over pop culture one product, party and outfit at a time. Sick of living in the shadow of his celebrity clients, he knows he deserves more attention, more money, more fame, more stuff, more stuff, MORE STUFF!!!" - Logo's website


You can see "The Robert Verdi Show Starring Robert Verdi" every Wednesday at 10pm on Logo

2/7/10

"New Music Seminar" event!





Two days after the Grammys in LA, the "New Music Seminar" conference happened in Hollywood. "Some music conferences are for insiders and others are filled with wannabe’s. The New Music Seminar was created by and for music’s revolutionaries." says author Martin Atkins. As the music industry rapidly changes, this conference is vital in educating music professionals in how to keep up with the changing times.

The night before the event an opening night party was held at the famous Key Club on the Sunset strip, where there was also a concert. "Semi Precious Weapons" (based out of NYC) was one of the bands who performed. I had never heard of them before, but I can see they are going to be big stars! They are opening up for Lady Gaga's concert, and in fact, Lady Gaga used to open up for them 5 years ago before she was known. Justin Tranter is the lead singer, and is very over the top and fun, as his band is uber glam-rock. He threw out a T shirt into the crowd and I was lucky enough to jump up like a basketball player and catch it! The shirt had one of the bands popular song titles, "I cant pay my rent, but I'm fucking gorgeous!" That's so struggling artist! :) I was happy to meet American Idol's Adam Lambert at the concert, he's such a rock glam guy like Justin Tranter .

The next day was the day long seminar at the Henry Fonda Theatre. Music execs, artists, experts, etc flew in from all around the world to speak on panels, and learn from the workshops, and it was a very educational and inspirational event. There was also a $25,000 new artist competition, where 3 bands competed, and the audience voted for the winner. The event ended with a cocktail networking reception.

The event keynote speaker was music industry success Tom Silverman (CEO & founder of Tommy Boy records, and one of the founders of the conference). He said, ""Context trumps content every time. People search for meaning."

For more information about this event, which is held multiple times annually in different states around the country, please visit http://www.newmusicseminar.biz

Photos: Top- (American Idols Adam Lambert, Ashley) - Middle photo (Semi Precious Weapon's Justin Tranter)- Bottom photo (some of the organizers and the lead singers of the bands from contest)

2/1/10

EMI Post Grammy Party @ The W Hotel Hollywood





So the week long saga of Grammy madness ended for me at the EMI party at the W Hotel Hollywood. I ran into some friends of mine, and it was great to catch up. I ran into EMI's new artist, Eva Simons was there (and has the coolest hair ever!) with her manager Liz Balog of Stealth Entertainment. Check out Eva's son "Silly Boy" online, it's hot! It was also good for business, as I met some people who are very interested in the projects I am doing in New York. As I went home, I was actually relieved that all these Grammy events are over, because it can be a little overwhelming having to be a 4 places at once for 5 days in a row! But all the running around was worth it to stay in touch with associates and friends, and I know some helpful business and artist collaborating opportunities came of it. I'm so happy that I can go back to NYC, as even though it was a productive few weeks, I know why I left LA in the first place, and those things have not changed, and even if its crazy cold in NYC, my artwork is more appreciated there, so I gotta go!

Bottom Photo (Music manger Liz Balog, singer Eva Simons, Ashley)

Grammy Night! Sony/BMG After Party @ The Beverly Hills Hotel







The most intimate Grammy after party was hosted by Sony/BMG at The Beverly Hills Hotel, with guests such as Beyonce, Jay Z, Ciarra, Usher, Clive Davis, Ke$ha, Solange Knowles, Imogen Heap, (even Wierd Al) and many more. It was held in hotel's "Bar Ninteen 12", which opened up into the lovely patio overlooking a garden. My most interesting conversation was with Imogen Heap. She is such a rare artist, and is 100%of her own making, with no drama or PR stunt attachments or hype. She's just raw talent!

Photos: From top- (Ashley, singer Ke$ha) - 2nd photo - (singer Usher, Ashley)- 3rd- (Ashley, Wierd Al) - 4th - (singer Solange Knowles, Ashley) - 5th - (Ashley, singer Imogen Heap)

Neyo & OK Magazine Pre Grammy Party @ the new W Hotel in Hollywood







The eve of the Grammys is always fun. We went to Neyo's Pre Grammy party at the new W Hotel in Hollywood, which is an elegant new venue. It was a 2 story party, and had some live music too. It was really fun, as a lot of familair faces I know attended, and some friends I knew well. I really like Neyo's music.

Photos: From Top (Ashley, singer Neyo)- 2nd photo- (Ashley,singer Jo Jo)- 3rd- (Ashley, song writer Denise Rich)- 4th- (Ashley, singer Natalie Cole) -5th- (Ashley, singer Ashanti)

Friends & Family Pre Grammy Party @ Paramount Studios Hollywood



On Friday the Friends & Family held their annual Grammy Bash at the Paramount Studios. It was fun to be on such a legendary movie set at a late night party! After there we went to a party Trickey was having at the new hop spot "Wonderland" on Cahuenga. LA has all these new venues open, which means nightlife is more fun.

Will I Am & Kellis host "Data Awards" Pre Grammy Party!








Thursday Night January 28th kicked off the beginning of Pre Grammy Weekend parties! We went to The Data Awards which celebrated the world of DJing, with performances by Will I AM, Kellis, and many more. It was really good music.

It was cool to run into my friend Monique who I used to work with, and now she is a big star in Disney's High School Mucial world. Im so proud of her.

Pictures: Top- (Ashley and Aubrey O' Day)- 2nd (model Tameka Jacobs,Ryan Kwanten "True Blod" star, Ashley- 3rd(singer Kellis, Ashley) - 4th- (Tameka Kacobs, singer Joanne Keatley, Ashley) 5th_ Fergi, Will I AM)