What up MYSPACERS!! It's been too long since I last wrote a blog. In response to the abundance of messages I've received asking for updates and any new info, I am here to tell everybody what's been up.
First of all, I am excited to announce that starting in mid-January 2007 I will be starring in Hairspray on Broadway!! I will be playing the role of Link Larkin. At a very young age I discovered my love of performing through the experience of live theatre so I am totally thrilled to be moving to New York and getting back to my roots!! This new direction has made me feel inspired in a way that I have not felt in a long time. Now that's not to say I haven't enjoyed having my own MTV show in 2006 as well as recording my solo album "Soundtrack To Your Life" its just that there is still much more I feel I want to accomplish!! This last year has brought me much success and I expect 2007 to be even better.
A HUGE THANKS for those of you who voted on the myspace poll for the 2nd single! I was very disappointed to see my record label choose a song called "Where'd U Go" that had received such few votes compared to favorites like "I'm Better" and "Crazy Beautiful". The banner that was put up on this myspace site congratulating the fans for choosing "Where'd U Go" as a single was not an accurate representation of the poll results and was put up without my consent to make it appear that it was everyone's favorite song. I do have help maintaining this site due to the large volume of friend requests and I apologize to those of you who have written me questioning this false statement. I want to let you guys know that I personally visited EVERY major radio station in the ENTIRE COUNTRY in 2006 and not one single radio programmer or radio DJ ever suggested "Where'd U Go" as a single. To my knowledge the favorites have always been the first 5 songs on the record with "Crazy Beautiful" seeming to get the most attention. Z100 in New York, which is the biggest radio station in the country, had already spun both "I'm Better" and "Crazy Beautiful" on the air and were ready to fully get behind either one of those songs due to the success of my first single Let U Go!!
"Let U Go" was the highest debut for a single on the Billboard HOT 100 charts and the video went to NUMBER ONE on MTV's TRL. Things were off to a great start. You can imagine my surprise when my record label decided to not even film a video for "Where'd U Go" which they appeared to believe in so much, even ignoring the myspace poll results indicating the song fans wanted to hear most.. Don't get me wrong, I've always loved the song but never thought it was a radio single and apparently either did you guys! My management tried to persuade the record label to choose one of the more obvious radio singles on the album but to no avail. My manager also recommended that I go along with their decision rather than try to do anything about it, which at the time seemed like the right move. As an artist you want to pick and choose your battles and ultimately many decisions are out of your control. I did put 3 years of my life into the creation and release of the album and when you put that kind of time into anything it's hard sometimes to not get emotional about key decisions being made that will affect your future in a major way.
I get many questions from aspiring artists on how to break into the music biz and while I don't profess to be an industry expert my success at a young age has allowed me to see what it takes to make it from an insider's perspective. I've had two major label record deals, two MTV shows devoted to my music career and worked with many A-list professionals in the business. One of the most important strategies to getting anywhere in the entertainment industry is no secret but often times overlooked. It all comes down to who's on your TEAM. Every artist needs one and no one can get anywhere without one. In my opinion this is why sometimes mediocre products sell huge numbers while many times incredible works of art can remain undiscovered. I'm not claiming to be either one of those two examples but regarding my album I do believe without a doubt that recently several key decisions were made that have obviously been the wrong ones. I will not go into that any further as I prefer to look towards the future and have become smarter, stronger and more determined than ever to learn from my past and use that to my advantage.
I recognize that I have not been on MYSPACE much in the last few months as I became all consumed in trying to fix the issues I have just described and I know this site is begging to be updated. I will be posting new pictures this week (I chopped off all my hair for the role of Link) and I promise I'll be here in the MYSPACE world a lot more often as I get settled into my apartment in NYC. I want to thank all of you who continue to support me and I hope to see you in the audience for my Broadway debut!!! Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas beeotches!!!
-Ashley Parker Angel