Online Encyclopedia
Ashlee Simpson
Ashlee Nicole Simpson (born October 3, 1984) is an American singer, actress and the younger sister of singer Jessica Simpson.
Simpson, who grew up in Texas, was admitted to the School of American Ballet at age 11.1 She was later a dancer in her sister Jessica's concerts. She played the character Cecilia on the television show 7th Heaven from 2002 until the beginning of her singing career in 2004, at which point she said that she would no longer regularly play the role, and had a role in the 2002 movie The Hot Chick.
Simpson recorded a song, "Just Let Me Cry", for the soundtrack to the 2003 movie Freaky Friday. Her first album, Autobiography, was released on July 20, 2004. It debuted at number one in its first week, selling over 398,000 copies, and remained at number one for three of the first four weeks following its release. Her first single from the album, "Pieces of Me", was written about her then-boyfriend, Ryan Cabrera. Her second single is "Shadow", which is about living in the shadow of her sister's accomplishments and finding her own identity.
Simpson and the beginnings of her music career were the subject of a successful reality show on MTV, The Ashlee Simpson Show, which ran in the U.S. for eight weekly episodes from June 16 until August 4, 2004 and helped to establish recognition for her.
Ashlee has a somewhat different, more rock-oriented image than that of her sister. Previously blonde like Jessica, she dyed her hair dark during the recording of the reality show, after she had finished filming for 7th Heaven (although she has said that the change of hair color was not intended to separate herself from Jessica), and her songs have rock elements absent from her sister's music. She also has a tattoo of a star on her wrist, which she got after the release of her album.
Simpson tours with a backing band, which consists of Ray Brady (guitar), Braxton Olita (guitar), Zach Kennedy (bass guitar), and Chris Fox (drums). On September 29, 2004, she announced on her website that the band would be named "Ashlee Simpson and Submission", taking the name from the fact that they had received so many submissions of proposals for the name.
At the 2004 Teen Choice Awards , held on August 8, 2004, Simpson received the "Song of the Summer" award for "Pieces of Me", as well as the "Fresh Face" award. She will have a role in the movie Wannabe, which is due to begin filming in November.
Note
1. Although the minimum age for admission was technically 12, Simpson's father and manager Joe said that he lied about his daughter's age to get her into the school in an October 2004 interview. (The New York Times, "Who Wants to Be a Simpson?", October 3, 2004.)