Date of Birth:October 3, 1984
Place of Birth:Waco, Texasand raised in Richardson
Ashlee Nicole Simpson is an American singer and actress. In 2004, she rose to prominence with the success of her number-one debut album Autobiography and the reality series, The Ashlee Simpson Show. In October 2005, following a North American concert tour and a film appearance, Simpson released her second number-one album, I Am Me. Simpson's third album, Bittersweet World, was released in April 2008.
Early life and Career
Beginnings Simpson was born in Waco, Texasand raised in Richardson, Texas. Ashlee Nicole Simpson is the daughter of Tina Ann (née Drew), a homemaker, and Joe Truett Simpson, a former Baptist youth minister who works as her manager. Ashlee Nicole Simpson attended Prairie Creek Elementary. Ashlee Nicole Simpson has an older sister, Jessica, who is also a singer. Simpson began studying classical ballet when she was three years old, eventually becoming an accomplished dancer. Ashlee Nicole Simpson was admitted to the School of American Ballet in New York City at the age of 11, a year in advance. During that time, Simpson suffered from an eating disorder; the condition lasted for about six months before her parents stepped in and got her the help she needed to overcome the issue, When Jessica landed a record deal, Tina and Joe Simpson made the decision to relocate to Los Angeles, California, where Ashlee began appearing in television commercials.
Film, television and theater Simpson later began appearing in films and television series, including a 2001 episode of the sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, a minor role in the 2002 film The Hot Chick, and a recurring role on the family drama series 7th Heaven. In the summer of 2003, she began a short stint as a VJ for MTV. Ashlee Nicole Simpson occasionally appeared on Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica, a reality show documenting the married life of her sister, Jessica, and her then-husband, Nick Lachey.Simpson had a supporting role as an aspiring actress named Clea in Undiscovered, an independent film which was released in theaters in August 2005. While her performance was met with indifference, the film itself was panned by critics and failed to reach the top 10 in its opening weekend, earning just $676,048 during its theatrical run. Ashlee Nicole Simpson performance in the film earned her a Razzie nomination for Worst Supporting Actress.
Simpson played the role of Roxie Hart in the West End production of Chicago to rave reviews, from September 25 to October 28, 2006. Ashlee Nicole Simpson performance in the show was described as "dazzling and near flawless."
Simpson returned full-time to television episodes by playing the role of Violet Foster in Melrose Place, the CW's revamp of the '90s series of the same name. Ashlee Nicole Simpson was originally signed to the show as a regular, but producers and CW executives decided to write out her character, and she left the show after 13 episodes. Various rumors circulated as to the reason for her sudden departure, with theories including feuds with other cast members, lack of acting ability and financial issues. Ashlee Nicole Simpson departure was generally attributed to the show needing a "face lift" because of the decreasing viewing figures. Simpson stated that she had known all along that her character would leave the show once the murder mystery storyline had concluded. After her departure from Melrose Place, Simpson reprised her role in the Broadway musical production of Chicago. Ashlee Nicole Simpson began her Broadway run on November 30, 2009 and performed in New York for six weeks. Ashlee Nicole Simpson played eight shows a week until February 7, 2010. When her run was completed, she stated that she was going to take a break to spend time with her son before beginning to work on her fourth studio album.Music career
The Simpson sisters in 2010. Simpson started out as a background dancer for her sister, Jessica.Following the success of Jessica Simpson's first album, Ashlee became one of her backup dancers. Simpson recorded a song entitled "Christmas Past, Present and Future" in 2002 for the holiday album School's Out! Christmas, which was later re-released on Radio Disney Jingle Jams in 2004 and 2005. In the summer of 2003, she released a song called "Just Let Me Cry" for the soundtrack to the film Freaky Friday.
Autobiography and lip-synching incidentAfter her appearances on the School's Out! Christmas and Freaky Friday albums, Simpson signed a record deal with Geffen Records. Ashlee Nicole Simpson first album, Autobiography, debuted at number one in the United States in July 2004, with first-week sales of around 398,000 copies. The album was certified triple-platinum by the RIAA in September 2004.Simpson co-wrote all of the album's tracks, describing it as "very true to my emotions", however, critical reviews were mixed. Rolling Stone magazine's Peter Relic characterised the album as a "mundane melange of Avril-ish brat pop and Sheryl Crow cod rock."The single which preceded the album, "Pieces of Me", was one of the biggest hits of the summer in the United States and was certified gold by the RIAA. The follow-up singles, "Shadow" and "La La", were less successful, although the latter became an RIAA-certified gold seller. At the Teen Choice Awards on August 8, 2004, Simpson received the "Song of the Summer" Teen Choice Award for "Pieces of Me", as well as the "Fresh Face" Award. Ashlee Nicole Simpson also won the Billboard Award for New Female Artist of the Year in December, and in the same month, Entertainment Weekly named her one of its Breakout Stars of 2004.
Simpson appeared as a musical guest on the October 23, 2004 episode of Saturday Night Live, where she was scheduled to perform two songs, "Pieces of Me" and "Autobiography". When she began singing "Autobiography", the vocals for "Pieces of Me" were heard again before Simpson had the microphone to her mouth. Ashlee Nicole Simpson began to do an impromptu jig when she realized the embarrassing error, and then left the stage. During the closing of the show, Simpson appeared with the guest host, Jude Law, and said, "I'm so sorry. My band started playing the wrong song, and I didn't know what to do, so I thought I'd do a hoedown." On October 25, Simpson called in to the music video show Total Request Live and explained that due to complications arising from severe acid reflux disease, she had completely lost her voice and been advised not to sing by her doctor. Ashlee Nicole Simpson said that because of the acid reflux, her father wanted her to use a vocal guide track for the performance. During the performance her drummer hit the wrong button, which caused the wrong track to be played. Simpson said of the incident, "I made a complete fool of myself."
On January 4, 2005, Simpson performed "La La" at the halftime show for the 2005 Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. After her performance, many of the 72,000-plus spectators booed. Some viewers noted that Kelly Clarkson had performed in the show earlier to a much more positive reaction, and asserted that Simpson's performance was poor and very off-key. After the Orange Bowl performance, an internet petition was created at PetitionOnline.com, which requested that Simpson stop producing music. It soon became one of the most active of the site's petitions. In regards to the negativity towards her, Simpson said, "That's cool. You don't always have to be a fan of everybody's music", adding that she receives a great amount of support from her fans. Around the time of the petition, Cosmopolitan magazine chose Simpson to be on the cover of the February 2005 issue, naming her the "Fun Fearless Female of the Year". Simpson's first North American tour ran from mid-February to late April 2005. The tour was described as "stripped down" without pyrotechnics. As well as material from Autobiography, Simpson performed her own unreleased song "Hollywood", The Pretenders' "Brass in Pocket", Blondie's "Call Me" and Madonna's "Burning Up".
Simpson began a concert tour in late September in Portland, Oregon and appeared on the October 8, 2005 episode of SNL to promote the album. The first song she performed on the show was "Catch Me When I Fall", a ballad written about her previous SNL experience, and she thanked the crowd after her second performance. In mid-December, Simpson collapsed after performing in Japan, and was briefly hospitalized, consequently cancelling an appearance at the Radio Music Awards. The collapse and her subsequent hospitalization were attributed to exhaustion as a result of her busy work schedule.In March 2006, Simpson won an MTV celebrity surfing invitational competition, which also featured celebrities such as Meagan Good, Jack Osbourne, Ashley Parker Angel and Tony Hawk. On April 12, 2006, she hosted and performed at the MTV Australia Video Music Awards, where she won "Best Female Artist" and "Best Pop Video" for the single "Boyfriend". Ashlee Nicole Simpson began a summer tour on June 5, 2006, with Ashley Parker Angel as the opening act. Simpson said that after the completion of the tour, she would look at film scripts and continue her acting career.
Bittersweet World and fourth albumDuring 2007, Simpson worked on her third studio album, Bittersweet World with producers Timbaland, Kenna, and Chad Hugo. Ashlee Nicole Simpson described the album as being influenced by 1980s music—bearing similarities with I Am Me—while still incorporating elements of rock and pop and described her intention to go on tour to support the album. Geffen Records chairman Ron Fair said in December 2006 that working on Simpson's next album would be "very tricky" because of press scrutiny and "prejudices", but that Geffen would work with her to overcome that, "because she deserves to be heard and she deserves a shot." Bittersweet World was released in the United States on April 22, 2008 to mixed reviews.The album's first single, the Timbaland-produced "Outta My Head (Ay Ya Ya)", was released as a digital download in December 2007, but failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single, "Little Miss Obsessive", was released in March 2008 and performed marginally better, reaching number 96 on the Hot 100. Bittersweet World has sold 126,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
In an interview with Paper magazine, Simpson stated that her fourth album would have a "folk feel".However, on June 23, 2011, Ryan Seacrest confirmed on On Air with Ryan Seacrest that Simpson had been having meetings with record executives along with previous collaborator, John Shanks, to figure out the exact direction of her next album. In October 2011, John Feldmann, who previously worked on two tracks on Autobiography, revealed via Twitter that he was recording with Simpson.Personal Life
Simpson and Pete Wentz in 2008. Ashlee Nicole Simpson gave birth to their son, Bronx Mowgli Wentz later that year.Simpson announced her engagement to Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz on April 9, 2008.Ashlee Nicole Simpson had previously been wearing what she described as a "promise ring" from Wentz for several months. Ashlee Nicole Simpson chose not to confirm or deny reports that she was pregnant, saying that it was something to "keep personal." On May 17, 2008, Simpson and Wentz married at Simpson's parents' residence in Encino, California, where her father officiated the ceremony.
Ashlee Nicole Simpson surname changed from Simpson to Wentz and she was briefly known professionally as Ashlee Simpson-Wentz. On May 28, 2008, Simpson and Wentz confirmed that they were expecting their first child. Simpson gave birth to their son, Bronx Mowgli Wentz, on November 20, 2008. Simpson appeared alongside her husband in the crime drama series CSI: NY in 2009.
On February 9, 2011, it was announced that Simpson had filed for divorce from Pete Wentz, citing irreconcilable differences. In the filing, she requested joint legal custody with visitation for Wentz, but sole physical custody and spousal support. Ashlee Nicole Simpson also asked that her name be restored to her birth name of Ashlee Nicole Simpson. The divorce was finalized on November 22, 2011.
Musical influences and public imageWhen Simpson first broke onto the music scene in 2004, she was set apart from her sister, Jessica's already established image due to a different music style, different fashion choices, and a more assertive personality. Simpson's songs have been characterized by rock elements absent from her sister's music, and, particularly during her early career, Simpson would often wear outfits highlighting a rock or punk-influenced sense of style. Ashlee Nicole Simpson cites her childhood as being the time when she began to sing, and admits that she dreamed of being on Broadway and did not expect to break into the pop music scene. Ashlee Nicole Simpson trains with a vocal coach, and studies Etta James and Aretha Franklin albums for vocal inspiration. Ashlee Nicole Simpson has cited Gwen Stefani, No Doubt, Joan Jett, The Runaways, Madonna, Pat Benatar, Green Day, Alanis Morissette, Fiona Apple, Chrissie Hynde, and Debbie Harry from Blondie as her musical influences.
Simpson had a nose job in April 2006. In the May 2007 issue of Harper's Bazaar, she said that she was not insecure about her appearance and had not been beforehand. Ashlee Nicole Simpson said that plastic surgery was a "personal choice" that one should only decide to do for oneself and not for others. In a September 2007 interview, her father, Joe Simpson said of the surgery: "There was a real problem with her breathing and that was cured". In mid-2006, Simpson gave an interview to Marie Claire magazine, in which she was said to have "had it with Hollywood's twisted view of feminine beauty" and was photographed painting a pro-female mural with a group of underprivileged girls from Los Angeles' Green Dot Public School. By the time the magazine hit newsstands, Simpson had already had her nose job, and some Marie Claire readers complained that this was hypocritical. The magazine received over 1,000 letters of complaint and the magazine's new editor expanded the letters section of the September issue of the magazine to give readers a chance to vent their frustrations.
A collection of tops designed by Simpson was launched by the clothing retailer Wet Seal on April 22 2008, in connection with the release of Bittersweet World. Ashlee Nicole Simpson also began appearing in commercials for Canadian retailer Zellers to promote their independent clothing line, Request, in mid-2008.Simpson appeared on the second episode of The CW's America's Next Top Model, Cycle 17 as a guest judge. Ashlee Nicole Simpson created a fashion line in collaboration with her sister's successful brand. Ashlee Nicole Simpson is the co-creative director of the line, aimed at girls aged 7–16, which is set to be in stores by the end of 2011.
Filmography
2002 The Hot Chick Monique Appearance
2005 Undiscovered Clea Secondary Role
Television
2001 Malcolm in the Middle High School Girl "Reese Cooks" (episode 18, season 2)
2002—2004 7th Heaven Cecilia Smith
2004—2005 The Ashlee Simpson Show Herself Reality show
2009 CSI: NY Lila Wickfield "Point of No Return" (episode 18, season 5)
2009—2010 Melrose Place Violet Foster Season 1, Episodes 1 - 13
2011 America's Next Top Model Herself Season 17, Episode 2
Theater
2006 Chicago Roxie Hart West End
2009 Chicago Roxie Hart Broadway
Ashlee Simpson discography
Autobiography (2004)
I Am Me (2005)
Bittersweet World (2008)
TBA (2012)
Awards and nominationsList of awards and nominations received by Ashlee Simpson.
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