{"id":85337,"date":"2024-01-09T11:51:34","date_gmt":"2024-01-09T10:51:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/?p=85337"},"modified":"2024-01-09T11:51:35","modified_gmt":"2024-01-09T10:51:35","slug":"ashley-best-speaks-to-us-about-his-music-inspirations-and-you-made-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2024\/01\/ashley-best-speaks-to-us-about-his-music-inspirations-and-you-made-me\/","title":{"rendered":"Ashley Best Speaks To Us About His Music, Inspirations, And ‘You Made Me’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Following on from our review of Ashley Best’s new single, ‘You Made Me’, we bring our interview with him.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Who are your biggest music influences? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dwight Yoakam, Buck Owens, Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, Marty Stuart and Keith Whitley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What made you want to become a musician? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember hearing my Grandad\u2019s voice recorded on an old reel-to-reel recorder singing songs while practicing for a show. Even years after he had passed away I was still able to hear his voice. He passed away when I was 4yrs old, but I listened to those recordings well into my teen years. I believe that\u2019s why I wanted to record songs, so long after I\u2019m gone folks will still hear MY voice and MY songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, being a huge Dwight Yoakam fan is what made me want to be a songwriter. I purchased his cassette tapes when I was younger. After reading the inside of the insert, I noticed that he either wrote or co-wrote most of his recordings and that made me want to become a songwriter too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Could you tell us a little about your creative process? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes it’s almost like somebody is speaking to me, telling me what to write. Sometimes it comes riding in on the wind through the trees, or I hear it in the rain as it\u2019s hitting the tin roof, beating a rhythm that speaks the words to me. Other times, actually a lot of times, it comes to me while I’m out in the fields riding on the tractor. When I\u2019m on my tractor EVERYTHING becomes peaceful to my soul. It’s about the harmony of the sounds of the tractor and the machinery I\u2019m using, whether I\u2019m plowing a field or mowing hay, everything in the world seems right at that moment and it lets my soul speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Could you tell us about ‘You Make Me’? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘You Make Me’ was an inspiration derived from the love of my life, my wife Tennille. I\u2019m always searching for a way to express my love for her, for what she means to me. It\u2019s not always easy to find the words but, I feel I managed to bring to life those feelings and what she does to me in this song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which line from ‘You Make Me’ has the most personal meaning to you? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s in the last verse, \u201cDarlin\u2019, you make me want to be a part of you\u2026.\u201d, I believe her face turned 12 shades of red when I sang her that line and the following line…lol. She said, \u201cYou can\u2019t put that in there!\u201d….but I did, with no regrets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What was the experience like working on the ‘You Make Me’ music video?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s\u00a0 something I’ve waited for my whole life, or so it seemed. Zak Neese and I had a good idea of the direction that we wanted this video to go. Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous at all. Doing this video just reassured me even further that I’m on the path that I was destined for\u2026.To not only be a Singer\/Songwriter, but also to be an entertainer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What advice would you give to a struggling artist? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oh boy, that\u2019s a tough one because I\u2019m not so sure that I’m not STILL in this category myself…lol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I guess my first piece of advice would be this, \u201d You get out what you put in\u201d. In other words, nobody is going to hand it to you so put in the hard work. The music business takes a lot of work, dedication and commitment, especially when putting together and working with a band.  Secondly, there\u2019s the \u201cthick skin\u201d that you must grow…the thicker the better. The \u201cthick skin\u201d is absolutely necessary to have for all the harsh criticism you get at times. You can\u2019t survive the music scene without it. Last but not least, I\u2019m going to give the same advice to y\u2019all that Jack Ingram gave to me. He said, \u201cKeep on, Keepin on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What can we expect next from you? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, we\u2019re undecided if we\u2019re going to release one last song from the Album, ‘Something’, along with a video OR jump right into releasing a single that we\u2019ve recorded for our next project. On the next project, I had the great privilege to co-write & record a song with 3x Grammy Producer, Lonnie Park. Either way we decide to go, it’s going to be good. I\u2019m very excited for the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out the gorgeous music video for ‘You Make Me’ below, and find out more about Ashley Best and his music online on his official website<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, and TikTok<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

\"Ashley