As autumn winds blow and the lunchtime streets are filled with teenagers breaking out of school and escaping the healthy canteen meals (thanks, Jamie Oliver), the chip shops and pasty vendors are doing a great trade. I walk on by and, with my headphones on, drift off to Nashville today for some country stories and sounds.
This feature is a meet-up with Ash Taylor. I’ll supply a little background press before turning to an interview with the artist, followed by a review of a few of her tracks for your listening enjoyment.
Bio:
They say she’s a “Bad Ash” (her fans are known as “Bad Ashes!”).
Ash Taylor is a country music recording artist and award-winning songwriter whose music is rooted in grit, heart, and lived experience. Originally from Bakersfield, California—the birthplace of the legendary Bakersfield Sound—Ash carries that raw, unapologetic edge into everything she does. Inspired by trailblazers like Buck Owens, Loretta Lynn, Brandy Clark, and Gretchen Wilson, she blends classic country soul with a modern, hard-earned perspective. With an unshakable belief in her calling, Ash sold everything she owned and moved to Nashville, Tennessee, determined to build a career on her own terms.
Her journey has been anything but easy. From sleeping in her car to playing honky-tonks on Lower Broadway, Ash worked relentlessly to carve out her place in country music. That determination has led her to stages across the country, performances at iconic venues like The Bluebird Café, and opportunities to share the stage with artists including William Michael Morgan, Aaron Tippin, Elvie Shane, Allie Walker, and more. Her debut EP, Bakersfield, climbed to #60 on the iTunes Top 100 Country Albums chart and earned recognition from the Bakersfield Country Music Awards. As a songwriter, Ash has also written for artists such as Big Smo, Ryan Larkins, Noah Smith, and guitar legend Johnny Hiland.
Beyond her own music, Ash is deeply committed to storytelling with purpose. She hosts the ASH-PHALT podcast, sharing honest conversations and stories from the road, serves as an ambassador for 22 Zero, and partners with veterans to help tell their stories through song. Ash also mentors and teaches songwriting through workshops and masterclasses, helping the next generation of writers find their voice.
Our Interview:
Let’s talk about ‘Family’ — am I right in thinking this has existed in a wider form for a while? I came across an acoustic version on YouTube. Have you been developing the sound of the piece live for a while, and does it come from personal memories or general observations lyrically?
Ash: I wrote ‘Family’ several years ago after an argument with my younger brother. I eventually shared an acoustic version and started playing it live, and the response was incredible. So many people connected with the song and began asking when I was going to record and release it properly, so going into the studio and creating a full-band version felt like the natural next step.
The song has been part of my story for a while, but in so many ways, it still feels brand new. It continues to reach people and take on a life of its own, which is one of my favorite things about being a songwriter. You write something from one very specific moment in your own life, and somehow, years later, people are still finding pieces of their own stories in it. I absolutely love that.
Going back to ‘Bakersfield’ (2019), the EP — I played it through and ‘Watchin’ It Burn’ jumped out at me. A duet too! Quite a sensual song, with a kind of late-night bedroom vibe. Looking back at that song in particular and the EP more generally, given the passage of time, do you see that track as a close cousin to the music you do now or a more distant memory?
Ash: I would definitely call it a close cousin! ‘Watchin’ It Burn’ may be a little sultrier than some of what I’m doing now, but the heart of it is still very much me.
When I listen back to the Bakersfield EP, I can hear an artist who was still figuring out exactly who she was and how she wanted to tell her stories. I’ve grown a lot since then, both personally and creatively, and I think I’m much more confident in my voice now. But I’m still drawn to the same things: honest lyrics, memorable melodies, a little grit and songs that make you feel something. I don’t look at that music as a distant memory at all. It’s an important part of the road that brought me here.
Here in the UK, country music is many-headed. A lot of artists — Fangslinger, for instance — are taking country and blending rock or pop into the mix. I see your music standing in older folk traditions; feel free to disagree! For me, your new single is very much a folk song as much as a country track. What do you think?
Ash: I can absolutely hear that, and I take it as a compliment. I’ve always believed the story should come first. I grew up in Bakersfield, California, so traditional country music and the Bakersfield Sound are naturally woven into who I am. But country, folk, Americana and even rock have always borrowed from one another.
I’m not terribly interested in chasing whatever sound happens to be popular at the moment. I want to make music that feels honest and timeless — music that could still mean something with nothing more than a voice and an acoustic guitar. If someone hears ‘Family’ as both a country song and a folk song, I’m perfectly happy living in that space.
I notice you teach songwriting. We are actually getting submissions from agents asking us to review AI-generated music at the moment, although we have never reviewed one. What is your position on the role of AI in modern music?
Ash: I think AI can be an incredibly useful tool, but I don’t believe it should ever replace the human being behind the music. I use technology in my own life and business, and I think it can be genuinely helpful with things like organization, research, brainstorming and all the behind-the-scenes work that comes with being an independent artist. But asking AI to help you organize your thoughts is very different from asking it to manufacture your identity or your art. The songs that stay with us are usually the ones that came from somebody living through something real and having the courage to tell the truth about it. AI can imitate patterns, but it hasn’t had its heart broken, lost someone it loved, packed up its life or chased a dream when everyone thought it was crazy.
To me, technology should support creativity — not replace the soul, perspective and lived experience that make music matter.
Are your musical aspirations the same now as they were when you set out to be a performer? How are you setting goals for releases at this stage?
Ash: Yes and no. The dream is still there, and if anything, it’s probably bigger than it was when I started. But my definition of success has changed.
When you’re first starting out, it’s easy to believe there’s going to be one magical moment when somebody discovers you and suddenly everything changes. I’ve learned that a real career is usually built one song, one show, one listener and one opportunity at a time. It isn’t always glamorous, but it means a whole lot more when you know what it took to build it.
At this stage, I’m much more intentional about what I release. I don’t want to put music out simply because the internet says artists have to feed the algorithm every five minutes. I want every song to have a reason, a story and a real plan behind it. I’m continuing to release new music while working toward a larger project, and my goal is to keep building a career that is creatively fulfilling, sustainable and true to who I am.
Do you have a hidden talent that fans might be surprised to discover? It could be anything — from juggling to baking the perfect cake!
Ash: I don’t know if it counts as a hidden talent, but I’m much more of a business and branding nerd than people probably expect! I love web design, social media strategy and helping artists or entrepreneurs figure out how to communicate who they are.
I think it all comes back to storytelling for me. Whether I’m writing a song, hosting a podcast, designing a website or building a campaign, I love taking a million scattered ideas and turning them into something people can understand and connect with. Basically, I’m creative — but I also really love a good plan!
It’s a freezing winter’s night in Alaska and the tour bus has broken down miles from anywhere. Luckily, you stumble across what appears to be an abandoned house. There’s a roaring fire, a table full of food and the electricity still works. While you wait for morning, you can choose only one book and one film to keep you company. What are you picking?
Ash: For the book, I’m choosing my Bible, and for the film, I’m choosing Miss Congeniality. Although, if I’m stranded in an abandoned house in Alaska, I’m probably going to spend more time investigating why the fire is already lit and the table is covered in food than enjoying either one. That sounds less like a relaxing evening and more like the beginning of a horror movie!
My Review
‘Family’ — “Don’t mind the dirt on the welcome mat…” This single tells the story of family. We don’t always see things the same way and doors can slam, but at the end of the day, we are still family and share the same last name. Any of us who have lived will have quarrelled with those close to us, and this song connects because we have all been there — I recognised it!
It is an uplifting song, with an easy rhythm and country groove. The guitars are from a relaxed summer’s evening on the lawn, and the doors may be slamming in the lyrics, but I happily smiled listening.
‘Watchin’ It Burn’ comes from the 2019 EP Bakersfield, so it is an old track I am revisiting for this review section. I liked it, finding it one of her strongest numbers. It is more rock-edged country, a sensual track with late-night bedroom vibes. The duet adds an extra spice to the mix as well, and it has this cool, heavy drum sound. It is a song well worth a listen — the guitar break burns too!
‘This Town Built Me’ (2025) is a romantic country track, but it is a romance with a town and the memories it has supplied in life. “Every part of this place is a part of me” — I see this song as more intimate; it has a feeling for the story and almost a campfire vibe. It left me wanting to sit down and hear an acoustic version.
‘Stuck on Indiana’ is a song of place and time. It finds Ash in her lane; she is an artist who imbibes memory, place and people into her music. In doing so, she reminds me a bit of Scotland’s Robyn Red — both are country artists who really are part of their land.
It is a song that you lie back to with a drink, or one that would play out at a festival with the crowd swaying along. Neat!
Ash Taylor seems to be an artist who knows where she has come from, but isn’t particularly interested in standing still. There is Bakersfield in the DNA, Nashville in the ambition and plenty of lived experience between the two. What struck me most across these tracks is that sense of place — towns, people, memories and relationships all finding their way into the songs. Whether Ash is singing about family, a place that shaped her or the road she has travelled, there is always a story at the heart of it. And for me, that is where the appeal lies: underneath the country guitars and easy grooves, there is a songwriter who has something to say — and plenty more road ahead on which to say it.
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Artist website here
Stream Music from Ash Taylor here
By Lorraine Foley
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