Ashley Lauren Monroe (born September 10, 1986) is an American country music singer-songwriter.
Monroe has released two solo singles, "Satisfied" and "I Don't Want To" (which featured Brooks & Dunn singer Ronnie Dunn), that reached the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart at No. 43 and No. 37. Both singles were from her debut album, Satisfied, that was intended for a 2007 release but was pushed back. Monroe left Columbia Records' roster in late 2007 and Satisfied was finally released on May 19, 2009, under Sony Music. In June 2011, Monroe, Miranda Lambert and Angaleena Presley formed a band called Pistol Annies.
Monroe's second studio album, Like a Rose, was released on March 5, 2013, followed by her third album, The Blade, released on July 24, 2015. Her fourth studio album, Sparrow, was released on April 20, 2018.
Ashley Lauren Monroe was born on September 10, 1986, in Knoxville, Tennessee. to Larry and Kellye Monroe (née Dalton). She has one older brother, Chad.
At age 11, she won a talent contest in Pigeon Forge where she sang "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart", and found steady work at a local theater. Her parents played songs by the Eagles and Lynyrd Skynyrd. After her father died from cancer when she was 13, Monroe started to write songs to help her deal with the loss, several of which appear on her fourth album, Sparrow. A few years later, she began to perform in small clubs in Nashville.
2007–2009: Beginnings and record label deal
After a year in Nashville, she gained a publishing deal as a songwriter, which then led to her signing to a record contract with Sony Records under John Grady, where she began to record her debut album, Satisfied. In 2006, the title track to the album was released as the first single to country radio. It failed to make the top 40 on the Hot Country Songs chart, however, a second single was released shortly after. "I Don't Want To" was released as the second single, which featured Ronnie Dunn of Brooks & Dunn. It initially did well on the charts, charting at No. 37.
Still after two singles, the album hadn't been released. The label then decided not to release the album until Monroe charted a top 20 single. But, no follow-up singles were ever released. iTunes briefly had the album available in July 2006 but it was removed from the online store by mid-August.
In late 2007, Monroe and Columbia Records parted ways, and Satisfied went without being released. In addition to her own material, she co-wrote Katrina Elam's 2007 single "Flat on the Floor" (which was also recorded by Carrie Underwood on her 2007 album Carnival Ride), as well as Jason Aldean's 2009 single, "The Truth", and Miranda Lambert's 2011 single, "Heart Like Mine."
In April 2009, it was announced on Monroe's MySpace page that Satisfied would be released to digital retailers (iTunes, Rhapsody, etc.) on May 19, 2009. The single "I Don't Want To" was not included.
In early 2012 Amazon.com and Spotify began streaming and selling an MP3 track called "Promised Land" that was originally recorded for, but left off of, the "Satisfied" album and now is listed as a Bonus Track.
2009: Singles and Ashley Monroe EP
In late 2009 Monroe posted on her MySpace page that she was independently releasing a new self-titled EP. It would only be sold at the live shows. While she was touring with the Ten out of Tenn artists she realized she had nothing to sell to the fans who loved her sets and she wanted to give them something. This EP contains the tracks "Has Anybody Ever Told You", "Angeline", "Drink for Two", "And You" along with Trent Dabbs collaboration "Everything I Wanted".
2013–2015: Career breakthrough with Like a Rose and The Blade
Ashley Monroe received a record deal with Warner Bros. Nashville and released her second studio album, Like a Rose on March 5, 2013. The album, produced by Vince Gill, was met with widespread critical acclaim. It features nine tracks co-written by the singer, one of which is a collaboration with Blake Shelton. "Like a Rose" (the title track) was released to radio as the album's first single on March 4, 2013.
"Like A Rose" debuted at No. 86 at the European Top-100 Country Music Chart in late April 2013, as well as the duet with Blake Shelton "You Ain't Dolly (And You Ain't Porter)", which debuted at No. 73 and was the most played country music song in Europe according to the European CMA.
On July 24, 2015, Monroe released her third studio album, The Blade, to critical acclaim. The album, which included collaborations with Miranda Lambert, Vince Gill and Alison Krauss, earned her first Grammy Award nomination for Best Country Album.
2016–2021: Live album, Sparrow, Rosegold, and break from music