Biography:

A Homecoming for the Soul: 2013 CD COMING HOME from Ashley Harris

Often, an artist will follow a musical path laid out by a faint voice heard somewhere deep down inside their heart. Such can be said about singer songwriter Ashley Harris.
Ashley’s career as an artist reads like a spiritual journey, one with twists and turns on a road her heart has led her to follow. And along that road she has penned powerful songs that cross musical boundaries and touch all walks of life with songs born from life events and a heart firmly holding onto the wheel.

Ashley first spread her wings as a singer songwriter with Change My Heart, in 2001. 2005’s The Best Is Yet to Come showed her undeniable growth as an artist and cemented her spiritual direction as a songwriter. With the release of Winter Wonderland, her 2008 Christmas EP, her beautiful voice had seasoned as her confidence and her talents began to match her God-given gifts. 2009 marked a true evolution in Ashley’s artistic metamorphosis with the release of her first Country Music project – Unfinished Dreams.

Unfinished Dreams drew high acclaim, with Music News Nashville saying, "It has been a while since (we’ve) heard a female vocalist who is this ready for the limelight....regardless of how good you sound you've got to have the songs, and Ashley Harris has them - in great abundance.” The single Unfinished Woman reached #1 on the Indi World Country charts for Top Independent Country Artists Worldwide.

Ashley’s love of performing live has also led her to an unexpected, yet completely natural path. In 2011, Ashley purchased the Ragamuffin Music Hall—the live music venue where she and her husband Greg Gronholm actually met—and have transformed it into an intimate listening room for local Atlanta and visiting artists.
If Ashley’s heart has steered her to this moment in her career — on her new CD project, Coming Home — she is letting her soul take the wheel. And her soul is leading her on a full-circle return to her deep Gospel roots. Raised on Gospel music, and performing with her family from an early age, Ashley has always felt at home immersed in the sacred hymns that anchor her faith. With Coming Home the unmistakable spiritual side of her writing has once again taken center stage.

Coming Home offers a seamless mix of Ashley’s favorite hymns and her most personal original songs. Touching on themes from love and mercy to reconciliation and forgiveness, each song on Coming Home takes the listener on an exploration leading to an artist’s triumphant homecoming. Ashley doesn’t just sing these songs – they pour out of her as if she were called to release them into the world at this perfect place and time. And, as if her listeners were meant to experience them in order to create a personal connection to Ashley and, in essence, to their own journeys of faith and hope.

As often happens when an artist returns to their musical roots, Coming Home show cases the many experiences and gifts Ashley has gained while on her journey back home. The production on this new project again draws strongly on her love of Country Music, while stretching her artistic legs with new challenges. The tracks on Coming Home have a distinctly Americana/Bluegrass feel, with beautiful acoustic instrumentation backing Ashley’s rich and soulful vocal delivery.

Old and new fans alike who listen to Coming Home will no doubt sense the conviction that Ashley brings to her music. Ashley has always proudly worn her heart on her sleeve as an artist. That much has not changed with Coming Home but listeners may hear just a bit of her soul gracing their ears as well.

2009 Release of CD UNFINISHED DREAMS received 5 stars from Music News Nashville and Maverik Magaizine in the UK. "UNFINISHED WOMAN" climbed to #1 on the World Indie Record Report in 2010!

MUSIC NEWS NASHVILLE REVIEW OF CD UNFINISHED DREAMS 2009
A southern woman by way of California, Ashley Harris is a rare breed. She’s an artist who could very well
take this disc---the one I’m writing about right now, offer it to a major label---and go ahead and make a
down payment on a home in one of Nashville’s more upscale neighborhoods. It has been a while since I
have heard a female vocalist who is this ready for the limelight.
In fact, Harris could also just about name whatever format she wanted to work with. There’s some nice
pop undertones, but she also has quite a bit of Country spirit. At the other end of the spectrum, I could
see her launching a nice career in Christian Music, a la a woman whose influence you can hear all over
this project----Amy Grant.
At the end of the day, regardless of how good you sound….You’ve gotta have the songs, and Ashley
Harris has them—in great abundance. Having written eight of the ten cuts here, some of the best cuts
include the bouncy “Alright,” or the dreamy “I Want To Believe.” Her Grant overtones shine through the
most on “Better Than The Dream” and the evocative “How Do You Walk Away.” Actually, no matter which
cut you are talking about….Ashley Harris sparkles throughout….making this one a treat from start to
finish! Remember the name…..and I want a seat up front on the bandwagon!

Ashley is the owner of Ragamuffin Music Hall in Roswell, GA. To hear her music visit www.AshleyHarris.com. See Ashley live at Ragamuffin Music Hall www.RagamuffinMusic.com.