Singer/Songwriter Ashley Myles always had a passion and love for Broadway. She grew up in Long Island, NY soaking up all that theatre energy and landed her first professional role at 11 years old.

Now Myles is making the switch from actress to singer/songwriter with her debut EP Tides.She worked with Rob Kleiner (Kylie Minogue) who co-wrote and produced the project.

LOOP sat down with Myles to discuss the leap from Broadway to musician, Tides and much more.

Hi Ashley! Congrats on the release of your DEBUT EP! How exciting! To kick things off, introduce yourself.

Hello! I’m Ashley Myles, and I’m very excited to be featured in LOOP Magazine and talk about my debut EP Tides. I guess the first thing that people should know about me is that I was born and raised in New York. Growing up in New York allowed me to experience many genres of live music and provided an immersive education in the arts.  I’ve studied voice and performance for most of my life and more recently transitioned to writing and recording my own music.

What made you want to take the leap from actress/performer to musician?

While I loved performing as an actor and in musical theatre, I felt that writing and performing my own songs was more creatively fulfilling.  Each song is personal to me, but also allows me to connect with others and see how they relate to the lyrics.

What was the process like for creating the Tides EP? I know Rob Kleiner co-wrote and produced for you. What was it like working with him?

I loved creating this album.  Rob and I have been working together for many years and definitely have a great creative partnership.  Each step is a true collaboration.  We wrote the title track years ago and it always stuck with me as a really strong song.  The others were written more recently, but all connected with this common thread of forces of nature and relationships.  Rob is a fantastic writer and a really creative producer.  He definitely brings out the best in each of the songs with the production.

How did you come up with the title for the EP?

I went back and forth on the title for a while.  Being my debut album, at first I considered a self title.  I was throwing around ideas with Rob in the studio and ultimately we both felt that “Tides” was more intriguing and descriptive of the work.

What’s your process for writing lyrics?

Writing is my favourite part of creating music.  Lyrics come to me all day, every day”…the trick is finding one that ignites that spark to turn them into an entire song.  Sometimes it is just one word.  In the instance of the song “Bricks,” Rob came out with that word as something to build upon, and from that somewhat uncommon word in songwriting, a beautiful ballad was born.

What’s one of your favorite lyrics off the EP and why?

There are so many great lines, but one that I love is from the bridge in “Tides.”  “Gonna name this storm after you, after you, cause there’s a before and after you, after you.” It speaks to the fact that just like any hurricane or wildfire, we can name something or some relationship in our life and try our best to move on from it.  We existed before it, and we’ll exist after.

For those who want to make a similar transition like you did from acting to music, what advice would you give?

Well, I would definitely find people to work with that support you creatively and that you vibe with.  Finding the right team is so important.  Art is rarely created solo.  It takes a village, so to speak.

What’s your life’s mantra at the moment?

It’s cliche, but I guess “Feel the fear and do it anyway!”

What do you hope listeners take away from listening to the EP?

I hope the listeners connect with the music and the message of my songs.  I hope it evokes strong feelings and leaves them with something more than just a catchy tune.  Though I also want them to think they’re catchy!

What’s next for you? Anything exciting in the pipeline? Anything you want to accomplish by the end of 2022?

I’m going to start working on a new album pretty soon after I release “Tides.”  It has been a really creative time for me and releasing this music has really motivated me to keep pushing forward and putting my songs out there.