Ashlee Simpson Biography

Ashlee Nicole Simpson was born to Tina Ann and John Truett Simpson in Waco, Texas. Her older sister, Jessica Simpson, is also an established actress and singer.

When she was three years old, she began learning ballet. She was later accepted into the prestigious ‘School of American Ballet’ at the age of 11.

She studied at Prairie Creek Elementary and Richardson North Junior High. In her teenage years, she suffered from a chronic eating disorder.

The family relocated to Los Angeles, California in 1999, so that her sister Jessica could focus on a singing career. It was during this time that Ashlee was cast in her first television commercials.

At this time, her sister’s career was taking off. Ashlee would occasionally join her sister on stage as a backup dancer, where she got noticed.

In 2001, she made a minor appearance in the television series, ‘Malcolm in the Middle’. The next year, she appeared in the Warner Bros family drama, ‘7th Heaven’, where she stayed for two seasons. A few months later, she was cast in ‘The Hot Chick’, alongside Rachel McAdams.

She released her first single, ‘Just Let Me Cry’ for the 2003 Lindsay Lohan movie, ‘Freaky Friday’. Her track catapulted her to fame and earned her a record deal with ‘Geffen Records’.

In 2004, she released her debut studio album, ‘Autobiography’, which became her first hit album and was featured on the Billboard 200. The album became an instant hit. The same year, she made a brief appearance on ‘Newlyweds’, her sister’s reality show.

From 2004 to 2005, she also had her very own reality television series, ‘The Ashlee Simpson Show’, which went on to garner rave reviews from American audiences.

She went on her first North-American tour in 2005. Her second studio album, ‘I Am Me’ also released the same year, debuted at the number one spot at the time of its release. The next year, she was cast as ‘Roxie Hart’ in the production of ‘Chicago’.

In 2007, she recorded her third studio album, ‘Bittersweet World’ along with producers Timbaland, Kenna, and Chad Hugo. Unlike her first two albums, the album received mixed reviews.

In 2009, she returned to television with the series ‘Melrose Place’, where she played the role of ‘Violet Foster’. She appeared in twelve episodes of the series and then reprised her role in the Broadway production ‘Chicago’.

From 2011 to 2013, she appeared in ‘America’s Next Top Model’ and the crime-comedy film, ‘Pawn Shop Chronicles’.

In 2014, she voiced ‘Strelka’ in the Russian animated adventure comedy film ‘Space Dogs’ directed by Inna Evlannikova, Svyatoslav Ushakov, and Vadim Sotskov. The film received a lukewarm response from critics and holds a 14% approval score on Rotten Tomatoes.

In 2018, she became a part of the reality television series ‘Ashlee + Evan.’ The 6-episode-long series focused on the lives of Ashlee and her husband Evan Ross as these famous personalities try to balance parenthood along with their families’ legacies. The following year, she made an appearance on the musical reality series ‘Drop the Mic.’ In 2020, she appeared as a judge on the American dating reality television series ‘The Bachelor Presents: Listen to Your Heart.’

Her debut album, ‘Autobiography’ sold more than 5 million copies worldwide and was certified a triple platinum album by the RIAA in the US. Three singles from the album; ‘Shadow’, ‘La La’ and ‘Pieces of Me’ charted all major US countdowns including the Billboard 200. At the time of its release, it was considered the ‘biggest debut album by a female artist’.

She won the Billboard Music Award for ‘Best New Female Artist of the Year’ in 2004.

She won a Teen Choice Award for ‘Choice Fresh Face’, in 2004.

In 2005, she won the MTV Asia Award for ‘Favorite Breakthrough Artist’.

In 2006, she won the BMI Award for her song ‘Pieces of Me’.

She won an MVPA Award for the single, ‘Outta My Head (Ay Ya Ya)’ for the category of ‘Best Art Direction’, in 2008.

In 2006, she dated Pete Wentz, and two years later, she was spotted wearing a diamond ring. The duo were then married two years later, immediately after which, she confirmed her pregnancy. She has a son, Bronx Mowgli Wentz.

She divorced Wentz in 2011, following which she got into a relationship with Vincent Piazza. She called off the relationship with him a year later. She married Evan Ross in 2014 and the couple has 2 children; a daughter named Jagger and a son named Ziggy.