Interview: Ashley Gearing is Taking on Valentines Day With Her “Love Can Go To Hell” Campaign

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With a new EP, the chance to finally pursue her career of being a singer songwriter full time and a “Love Can Go To Hell” Valentine’s Day campaign, Ashley Gearing is extremely busy these days. She told us in an exclusive interview how she loves when she is busy and is so thrilled that the fans have really loved her anti-Valentine’s Day direction.

Although she is only 24 years old, Gearing is already well versed in music industry. At just ten years old, she was discovered by Jimmy Harnen, now the president of Republic Nashville, who visited her hometown of Springfield, Massachusetts promoting another artist. “I had just made a demo CD singing Leann Womack and Patsy Cline songs. I loved country music because my mother was originally from Georgia,” she tells us. “Jimmy brought my little demo CD back to Nashville with him and found a producer who wanted to work with me.” Harnen had written a song in the parking lot of the hospital where his father had just died, and knew that Gearing’s father had also died when she was a baby. He felt having an innocent twelve year old sing this song would really make a powerful impact on anyone who had lost a loved one. “He played it for the local radio stations there in Nashville and they wanted me to sing live on the air,” she says. “He made a joke, ‘Here’s Ashley Gearing, she is twelve years old, who wants to sign her, first caller in?’ And just like that I was in touch with several record companies by the end of that day.”

Gearing signed with Lyric Street, the Disney country label. Living sort of a double life and becoming a real life Hannah  Montana, she decided to remain in Massachusetts and experience a normal childhood while flying back and forth to Nashville to record music and pursue her career. When she turned sixteen she signed a record label with Curb Records ,who were extremely supportive of her choice not to move to Nashville until she turned eighteen. “I applied to Belmont University – I figured I’m going to move here, I might as well make music and continue school. Went to Belmont and graduated 2 years ago and decided to start making new music. It’s been difficult because I really wanted to obviously jump into the music industry so much but I know myself and I know I wanted to experience everything as I grew up.”

Gearing acknowledges that if she had given up her life in Massachusetts and pursued a full time music career when she was younger, she may be much farther in the industry at this point. “I feel as a person I am more fulfilled and more well rounded because I have friends that are outside of the music industry but also friends that are in the music industry. I have a different life and I feel very blessed to have a company that has stuck with me for so long,” she says. “I have been with Curb Records for 8 years.”

Finally ready to focus all of her energy on her music, she spends her days writing or in the studio recording new songs. Her latest self titled EP was released in September of last year, comprising six tracks about growing up and being a powerful young woman. “We wanted to release songs that spoke to who I am as a twenty-four year old now. I wanted to create music to empower women and have them realize whatever they are going through, they are strong,” Gearing says of her EP.

Ashley

Like so many women and men experiencing negative feelings about the lovey-dovey month of February, Gearing decided to give them a fun, comedic way to deal with the mushiness of Valentine’s Day with her “Love Can Go to Hell” Campaign. “There are so many people who love hasn’t treated them right, it’s not about a particular person, it’s about hating on love and realizing that love can be super wonderful, delightful, and movie-like but it can also bring you to a pretty low spot,” she explains. “We started this campaign where people can send black roses to their exes and there’s a sweepstakes to win a $500 Visa Gift card so you can throw yourself a Valentine’s Day party of your dreams! It is just a fun way to promote the new song.”

The song, co-written by Brandy Clark and Scott Stepakoff, is not a breakup song with a particular person, but rather breaks up with the emotion of love. Personifying love, the lyrics are filled with dreamlike imagery of what life was like before love screwed you over. “Love can go to hell / like roses in a vase of whiskey / dying for the way you used to kiss me / heaven knows I only wish you well / oh but love, yeah love can go to hell.” 

“The title is so striking at first but then you listen to the song and it’s a lot different from what you would expect from the title,” Gearing explains. “For me the song is the epitome of country music because it speaks to honesty and truthfulness and a little bit of pain but also a little bit of optimism.”

Gearing shared her plans for the upcoming year. “I would really love to do shows on the road,” she says. “I have been in school and then in the studio creating music or writing songs and it is awesome but I am ready to get out and share the music with the fans and just be on stage because that’s my first love and that’s how I got into this whole thing, so I am hoping to book a lot of shows.”

We look forward to seeing what this sassy young lady has in store for the country music industry.

Be sure to send black roses to your ex on Lovecangotohell.com and follow Gearing on Twitter and Instagram and check out her EP below.

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