Meet Ashley Worhol | Musician | Composer | Artist | Actress | Author

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ashley Worhol and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ashley, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The most important factor behind both my success as a business owner and our band, Worhol, is that I/We are authentically ourselves. In the film industry, music industry and art industry combined I have always been faced with seeing other people’s success and I’ll be honest, years ago I use to envy the careers of others and wondered why circumstances were succeeding for others but not for me. I did a lot of soul searching and came to the realization that my path is specifically my own journey. As an artist I allow myself to be vulnerable, showing all sides of myself in hopes my story can inspire others to live out their dreams. The beauty about our life, is that we are so unique. Each of our stories will never be the same and thank God they are not. No one will ever know what someone else is going through or what it may have taken them in order for that success to be reached. That once feeling of envy turned into an applause as now I am front row and center cheering on anyone who finds success in their life.

For my business, Testament Designs, being authentically myself is providing a safe space for all those who come to view my work. I have such love and understanding for both nature and humans. I have always longed for human connection and have always wanted to be the reason someone walks away with a smile on their face. Sometimes the simple act of showing kindness can impact someone’s life more than you will ever know. I am fortunate enough that I have the experience of meeting incredible people at all the vendor shows I showcase my art at. When someone sees my space for the first time they will find themselves looking at what seems to be a mini museum. Immediately, their nose will be mesmerized as they will be surrounded with enchanting aromas coming from my own personal soy candle collection that I hand pour and hand create every scent. Their eyes will then be fixated on my gallery pieces that consist of ‘Abstract Acrylic Paintings’ (Andy Warhol is my distant cousin), and then their heart will be full of joy as they view my ‘Nature Terrariums’. Ironically, I started making nature pieces because I wanted to showcase the beauty of Earth but with no maintenance! For some reason, I’ve never been great at keeping plants alive inside my home but have a feeling it may have to do with my sneaky cat Stella (ha)! I specialize in “Nature Art”, showcasing the beauty of life after death with real specimens such as butterflies. Monarchs have always been a sign that God is with me. Years ago, I was at a point in my life where I was learning what self-worth and self-love really meant and I was praying for guidance and a sign and immediately a Monarch flew and landed on my nose. Every since then, I will see Monarchs and butterflies of all kinds almost daily. I knew I wanted to work directly with them to help their population so I started raising them! I have a small sanctuary for them and take care of them from their beginning stages as an egg all the way up to releasing them once they hatch from their chrysalis. I have to say it is the most rewarding experience! Once they live out their lifespan, I’ll find them on my property after they have naturally passed and then I will preserve them and showcase them in my art to remind people the beauty of life after death.

For our band, Worhol, being authentically ourselves is of the upmost importance! Our group dynamic is quite unique because not only am I in a band with my better half, but I also share the stage with my father! I am the lead vocalist/pianist/co-composer; my father Larry Worhol is the guitarist/co-composer; and my better half Craig Malinowski is the bassist/graphic artist. Our sound is best described as ‘Symphonic Rock’ with full orchestration and our stage show is full of eye appeal! We have a very specific wardrobe style that blends in perfectly with our stage props that accent our music. Both our musicality and stage show are theatrical. I absolutely love interacting with the audience. There’s nothing better than to reach down into the crowd and hold someone’s hand and sing to them as they are singing your own lyrics right back at you. Music is a way to escape, a way to come together as complete strangers and just live in the moment. Everyone feeling safe enough to just be their true self. Both my father and myself have our degrees in music and when we first started this group we knew individuals in the industry would try and change our sound but we believed in who we were and believed we had to be ourselves throughout our entire journey. In our earlier years when my father and I just started the group, we were offered a million dollar contract but the record label at the time wanted to change who we were. At that point I was young and saw stars in my eyes and I am so fortunate and grateful that I had my dad alongside me to help me understand the importance of staying true to who you are. We made the decision to believe in the sound we created and rightfully declined that offer. Still to this day I don’t think twice or wonder what could have been. I know we made the right choice that day and the success we have found while following who we truly are, is priceless.

For my success as a film composer, being authentically myself has brought opportunities where more and more doors keep opening. Over my years of experience, being a light, a positive person has truly aided to my success. When working on sets it can be a high volume of intensity because there is so much that has to be done. I bring forward a different perspective because not only have I been behind the camera but also in front of it. I have worked first hand with amazing directors on our own Worhol projects but also on theirs as well. When you surround yourself with such creative minds and artistry in all forms you really do become a family. You believe in them just as much as they believe in you. Being able to work with a director and compose music that brings their vision to a whole other level is absolutely rewarding! When it comes to scoring, I specialize in ‘horror’; ‘cinematic’ and ‘fantasy’ but have composed all styles of music. Each composition tells a unique story and based on the sounds, instruments I compose brings that story to life! Not only am I a composer, but my father also is. One of the proudest projects I have ever worked on was a story that my father wrote that we filmed with M5 Entertainment and he composed his own version of “Amazing Grace” and we both acted in it! If you have time, I highly recommend watching this beautiful story. You can watch this short film on YouTube under our Worhol channel. We actually won over 20 awards on this short film and two of those awards were, “Best Score” and “Best Acting-Duo”. This film also ended up in a “World Book of Short Films”.

So, the most important factor? Never be afraid to be you. You are unique in every-way and your personal journey is meant to be exactly yours. Success can be impacting thousands of lives but also impacting just one. Success also doesn’t mean what material items you can afford, true wealth comes in the form of happiness. Go out there and use your voice. Remember this, in a room full of noise, be a voice that echoes.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
What sets me apart from others? Nothing. And that is the most beautiful answer I can give you. No two people can ever be compared. I believe we are all chasing our dreams and even though some of those dreams are in similar fields our uniqueness alone will showcase. I’ve known for a long time my purpose in life is to shine light where darkness falls. I’ve known ever since I was a child that music is where I would end up. My parents have photos of me as a baby sitting at the piano and what’s funny is, the notes my fingers were on in those photos ended up being some of my favorite notes as an adult to write music chords off of! I know for myself, I have always had an inner knowning of where I would be in life and was it easy? Absolutely not. For the band, we have horror stories like every band does. The saying blood, sweat and tears would be an understatement. Looking in the past and some of the situations we faced I can now say with a smile, sometimes rejection is protection. With every lesson we were faced it has made us stronger and more focused than ever. One of the hardest lessons I had to learn and learn quickly is that not everything is meant to be on “my time”. Sometimes patience can lead you to an outcome that was even better than you could have ever dreamt. What do I want the world to know about me? That I hope my story can inspire even just one person to chase after their dream. If you have a dream, it’s for a reason.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Oh goodness… how do I even answer this?? Well first of all, are we talking to the 20 year old extrovert me or my current introvert age. (haha) So this probably doesn’t come to any surprise but I am a huge movie lover, museum going, book reader, nature girl! If I have hot brewed tea in my hand, looking at flowers and find a feather on my path, day made!

Texas actually has some amazing national parks that are perfect for sightseeing and hiking! I’ve always wanted to take a trip around the US to all the major national parks! I would grab my friend and say pack light because you will have to carry this bag with you; we will be making friends with animals and expect to have the most amazing view as we get to stare at the stars every single night! Being out in nature is my calming place, this is where I feel the most at peace. I both love planning but also totally winging things so I feel like if I planned a trip I would plan the destination locations but would also leave room in the itinerary for surprise adventures!

I love the idea of making your own fire and cooking your own food under the stars. I’m not the best of cooks so looks like I would have to bring a friend that could do the cooking for us. haha I would choose destinations that we could veer off into small towns because I know first hand what it’s like to be a small business owner and would love to find quaint little towns with mom and pop coffee/tea shops and restaurants where they make all their food by hand with love. I’m also a huge antique shop lover! I get that from my dad! On our days off we actually go looking at antique shops and that’s typically where I find some of my unique pieces for my art! So, I would try and find some unique shops along the way as well!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
In this industry, you learn very quickly that it is a team effort! First and foremost, I absolutely have to give credit to my family for supporting such a dreamer child! (ha) I have reached for the stars ever since I was a little girl and they are my biggest support system! Flash forward to where I am now, I never expected to be sharing the stage with the ones I love and it is an overwhelming feeling of joy. We have a team of individuals that consist of film crews, photographers, graphic artists, make-up artists, special effects artists, costume designers, producers and more! We are fully independent and every piece of art I sell goes to funding this dream so not only are you supporting us, you are supporting every individual we work with in allowing them to do what they love as well!

Huge thanks to Christopher Maggard and his beautiful wife Elena with M5 Entertainment for always bringing our creative visions to life! You will alway be part of our journey and our family! I can’t thank you enough for also entrusting me as your composer for your projects as well. This team is full of so many talented individuals and I would love to take the time and give each of them credit! Jennifer Fraggle Dee (Fraggle FX); Ashton Williams (MUA); John Medley (Sound); Myrom Kingery (Producer); Thomas Lawson (Crew); Kevin Smith (Crew).

Huge thanks to Jeff Seemann for entrusting me to compose his film “Terror Trips”. This was my first ‘Feature Film” I ever scored!

Huge thanks to John Lecompt with Red Room Studios for engineering/producing/mixing/mastering our first album Worhol ever released, “The Awakening”. This album was our showcase to the world and was the first time we were able to share our story and “our sound”.

Huge thanks to Stephen Bogle with Control Voltage Records for engineering/producing/mixing/mastering our track “Speak to Me” along with upcoming music we are about to release! Since our first release and we have been working so hard behind the scenes in making this next record exactly how we envision ourselves and I have to say, the elevation of the music you are about to hear from us is breath taking and bold! This is the strongest we have ever sounded and these tracks showcase our musicianship perfectly.

Huge thanks to our amazing photographers, Jim Wilkinson with Wilkinson Image & Design; Heather Robinson with Don’t Ask Photography; and Craig Bryon with Craig Bryon Photography.

Huge thanks to Scott Deyett with InHouse Graphics for creating our album cover art for “The Awakening”. You visually captured exactly the message we were trying to portray!

Huge thanks to the gorgeous Yvonne Hunt who paints my face! You are such a bright soul and an incredible make-up artist!

Huge thanks for all the press and radio stations that have reached out to us ever wanting to interview us or to share our story! We are able to reach people because of you!!

Huge thanks for all the venues and promoters we have been so blessed to work with! Your belief in us and our music means more to us than you will ever know!!

And most importantly… a huge thank you to YOU who is reading this right now! Thank you for taking the time to get to know me and us! Those who follow our journey and support us by listening to our music, that is the exact reason we have chased this never ending dream.

Website: https://testament-designs.myshopify.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleyworholofficial/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Worhol.Productions/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@WorholProductions

Other: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AshleyWorhol Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/testamentdesigns Ashley Worhol Website: https://www.ashleyworhol.com/ Band Website: https://www.worhol.net/ Band Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/worholtheband/

Image Credits
Featured Photo: Craig Bryon Photography