Returning from a two-year career break, singer-songwriter Ashlyn Rae Willson, better known as Ashe, just released her highly anticipated third studio album, Willson. The record — the final in the trilogy that is Ashlyn, Rae, and now Willson — offers listeners a glimpse into Ashe’s complex personal and professional journey over the past few years, blending an experimental new sound that still stays true to her stylistic roots.
Willson’s opening track, “Please Don’t Fall in Love With Me,” is a familiar take on an Ashe classic. It has all her signature moves with a lyrical and thematic twist. The song begins relatively slow-paced, with a consistent melody. Ashe often begins her music this way, allowing the listener to fully immerse themselves in the lyrics by enabling them to engage with its content from the start. The album’s first lines, “Please don’t fall in love with me, I’ll give you almost everything,” remind the listener of the context in which the body of work exists in Ashe’s career.
Ashe initially expressed discomfort with the expectations being placed on her by critics, her label, and the industry. She struggled to prioritize self-care while on tour and felt like she had fallen out of love with her craft. After a year of non-stop touring to promote her sophomore album, she admitted to feeling completely drained and unable to continue live performances for the foreseeable future. In February 2022, Ashe announced that she’d be taking an indefinite career break for mental health reasons. With full support from her fans, Ashe was able to move out of California to Nashville where she could focus on herself and, when the time was right, a new project.
After two years away from the spotlight, Ashe decided to return as an independent artist. She gleefully shared the fruits of her journey with eager fans, announcing Willson, three singles, and her engagement in a matter of weeks. The album’s lead single, “Running Out of Time,” released on June 28, was the perfect return to her musical world. The track encourages the listener to live every day like it is their last, never hesitate to fall in love, and take every chance opportunity with the threat of success.
Track three, “Pull The Plug,” was a top contender in Ashe’s self-made TikTok competition to decide the final single release from the album. In only a week, over 2,000 fans and creators used the song to share their “pinch me” moments. Outside of TikTok trends, “Pull The Plug” details a fleeting relationship that is too good to be true. The line “Window panes, coffee stains,” and the rhythm of its verses, in general, are perhaps a sneaky callback to “When I’m Older” (“Payphone calls, cigarettes…”) on Ashe’s debut record. As the song picks up, Ashe sings, “Don’t touch me, this coma is nice, too good to be true, so just let me lie.” She’d rather the power go out and be in the dark, than realize her moments with this person are anything other than perfect. In an immersive, wild outro, Ashe’s voice wavers ever so slightly as she delivers the last few lines: “I’m fading, I’m frozen in time, the time of my life, so don’t let me die. You’re all that I have, and almost enough. Don’t pull the…”
Track four, “Cherry Trees,” signifies soul ties, the right person at the wrong time. Ashe sings, “I must be confused, you don’t remember me but I remember you. I can’t help but see that even if you’re here that you’re not here with me. I wish it could be…” The pace quickens as Ashe descends into the chorus, beginning with the line: “Carve our names in cherry trees…” She recalls the tradition of new couples carving their names into surfaces, believing their love will last as long as their initials remain. It’s a “till death do us part” gesture, but often filled with too much hope—just like the symbolism of the cherry tree. The tree, destined to be chopped down, mirrors the abrupt end she foresees in the relationship. Despite knowing it’s doomed, she hopes to make the most of their time together. She concludes the chorus with a short yet chilling remark: “I’m so sorry I forgot, you’re not mine anymore.” The song explores the “meeting twice theory,” the re-ignition of a spark when two souls “destined” to be together who have gone astray, meet unexpectedly for a second time, a common occurrence in fiction and reality. One line, “cut my hair to look like you,” alludes to Ashe’s countless attempts to see that one person in everything, even herself, so that she may see them at all. “You’re not mine anymore…” Ashe repeats to herself until the song’s close.
Part of a double single along with “I hope you die first,” track five, “I Wanna Love You (But I Don’t)” focuses on allowing oneself to be completely raw and honest with another at any cost. “Hidden faces smile in the masquerade, but I’m naked on the dance floor next to you.” In theory, Ashe shouldn’t be ashamed to expose herself to her partner, but she is forced to do so in front of others, causing her to feel exploited by the person she is supposed to trust. “You’ll remember me just like a wet dream,” she sings, as though she is something to be ashamed of; a fantasy. “I’ve forgotten how to get back, but I remember what we had. The party’s over and I know I should go, I wanna love you but I don’t.” Although the relationship to which Ashe is alluding has presumably ended, she continues to gravitate toward this person, perhaps as an emotional outlet, or simply familiarity and codependence. “I was someone special whenever I caught your gaze, now I’m struggling to catch my breath.” She doesn’t know how to function outside the constricting expectations of her partner, therefore when they are gone, she is left not knowing how to exist by herself. “You’ll remember me just like a bad dream, but baby, we looked so good together,” she sings, grieving and mourning this toxic, dysfunctional relationship she once had. After all, the security of consistency is often more comforting than the actions of her partner. “I’ll remember you like you were brand new, I thought you’d stay that way forever.” Perhaps her expectations of her partner were overly optimistic, to begin with. “I’ll remember you under the pale moon, it was too good to last forever.” She now realizes that this person and the once-was of their relationship were too good to be true.
“Helter Skelter,” track six, is a somewhat alarming yet undeniably powerful piece. “You’re happy, you’re happy, they say… Think I’m losing my mind.” Helter Skelter is defined as a state of total confusion and dismay, often caused by lies and deceit. As a woman in the music industry, it would seemingly be difficult to distinguish fake praise, and too easy to internalize harsh criticism, all in the same beat. Additionally, the looming expectations of a label and fanbase expecting new and improved work at an impossible rate is a constant stressor for many artists. “Helter Skelter” is feeling isolated and scattered by the overwhelming expectations and inauthentic attitudes of others. Throughout the song, she describes how everyone in her life who was supposed to support her simply watched her get sick, unphased and even pushed her harder when all she wanted was a break. “I’m not leaving the house today, I’ve run out of words I can say now, nowhere feels safe anymore.” The listener’s heart can’t help but break when hearing these lines. A defeated Ashe sings, “I’m calling in sick for the rest of this year, nothing you see here is as it appears, I had hoped but I don’t think I can go on with the show.” She continues, “And if I had the chance, I’d start over again, back to where we began… I’d forgive and forget, and start over again.” Looking back at the decisions she’s made in the last few years, “Helter Skelter” is Ashe allowing herself a brave space to vent her regrets and grievances.
Track seven, “Dear Stranger,” begins with what sounds like knocking on a door. Vocally and instrumentally…big Lorde vibes. A match strikes and Ashe’s voice floods into the ears of her listener. “Hello, again, dear stranger, hello again. I hope you know I’ve missed ya, how have you been? I’ve been pretty bad, but I am coming back and I’ll be seeing you again.” Jaw-dropping opening lines assure the listener that, at least for now, Ashe is back and ready to try again. Yet, the wonky backing instrumentals are somewhat not aligned with the happy-go-lucky first verse. Assuming this is intentional, it causes the lyrics to feel somewhat inauthentic as if Ashe is unsure she is truly ready to be back. “I’ve said some things to you I didn’t mean, I promised more than I should have and ruined everything.” Ashe remains extremely hard on herself for her temporary leave. Emphasizing the fleeting time and attention span the music industry holds for women, she sings, “Heaven only knows the time I’ve lost.” She warns the listener, “I am not the same, I will not be the same again. Don’t go looking for the girl you loved, her innocence is dead.” Much of the accompanying album artwork for Willson depicts Ashe digging a grave, along with the lyrics “I buried all my sins inside a casket on a grave,” the audience can infer that perhaps Ashe is burying her past self — or, her career. Perhaps warning her fans not to do the same with herself, she sings, “Idolized someone almost famous who gave up everything…” To conclude, she tells the listener, “I’ve been pretty bad but I am not as sad and I’ll be seeing you again.”
“Hornet’s Nest,” track eight, is similar in theme to “I Wanna Love You (But I Don’t).” Ashe discusses feeling guilty for needing someone and putting too much of her own emotions on that person. “Naked on the front seat, I was crying on your dash.” She is vulnerable in more ways than one, perhaps her partner was only prepared or intending to take her one way rather than the other. “Kicked a hornet’s nest,” in the context of the song, perhaps signifies the hostile attitude that can overtake her when she realizes she’s said too much, much like how she’d react to a hornet sting. The song’s pace picks up as she professes, “You made me someone, finally, I was someone, and finally someone to myself.” This line later becomes: “You made me someone for once I was someone, but you made me somebody else.” Vulnerability can be a good thing, but the wrong person who makes her feel guilty about it does more harm than good.
Track nine, “Castle,” is a triumphant continuation of “Helter Skelter.” “Look at me now… in my castle full of glass. Your hands are just like hammers, every touch another crack.” With every push, she comes closer to her breaking point. The song’s pace picks up, as she sings, “I know I said I wanted this, but now I’ve come to see that you have way too much of me, you locked me up and hid the key…” Ashe declares, “I’m taking myself back. Even if I let everyone down… I don’t stand a chance here.” In a shatteringly self-aware profession, she sings, “Finally, I’m saving myself,” another callback to her debut album (Track six, “Save Myself”). “My blood is on your hands, it’s spilling all over the rug… Told me I’ve gotta clean this up, you think that time is gonna heal this… no, your time is up. Ssh.” After years of blaming her crash-out on herself, she can finally allow herself to point the finger at the industry, which continually pushed her to her limit until she could no longer take it. In the same vein, she continues, “Call her a survivor or a victim, ooh, where’d they get the nerve? Keep using black and white on colored pages, to paint the one who’s gotten hurt. Is she an angel or a demon? Somebody better call the priest. Grab your pitchforks and your torches… Let’s all slay her like a beast, go ahead and try to get me.”
Another single and the record’s tenth track, “I hope you die first,” stands alone as a gesture of pure adoration. “I love to see you win, it doesn’t even make me sad, I don’t mind coming in last. I don’t wanna die before you, promise I’ll be right behind but I should be there to hold your hand.” Since her return, Ashe has publicly posted with and about her now-fiancé. The two appear to be enamored with one another, thus one song dedicated to their relationship seems well-deserved, even though it is not the album’s entire premise.
“Devil Herself,” track 11, is about a relationship where Ashe had dedicated herself to her partner entirely and would have gone to any length to keep them safe in her orbit. Its graceful piano introduction vaguely echoes the melody of “Running Out of Time.” “If I committed murder, you’d have been my alibi,” she confesses. “But you’re not the same anymore, how do we go back to before?” As the relationship changed, she realized, “I can tell you’re not yourself, cuz I fell in love with someone else.” One standout line, “You were Adam in the garden, but your ribs were made of me,” signifies the reality of the relationship: although it may have seemed as though they were made for each other, in the end, she was the one keeping them afloat. The pace slows at the outro as she repeats, “I fell in love with someone else.” The instrumentals warp and Ashe laughs to herself faintly in the back tracks as the song comes to a close
The record’s final track and most recent single, released just two days before its official date, is “Ashe.” An overwhelming bout of support from fans on the track specifically propelled Ashe to pick it to put out early. Its opening lyrics, now another TikTok trend, “I’m learning to like myself for the first time” are emblematic of the record’s purpose and overall theme. She continues in earnest, “I hadn’t addressed the shame, I confess, it was eating me alive… I’ve been crying wolf every day for a while now, I’ve been telling you I’m okay for a while now.” As the chorus concludes, she sings, “Will it matter when we all turn to ash?” With that, she leaves the listener with a big-picture perspective. “I’m outrunning the past but it all has to catch up with the times.” She knew it’d be unrealistic to pretend none of the bad stuff or her two-year break never happened, but she needed time to figure out how to return in a way that made sense for her. “Will the rumors and the actors and the music really matter in the end?” In an Instagram post, Ashe brought up her hesitancy to include this track on the album at all, as it criticizes the very industry she’s rejoining and is a somewhat existential crisis in itself. Yet, it showcases the immense growth she has undergone in the last two years and reminds the listener that at the end of the day, nothing she or any celebrity does or says matters, at least not more than anyone or anything else.
Ashe currently has only one date scheduled to perform the album live, at the Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville, which has already sold out. She assured fans who are unable to see the one-night-only performance that more shows are to come, but at the moment, she must stay true to herself and what she can handle.
Arguably Ashe’s most relatable, raw, and venturous project yet, Willson is a testament to the healing powers of time and self-awareness.
Featured Photo Credit: Luke Roger