Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Miers
Hi Ashley, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Music has always been my constant. My through-line. I took piano and singing lessons as a kid, and I taught myself to play guitar so I could put music to the lyrics I was hearing in my mind as a teen. When I went to college, I studied psychology (neuroscience), philosophy, biology and communication. But I was always late to class because I would get caught up writing songs in my dorm room. I started experimenting with music producing software during this time as well.
After college, I moved to Los Angeles where I pursued acting (mainly commercial acting, voiceover and hosting), copywriting as a side gig, and continued songwriting and performing. My music career involved multiple album and EP releases, song placements on ABC Family and in Abercrombie & Fitch stores, and an HMMA award nomination. During this time, however, I was struggling with my mental health (depression, drug abuse, self-harm), and eventually I turned onto a recovery path.
After having my first son in 2018, I decided to launch a coaching company to help other women struggling with depression to learn and implement the tools and concepts that had helped me in my recovery. These included Kundalini (in which I became a certified instructor) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy in addition to basic self-care (exercise, nutrition, meditation). While I was building and launching my coaching company, music ended up on the back burner, but I couldn’t leave it there indefinitely… It was and is my first love.
In 2023, I decided to marry my interest in coaching with music in a cooking show I created called “Dancing in the Kitchen”. The show combines music and food to elevate mood. My co-host (and longtime songwriting partner) Elizabeth Russo, co-producer and DP Octavia Klein, and I explore the relationship between nutrition and neuroscience and how the two can be leveraged to optimize mood and mental health. Also in 2023, I also started writing and recording music again. And now in 2025, I have multiple new music releases including original tracks Wild, Kiss Me Goodbye and Love Me or Not with Elizabeth Russo, and a Red Hot Chili Peppers cover project with tracks Under the Bridge, Soul to Squeeze and Wet Sand X Bright Lights.
My production and promotion / media and marketing company Violet Vista Ventures has also taken on a life of its own in recent years, growing out of my producing experience on the show and also creating music videos and content for social media. I also utilize Violet Vista to solicit press and publicity opportunities for my brands and the brands of a small group of select clients.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
My road has certainly not been smooth! From happy interruptions like the birth of each of my 3 sons to more challenging experiences such as a hamstring surgery and the losses of friends, mentors and family members along the way, all of my successes have happened in the spaces between these big life events.
There have been times when the physical and emotional impacts have sidelined me temporarily, and it’s been frustrating to accept that because I would much rather stay in happiness, productivity and progress than mired in some of these heavier experiences.
Additionally, my mental health was – and in some ways continues to be – my greatest struggle. While I no longer engage in self-destructive behaviors of the magnitude I struggled with in my twenties, I do still contend with limiting thoughts and low-vibe emotions that arise as I go about my various pursuits. It’s a constant practice to maintain awareness and commit to both honoring and alchemizing these influences – recognizing that grief and frustration may need to be processed, but at a certain point having the self-discipline and self-love to choose to set these feelings aside and continue living in the present as I work to build a fulfilling future.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Violet Vista has been with me since the inception of my LA career – although it mainly stayed in the background until recently. Violet Vista has also been a shape-shifter, morphing along with me as I explored who I am and what I have to offer.
Initially, I ran my freelance copywriting projects through Violet Vista, and then for many years it kind of sat dormant while I pursued commercial acting and recorded and released music.
However, in the last couple of years, especially having now produced my cooking show for two seasons and worked to promote both that and my music releases, Violet Vista has started to come into its own as a creative agency specializing in production, promotion, media and marketing. Services Violet Vista offers include brand consultations, press release distribution and video production.
What sets me apart is my well-rounded years of experience, my commitment to excellence, and most importantly, my ability to look at a person, business, project or situation and understand how to organize both packaging and processes for efficiency and effectiveness.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I like best about our city is the amazing and unique creative culture here. It’s so fun to be part of a community filled with so many interesting and inspiring people. I love that LA celebrates the aspects of us that in other parts of the world we might keep hidden. Here, the whole vibe is to let your freak flag fly. That open-mindedness and acceptance is refreshing, and it also facilitates a lot of personal growth because LA encourages play and exploration.
What I like least about our city is probably the inequality and homelessness. The number of unhoused people, many of them struggling with substance abuse and mental health issues, is both heart-breaking and also unsafe (for them and for everyone). I would like to see our city be a safer and more supportive place for all of its residents. I can’t claim to have the answers or know how to solve such complex problems, but that is probably the aspect of LA I find the most disconcerting to encounter on a regular basis.
Pricing:
- Brand Consultation Starting At $250
- Press Release Distribution Starting at $600
- Pitching and Promotion Starting at $1250
- Video Production Services on a Per Case Basis
Contact Info:
- Website: www.violetvista.com , www.ashleymiers.com , www.dancinginthekitchen.tv
- Instagram: @ashley_miers_official and @dancinginthekitchtv
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VioletVistaVentures/
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/ashleymiers and www.youtube.com/@dancinginthekitchen.tv
Image Credits
Matt Stasi, Octavia Klein
