'''Ashlee Nicole Simpson''' (born October 3, 1984) is an American pop rock singer–songwriter and an occasional actress. She is sister of famous pop singer Jessica Simpson.
Simpson rose to prominence in mid-2004 through the success of her number-one debut album ''Autobiography'' and the accompanying reality series ''The Ashlee Simpson Show''. Simpson received widespread derision when she used a pre-recorded vocal track for a performance on ''Saturday Night Live'' in October 2004. Following a North American concert tour and an unsuccessful film appearance, Simpson released a second number-one album, ''
I Am Me'', in late 2005.
Biography
Early life
Simpson was born in Waco, Texas,
and raised in Richardson. She is the daughter of Joe Truett Simpson (a former Baptist youth minister who is now her manager) and Tina Ann Drew (a former Sunday School teacher who homeschooled Ashlee). An accomplished dancer, Simpson began studying classical ballet at the age of three, and was admitted to the School of American Ballet in New York City at the age of eleven. Around that time, she suffered from an eating disorder; the condition lasted about six months, and she dropped to about 31 kg (70 pounds) at 159 cm (5ft 2in), but her parents then stepped in and got her to eat more. After her sister Jessica Simpson landed a record deal, the Simpson family decided to move to Los Angeles, California, where Ashlee began appearing in television commercials.
[Although the minimum age for admission was technically 12, Joe Simpson said that he lied about his daughter's age to get her into the school in an October 2004 interview. (Leeds, Jeff. ''The New York Times'', http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60C12FA3F5C0C708CDDA90994DC404482&incamp=archive:search "Who Wants to Be a New Simpson?", October 3 2004.)][Brown, Janelle. ''Seventeen'', http://www.ashleemedia.net/displayimage.php?album=334&pos=4 "Ashlee Simpson". November 2004, pages 86–89.] When Jessica became a star after releasing her first album, Ashlee became one of her backup dancers. Later, she began appearing in films and television series, including an episode of the sitcom ''Malcolm in the Middle'' in 2001, a minor role in the 2002 film ''The Hot Chick'' and a recurring role on the family drama series ''
7th Heaven''. In the summer of 2003, Simpson briefly worked as an MTV VJ on TRL, and later recorded a song titled "Just Let Me Cry" for the soundtrack of the film ''Freaky Friday''. Eventually, Simpson signed a record deal with Geffen Records.
Debut album and reality television
Ashlee Simpson's first album, ''Autobiography'', debuted at number one in the U.S. in July 2004 with first week sales numbering around 398,000 copies. The album was certified triple platinum in September 2004. Simpson co-wrote all of the album's tracks and described it as "very
