September 10: country singer-songwriter Ashley Monroe – of the Pistol Annies- is 27-years-old today.

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Ashley Monroe was born September 10, 1986, in Knoxville, Tennessee. At age 11, Ashley won a talent contest singing "I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart" in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., and found steady work at a theater there.

After her father died from cancer in 2000, when she was just 13, Ashley and her mother moved to Nashville so she could pursue her career in music. After a year in Nashville, she gained a publishing deal as a songwriter, which then led to her signing to a record contract with Sony Records, where she began to record her debut album, Satisfied.

In 2006, the title track to the album was released as the first single to country radio. It failed to make the top 40 on the Hot Country Songs chart, however, a second single, "I Don't Want To" was released which featured Ronnie Dunn of Brooks & Dunn. It initially did well on the charts, charting at No. 37.

However, the album still hadn't been released. The label then decided not to release the album until Monroe charted a top 20 single. But, no follow-up singles were ever released. In late 2007, Monroe and Columbia Records parted ways, and Satisfied was shelved.

In addition to her own material, she co-wrote Katrina Elam's 2007 single "Flat on the Floor" (which was also recorded by Carrie Underwood on her 2007 album Carnival Ride), as well as Jason Aldean's 2009 single, "The Truth,” and Miranda Lambert's 2011 single, "Heart Like Mine."

In late 2009 Monroe posted on her MySpace page that she was independently releasing a new self-titled EP. It would only be sold at the live shows. This EP contains the tracks "Has Anybody Ever Told You,” "Angeline,” "Drink for Two,” "And You" along with Trent Dabbs collaboration "Everything I Wanted.”

Monroe received a record deal with Warner Bros. Nashville and released her second studio album, Like a Rose on March 5, 2013. The album features nine tracks co-written by the singer, one of which is a collaboration with Blake Shelton. "Like a Rose" (the title track) was released to radio as the album's first single on March 4, 2013.

Longtime friends, Monroe, Miranda Lambert and newcomer Angaleena Presley debuted their trio girl band Pistol Annies, with their song "Hell on Heels," on April 22, 2011 on CBS' airing of ACM Girls Night Out. The trio surprised the audience in place of Miranda singing with now husband Blake Shelton.

The women, who met through working in the industry, have dubbed nicknames for themselves via their band name. Lambert serves as "Lonestar Annie," Monroe "Hippie Annie," and Angaleena as "Holler Annie," as she is from the hills of Kentucky.

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For more about Ashley, visit her Website at –

http://ashleymonroe.com/

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