Leigh’s Life & Love-Leigh Advice – 7 with 7

When it comes to work-life balance, Ashleigh Phillips, better known as her stage name, Leigh Phillips, is definitely a good example to follow. When the “Coconut Oil” queen is not rocking Barbados’ entertainment scene by performing at events such as Red Room Jamz with Angel Stringz, Barbados Connect, open mic at Mahalia’s Corner or even travelling to sing at Barbados On The Water Festival or Honey Jam Canada, the 29-year-old Grenadian-born vocalist is actually a lead brand strategist at a reputable marketing and communications company in Barbados. In addition, outside of her professional career, Leigh is an introverted family-loving nerd who simply loves to make time for her plants, cooking for friends, or even going to the beach while “gassing up” others for laughter and inappropriate humor. Without a doubt, we’re definitely pleased to have her share some invaluable and “Love-Leigh” advice on how to keep “smiling with the sunrise” as we seek to maintain the perfect balance in life.

1) When did you realize that you had a gift?

“I was in choir since the age of 3 so singing was like breathing. I didn’t see it as something special, it was just a normal thing I did, sometimes to the annoyance of my siblings haha. I started writing when I was 10 and because I stuck with it throughout my teens and twenties, music became my journal. I could say whatever I wanted, channel whoever I wanted to be in that moment, and it felt like my own little world inside my melodies.”

2) What are your views on having a 9-5 job and being a music artist?

“I’ve always worked and done music. Multiple streams of income are quite important. However, the balance is difficult some days because there are times that I just want to go home and do nothing, but I need to go to the studio. You have to have good habits and a lot of discipline, but you also need to be committed to balance. Work hard at your day job, go harder for yourself and your goals, but take rests so that you don’t burn out. It’s perfectly fine to have a day off. Also, extremely important… Have some fun along the way and embrace every experience! When Mixy and I are in the studio, we talk and laugh a lot, we crack many jokes AND we work hard.”

3) What is your favorite song of all time and why?

“My favorite song of all time is The Seed 2.0 by The Roots & Cody ChestnuTT. It crosses a lot of genres and lyrically it has a lot of layers. I remember seeing the music video on TV when I was maybe 11 and the little girl running through the corridors in the video has just been etched into my mind since. I love The Roots, they’re one of my bucket list groups to meet and work with.”

4) When have you felt the most challenged in life?

“I felt the most challenged in life right before I made Coconut Oil in 2018. I was dealing with a lot with my family, my relationship, I was questioning my sense of self, and my direction as an artist. It literally felt like everything was crumbling personally, but with my music, things were going well. This lasted for months, just one challenge surfacing after the other. I didn’t feel like I could talk about what I was feeling because on the outside everything didn’t just look fine, it looked great. I toured with Club One New Releases, I then went to Toronto to perform at Taste of the Danforth. But inside I felt very heavy, I felt like a lot of people were depending on me. At the same time, I felt extremely lost and alone. I was doing a lot of introspection and I truly didn’t feel equipped to be dealing with so many issues at the same time. Going to the studio was the only thing that felt like an escape from everything else. And honestly, not even the studio was making sense because I was feeling this tug to do something different but I hadn’t figured out what to do to change my sound. I was trying to understand what really defines me. What’s important, what do I want for me and not for anyone else or because of expectations etc. Coconut Oil wasn’t even supposed to become an actual song. I just happened to be in a really good mood that day and made it up while getting ready to go record something else and sang it for Mixy as a joke. Now it’s my most popular track. I was just blowing steam that day honestly, like all these problems, all this bullshit doesn’t matter because today I’m wearing coconut oil, I’m shining and I feel good as hell. It was a turning point. The truth is I’ve been through tough times before and after that point, but mentally I was in a much better place to navigate. 2018 was a really tough time.”

5) If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

“PASTA!!! My family had to eat Spaghetti Bolognese on a weekly basis because of me, we called it Spaghetti Tuesdays haha. I was an extremely picky eater but put some pasta in front of me and I was a happy camper, still am. I love love love pasta. My sister has continued the Tuesday tradition with my nephews and nieces.”

6) What makes you roll your eyes every time you hear it?

 “‘I didn’t expect that from you.’ Bruhhhhh! I hate feeling boxed in and it crosses over into a range of things. Just keep an open mind folks, allow people to live without all the imposed expectations. No one is just one thing, duality is exciting and it’s what makes people real.”

7) What advice would you give to people following in your footsteps?

1. “Learn yourself and ask nuff questions. Why do you want to do this? What do you want to gain from it? What are your boundaries? What do you want to say with your craft?”
2. “Stay true to you, this is your life and your art. Lean on your friends and family but trust that gut feeling.”
3. “Network, it’s about who you know and who knows you.”
4. “Collaborate! You are not a one-man army, life is easier with the right team.”
5. “Work with other creatives, do things together, you will get further much faster. Also, support other creatives where possible.”
6. “Research is key! Google and Youtube have so much free information please use it to inform your direction.”
7. “YOUR ART HAS VALUE! Do not feel pressured into accepting an offer that does not positively impact your brand. This isn’t only in terms of money, you can also practice bartering, but make sure you walk away with some kind of benefit from every interaction.”
8. “Do not be afraid of the business side of art. You need to learn it to protect yourself and your work.”
9. “Split sheets, split sheets, split sheets!!!”
10. “You may not get support from the people you expected to, it’s completely ok. Believe in yourself and keep working, you’ll find your people.”
11. “People are watching even when you think no one is.”
12. “If you’re struggling, reach out, and if you feel as though there’s no one you can reach out to-please remember this article and shout me.”

Why feature “Leigh”?

When it comes to work-life balance, Ashleigh Phillips, better known as her stage name, Leigh Phillips, is definitely a good example to follow. When the “Coconut Oil” queen is not rocking Barbados’ entertainment scene by performing at events such as Red Room Jamz with Angel Stringz, Barbados Connect, open mic at Mahalia’s Corner or even travelling to sing at Barbados On The Water Festival or Honey Jam Canada, the 29-year-old Grenadian-born vocalist is actually a lead brand strategist at a reputable marketing and communications company in Barbados. In addition, outside of her professional career, Leigh is an introverted family-loving nerd who simply loves to make time for her plants, cooking for friends, or even going to the beach while “gassing up” others for laughter and inappropriate humor. Without a doubt, we’re definitely pleased to have her share some invaluable and “Love-Leigh” advice on how to keep “smiling with the sunrise” as we seek to maintain the perfect balance in life.

1) When did you realize that you had a gift?

“I was in choir since the age of 3 so singing was like breathing. I didn’t see it as something special, it was just a normal thing I did, sometimes to the annoyance of my siblings haha. I started writing when I was 10 and because I stuck with it throughout my teens and twenties, music became my journal. I could say whatever I wanted, channel whoever I wanted to be in that moment, and it felt like my own little world inside my melodies.”

2) What are your views on having a 9-5 job and being a music artist?

“I’ve always worked and done music. Multiple streams of income are quite important. However, the balance is difficult some days because there are times that I just want to go home and do nothing, but I need to go to the studio. You have to have good habits and a lot of discipline, but you also need to be committed to balance. Work hard at your day job, go harder for yourself and your goals, but take rests so that you don’t burn out. It’s perfectly fine to have a day off. Also, extremely important… Have some fun along the way and embrace every experience! When Mixy and I are in the studio, we talk and laugh a lot, we crack many jokes AND we work hard.”

3) What is your favorite song of all time and why?

“My favorite song of all time is The Seed 2.0 by The Roots & Cody ChestnuTT. It crosses a lot of genres and lyrically it has a lot of layers. I remember seeing the music video on TV when I was maybe 11 and the little girl running through the corridors in the video has just been etched into my mind since. I love The Roots, they’re one of my bucket list groups to meet and work with.”

4) When have you felt the most challenged in life?

“I felt the most challenged in life right before I made ‘Coconut Oil’ in 2018. I was dealing with a lot with my family, my relationship, I was questioning my sense of self, and my direction as an artist. It literally felt like everything was crumbling personally, but with my music, things were going well. This lasted for months, just one challenge surfacing after the other. I didn’t feel like I could talk about what I was feeling because on the outside everything didn’t just look fine, it looked great. I toured with Club One New Releases, I then went to Toronto to perform at Taste of the Danforth. But inside I felt very heavy, I felt like a lot of people were depending on me. At the same time, I felt extremely lost and alone. I was doing a lot of introspection and I truly didn’t feel equipped to be dealing with so many issues at the same time. Going to the studio was the only thing that felt like an escape from everything else. And honestly, not even the studio was making sense because I was feeling this tug to do something different but I hadn’t figured out what to do to change my sound. I was trying to understand what really defines me. What’s important, what do I want for me and not for anyone else or because of expectations etc. ‘Coconut Oil’ wasn’t even supposed to become an actual song. I just happened to be in a really good mood that day and made it up while getting ready to go record something else and sang it for Mixy as a joke. Now it’s my most popular track. I was just blowing steam that day honestly, like all these problems, all this bullshit doesn’t matter because today I’m wearing coconut oil, I’m shining and I feel good as hell. It was a turning point. The truth is I’ve been through tough times before and after that point, but mentally I was in a much better place to navigate. 2018 was a really tough time.”

5) If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

“PASTA!!! My family had to eat Spaghetti Bolognese on a weekly basis because of me, we called it Spaghetti Tuesdays haha. I was an extremely picky eater but put some pasta in front of me and I was a happy camper, still am. I love love love pasta. My sister has continued the Tuesday tradition with my nephews and nieces.”

6) What makes you roll your eyes every time you hear it?

 “‘I didn’t expect that from you.’ Bruhhhhh! I hate feeling boxed in and it crosses over into a range of things. Just keep an open mind folks, allow people to live without all the imposed expectations. No one is just one thing, duality is exciting and it’s what makes people real.”

7) What advice would you give to people following in your footsteps?

1. “Learn yourself and ask nuff questions. Why do you want to do this? What do you want to gain from it? What are your boundaries? What do you want to say with your craft?”
2. “Stay true to you, this is your life and your art. Lean on your friends and family but trust that gut feeling.”
3. “Network, it’s about who you know and who knows you.”
4. “Collaborate! You are not a one-man army, life is easier with the right team.”
5. “Work with other creatives, do things together, you will get further much faster. Also, support other creatives where possible.”
6. “Research is key! Google and Youtube have so much free information please use it to inform your direction.”
7. “YOUR ART HAS VALUE! Do not feel pressured into accepting an offer that does not positively impact your brand. This isn’t only in terms of money, you can also practice bartering, but make sure you walk away with some kind of benefit from every interaction.”
8. “Do not be afraid of the business side of art. You need to learn it to protect yourself and your work.”
9. “Split sheets, split sheets, split sheets!!!”
10. “You may not get support from the people you expected to, it’s completely ok. Believe in yourself and keep working, you’ll find your people.”
11. “People are watching even when you think no one is.”
12. “If you’re struggling, reach out, and if you feel as though there’s no one you can reach out to-please remember this article and shout me.”