Kassi Ashton's 'Pretty Shiny Things' Packs a Powerful Message

Kassi Ashton delivers a dose of potent truth with her powerful new song "Pretty Shiny Things."

The up-and-comer tackles the perception of beauty — her striking words a reflection of a world where the ideal of perfection is forced upon women — and paints a stark and powerful portrait of how it feels to be in that position.

Backed by just a simple acoustic guitar, Ashton's scorching vocals bring the song's moving lyrics to life, giving the perspective of a young woman who learns to use beauty as a way to mask her inner self.

"Put your makeup on girl / Stand up straight / Your face will take you farther than your brain / You ought know by now / Beauty is pain / Pretty shiny things / Are gonna collect dust," Ashton sings with grace and conviction. She ends the song on an empowering note, encouraging the girl in the song to take off the makeup and let her guard down, "ain't nothing pretty about a perfect life," she proclaims in the inspiring closing line.

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Ashton debuted "Pretty Shiny Things" live at the Ryman Auditorium during 2019 Country Radio Seminar in Nashville. She explained how she woke up in a sweat one night with the idea in her head, and immediately went to her piano to start writing it. She later sent it to co-writer Emily Landis, who completed the song.

"Three years ago, this song was there for me in the middle of the night. Like a diary entry that was writing me, not me writing it. It has silently waited, given guidance, and reminded me that honest art is the best art," Ashton explains in a press release. "I’m honored to be passing it along to whoever needs it now."

The powerhouse singer recently released her other new song "Violins," alongside the fierce "Taxidermy."

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