"It ain't the kind you take home to Mama." This is how country singer/songwriter Ashley Rivera responds when I ask her to describe her music. Her answer is blunt and a little tongue-in-cheek, just like the artist herself. If the country music landscape is filled with the images and sounds of the quintessential "girl next door," Ashley pokes fun at herself by being the self-proclaimed " weirdo next door." If I were her neighbor, something tells me I'd be peeking over the fence a lot. "I speak what's on my mind. Sometimes it's light-hearted, sometimes it's kind of rough. But I don't sugar coat it. I'd rather people either love me or hate me for who I am rather than make music that doesn't tell the truth." She is known most for her soulful vocals and no-holds-barred, in-your-face live shows ("I'm gonna rock your a**!" she shrieked at a recent gig). But look closer and you'll find an artist with roots in traditional country and Southern folk story-telling. Ashley was born twenty-two years ago on a military base in south Georgia. Her mother grew up in the hills of North Carolina with a dream of being a country music star. Ashley's father, on the other hand, was born in a small town on the island of Puerto Rico. He grew up writing plays and learning every instrument he could get his hands on. At nineteen, he put his musical endeavors aside to join the United States Army. Eventually these two opposites found each other, married and started a family with a little girl named Ashley Nicole. Growing up, Ashley was influenced by the traditional country music her mother sang and the legendary rock music her father loved to play. Later, this mixture would form her own musical style. "I love the truth, the pain in country music, and I love the guts of rock 'n' roll." Rivera began singing professionally at the age of ten. Since then, she has built a resume worthy of envy. She has been named the Georgia Country Music Association's Female Entertainer of the Year twice, and has also garnered accolades for Vocalist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, and Band of the Year at both state and national levels. She has opened in concert for Little Big Town, The Atlanta Rhythm Section, The Average White Band, Ronnie Milsap, and many more artists. (Her favorite so far? "Ronnie Milsap! I am a huge fan of his. He's one of the best performers I've ever seen.") Ashley has performed well over 1000 shows in her young career, and today she continues to tour with her live band and record new original songs. A few weeks after interviewing Ashley, I ventured out to one of her live shows. Her contrasting influences were evident throughout the performance. At one point, I looked into the audience and saw a group of boys forming a mosh pit and head banging. Next to them, an elderly woman was dancing with the aid of her walker. It was one of the strangest things I have ever seen. But somehow, it describes Ashley's music better than she can. Maybe her music is the kind you take home to Mama.... if Mama likes to mosh.