The Earl of Artemis
Meet the newest addition to the Artemis family, Commander Earl. Yes, you read that correctly. But maybe we should use her real name for now: Ashley Wright. Wanting a little backstory on that official title? We’ll provide.
When Ashley moved to Southern Pines, North Carolina, eight years ago, she was hired as a military contractor, specifically for the Army Special Forces. Her position was with the SFQC (Special Forces Qualification Course) as a part of the final phase of training called Robin Sage. So for two weeks at a time, Ashley would live in the woods leading the training camp. “We weren’t allowed to use our real names because of security clearance, so people in the camp gave me the nickname Earl.”
The only female out of 40 military trainees, Commander Earl held this position for two years. Without access to electronic devices, she turned to journaling and writing songs for entertainment. The guys at the camp would notice her humming or writing and would inquire about her talent. They would ask, “Oh are you like a music performer?” and she would respond, “Well I’m not one yet but maybe one day.” So the soldiers told her that if she ever performed music publicly she would have to include ‘Earl’ in her stage name so they would recognize her since they didn’t know her real name. And so, Commander Earl transformed into Earleine.
After moving to Boone and meeting up with local musician Lauren Hayworth to share music and play together, Ashley realized she was craving music collaboration with women. She asked herself, “Why am I just now linking up with her? Why haven’t I been doing this all along?” As a female musician, she recognized it isn’t always easy to offer yourself and your work up to the world, and sometimes we could use a little push. This sense of vulnerability is what led to the birth of the Women’s Music Collective of Appalachia (WMCA); a safe space for women identified artists to connect, create, celebrate, share, explore, and empower fellow artists and visionaries through music, community, and collaboration. Look (or listen!) for her around town, at Hatchet Coffee and other local hot spots.