My Ears Through the Years with Pauline Ashford

It’s time for another pair of ears to take us back through their years, and this week‘s ears belong to the fantastic Pauline Ashford. Pauline is senior creative at AMV BBDO, one half of the brilliant creative duo, MKANDPA, and potentially Miley Cyrus’s biggest fan? Let’s see what else she’s been listening to over the years! 

Q> Hi Pauline! Tell us.. what was the first album you bought yourself… 

Pauline> I think it was the Spice Girls’ debut album. It was housed in a CD tower I made at school. And shaped like a rocket. I have no idea why. 

Q> What’s a song that just always pops into your head… 

Pauline> There’s two, depending on my mood. Doja Cat’s ‘Paint The Town Red’ and The Pointer Sisters, ‘Slow Hand’. Quite different energies. The first is for hyping, the latter for calm. 

Q> A song you feel like you can’t escape from…  

Pauline> ‘Flowers’ - Miley Cyrus. When my daughter was a tiny baby, we used to dance to this before bedtime. It’s an incredible song, and I loved singing the lyrics to her since they are so  empowering for women. Whenever it comes on during the day, I end up frantically turning it off or running out of shops because she looks really confused, thinking it’s bedtime! Hoping she’s over that now as I love the song. 

Q> Your go-to karaoke number… 

Pauline> Billie Eilish ‘Bad Guy’. The low-key attitude is funny. It’s also a crowd pleaser. Another fave is ‘Islands in the Stream’ - Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. But the Kenny part. Otherwise, my voice gets too high pitched. And offensive. 

Q> Your musical guilty pleasure… 

Pauline> Is Patti Smith classed as a guilty pleasure? She’s actually a pretty interesting person. Her insta is worth a follow. She’s probably the artist I’ve seen live the most. 

Q> A song that reminds you of home… 

Pauline> Tina Turner – ‘Simply The Best’. I get a bit of a chill when I hear the opening few bars. It echoes all around central Scotland when there’s a Rangers game on, and my Grandad was a massive Rangers fan so hearing this takes me right back to growing up in Scotland surrounded by football, which I used to play in my teens. I was pretty good and made it all the way to the Scotland Women’s U17’s squad. Unfortunately, a knee injury stopped me from ever playing a national game.  

Q> How has your music taste changed over the years… 

Pauline> I used to like more energetic genres but now I really appreciate the more relaxed sounds of soul. I find driving in London actually enjoyable when I’ve got it on the radio. Bossa Nova is something that’s also grown on me over the years.  

Q> A song you wish you wrote… 

Pauline> Mariah Carey – ‘All I want for Christmas is You’. Epic ballad that’s not too Christmassy. Also, the royalties on that must be a lovely end of year bonus. 

Q> An unpopular musical opinion… 

Pauline> Kanye. He doesn’t seem ok. 

Q> Your desert island disc…  

Pauline> The last time I answered this, it was Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’. But since then, Miley’s ‘Endless Summer Vacation’ came out. It’s got it all. And obviously ‘Flowers’ is on there. 

Q> Best sync moment… 

Pauline> Journey’s ‘Don’t Stop believing’ for The Sopranos. The ending seems obvious, but the track changes it for me. Recently I’ve started to write screenplays and I always go back to The Sopranos when I’m thinking about character development as they have so much depth.  

Q> Music that made an ad campaign… 

Pauline> Enya’s ‘Only Time’ for Volvo’s ‘Epic Split’. Without it, the ad isn’t really anything that stops you in your tracks.  

Q> Best theme song… 

Pauline> Julee Cruise’s ‘Falling’ from Twin Peaks. It’s eerie. Spot on for the show. I watched this for the first time while I was in San Francisco, studying at Miami Ad School for a year. I lived in a basement near the Golden Gate Park and my flatmate recommended it to me. I don’t actually know how I managed over there. I had very little money and the school fees were a lot. I remember paying for most of it with a loan that I told the bank was to buy a car… took  me ages to pay it all back (and defaulted) but it was totally worth it for the experience.  

Q> Favourite film soundtrack…

Pauline> ‘You Never Can Tell’ - Chuck Berry in Pulp Fiction. A perfect match with the choreography, and the characters’ connection in the film. I’m always finding new (old) music to like in Tarantino’s films.