Ashley Tisdale facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ashley Tisdale
Tisdale in 2012
Born	Ashley Michelle Tisdale (1985-07-02) July 2, 1985 (age 40) Monmouth County, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation	Actress singer
Years active	1997–present
Spouse(s)	Christopher French ​ (m. 2014)​
Children	2
Relatives	Jennifer Tisdale (sister) Ron Popeil (second cousin once removed)
Musical career
Genres	Pop R&B
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Warner Bros. Big Noise

Ashley Michelle Tisdale (born July 2, 1985) is an American actress and singer. When she was a child, she appeared in many commercials. She also had small roles in TV shows and plays.

Ashley became very well known as Maddie Fitzpatrick in the Disney Channel show The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005–2008). Her fame grew even more when she played Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical movies (2006–2008). Because the movies were so popular, Ashley signed with Warner Bros. Records. She then released her first album, Headstrong (2007). This album was a big hit and sold many copies. Ashley also voices Candace Flynn in the Disney Channel cartoon Phineas and Ferb (2007–2015; 2025–present).

Ashley's second album, Guilty Pleasure (2009), was not as successful as her first. After this album, she left Warner Bros. Records. Around this time, she started acting in more movies. She also returned to TV shows like Hellcats (2010). In 2008, Ashley started her own production company called Blondie Girl Productions. In 2010, her company made a deal with Relativity Media. Through this deal, Ashley produced shows like Miss Advised (2012). She also starred in the High School Musical spin-off movie Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure (2011). She released a soundtrack for this movie too.

In 2013, Ashley announced she was working on her third album. She released a song called "You're Always Here" to promote it. She also starred in the comedy film Scary Movie 5. She continued to act in TV shows, joining the main cast of Clipped (2015). She also helped produce the ABC Family show Young & Hungry (2014–2018). In 2018, Ashley returned to music with new songs like "Voices in My Head" and "Love Me & Let Me Go". Her third album, Symptoms, came out in 2019. More recently, Ashley played Jenny Kenney in the CBS show Carol's Second Act (2019–2020). She was also a judge on the show The Masked Dancer (2020–2021). In 2021, she was a character in the video game The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

Early Life and Beginnings

Ashley Michelle Tisdale was born on July 2, 1985, in Monmouth County, New Jersey. Her parents are Lisa Morris and Michael Tisdale. Her father is Christian and her mother is Jewish. Ashley grew up learning about both religions. Her older sister, Jennifer, is also an actress and producer. Ashley is also related to businessman Ron Popeil.

Even though she started acting young, Ashley went to public school and worked in clothing stores. She said she didn't become famous until she was 18. She felt she had the best of both worlds, enjoying a normal school life and also working in entertainment.

How Ashley Started Her Career

When Ashley was three years old, she met her manager, Bill Perlman. He helped her get auditions for commercials. As a child, she appeared in over 100 national TV ads. She began acting in plays like Gypsy: A Musical Fable and The Sound of Music.

At eight years old, Ashley was chosen to play Cosette in the musical Les Misérables. She had only taken one singing lesson before getting the role. Ashley toured with Les Misérables for two years. After that, she acted in a touring show of Annie in Korea.

When Ashley was twelve, she sang for President Bill Clinton at the White House. To further her career, Ashley and her family moved to Los Angeles, California. In 1997, she got her first TV roles on Smart Guy and 7th Heaven. She also started modeling for Ford Models. The next year, Ashley did voice acting in An All Dogs Christmas Carol (1998) and A Bug's Life (1998).

In 2000, she appeared on Boston Public. This role earned her a nomination for a Young Artist Award. Ashley continued to make guest appearances on TV shows. She also had small roles in movies like Donnie Darko (2001).

Becoming a Star in Film and Music

In 2005, Ashley joined the cast of the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. She starred in the show until it ended in 2008. The show was very popular and won Ashley a Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Award.

Ashley's big breakthrough came when she played Sharpay Evans in the Disney Channel movie High School Musical (2006). This movie was Disney Channel's most successful film of 2006. It was watched by 7.7 million viewers when it first aired. The movie's soundtrack, which included many songs by Ashley, sold over three million copies. The song "What I've Been Looking For", a duet with Lucas Grabeel, became her first song to reach the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It also sold enough copies to be certified gold. Ashley and the cast went on the High School Musical: The Concert tour (2006–2007) to promote the movie.

Because High School Musical was so successful, Ashley was offered a music contract with Warner Bros. Records. She started working on her first album in 2006. Her debut album, Headstrong (2007), was released in February. It included dance-pop and hip-hop music. The album sold 64,000 copies in its first week in the United States. It reached number five on the Billboard 200 chart. The album was a big success, selling over 500,000 copies in the country. Ashley also made a documentary called There's Something About Ashley (2007). It showed the making of her album and music videos.

Ashley played Sharpay Evans again in High School Musical 2 (2007). Seventeen million people watched the movie when it premiered. This made it the most-watched movie on cable TV at the time. Critics praised her performance. The movie's soundtrack topped the Billboard 200 chart. Ashley was also cast as the voice of Candace Flynn in the animated Disney Channel series Phineas and Ferb. This show became very popular with kids and tweens.

In 2008, Ashley started her own company, Blondie Girl Productions. Her first project as an executive producer and lead actress was the TV movie Picture This (2008). She played Mandy Gilbert, a shy teenager. The movie premiered to 4.3 million viewers. Ashley returned as Sharpay Evans in High School Musical 3: Senior Year, released in October 2008. The movie earned $42 million on its first weekend. It made a total of $255 million worldwide. Her acting in this film was highly praised. She won an MTV Movie Award for "Breakthrough Performance Female" in 2009.

Ashley Tisdale performing at the opening of the first Microsoft Store in Scottsdale, Arizona, in October 2009

Ashley started working on her second album in 2008. She wanted it to have a more "rock-oriented" and "edgier" sound. The song "It's Alright, It's OK" (2009) was released before the album. Her second album, Guilty Pleasure (2009), came out in June 2009. It sold about 25,000 copies in its first week. The album's second song, "Crank It Up" (2009), was released in some European countries. After this album, Ashley left her record label. Ashley also starred in the movie Aliens in the Attic (2009) as Bethany Pearson. The movie was a small success, earning $60 million worldwide.

Television Roles and New Projects

In 2010, Ashley announced she would return to TV. She starred as Savannah Monroe, the head cheerleader, in The CW drama Hellcats. The show ran for one season and was canceled in 2011. Blondie Girl Productions signed a deal in 2010 to create and produce films and TV shows. During this time, Ashley also did voice work for the animated shows Family Guy and The Cleveland Show.

In 2010, Disney Channel decided to make a High School Musical spin-off movie. It would focus on Sharpay Evans' life in New York after high school. Ashley was confirmed to return as Sharpay and also be an executive producer. Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure premiered on Disney Channel in August 2011 to five million viewers.

In 2012, she appeared in an episode of Raising Hope. She also had a role in a pilot show for CBS that was not picked up. Ashley played a challenging role in the drama series Sons of Anarchy. She also produced the reality TV series Miss Advised in 2012. In 2013, E! aired a TV special produced by Ashley called Inner Circle. It focused on her friendship with actress Vanessa Hudgens. The next year, Ashley worked with Disney Channel again on the film Cloud 9, where she was an executive producer. Ashley also produced the ABC Family comedy series Young & Hungry, which premiered in June 2014.

In June 2012, it was announced that Ashley would have a main role in Scary Movie 5. She played Jody, a dancer. The film was released in April 2013. It earned $15 million on its first weekend. Critics did not like the movie. Ashley had a recurring role in ABC's show Super Fun Night as Jazmine. She also guest starred on CBS's The Crazy Ones in 2013. That same year, Ashley was chosen to voice the main character in the animated series Sabrina: Secrets of a Teenage Witch. For her voice work as Sabrina, Ashley was nominated for an award.

In 2013, Ashley shared that she had started working on her third album. She wanted to try something different from her past music. She aimed for a dance-pop sound. In December 2013, Ashley hinted about a "special project" related to music. She confirmed it was a song called "You're Always Here". She wrote it about her late grandfather. The song was released independently to digital stores that same month.

In December 2014, it was announced that Ashley was cast in the comedy Amateur Night. In 2014, Ashley auditioned for TBS's comedy series Clipped. She was cast in a main role as Danni. The series ran from June to August 2015 and was canceled after one season.

Return to Music and Recent Work

In 2016, Ashley started working on her third album again with her husband. They began posting cover songs on Ashley's YouTube channel. This included a version of Elle King's "Ex's & Oh's" with Vanessa Hudgens. Ashley released her third album, Symptoms, in May 2019. It was her first album in ten years. In June 2019, Ashley began starring in the CBS show Carol's Second Act. In April 2019, Ashley confirmed she was working on her fourth album. She shared a snippet of a new song in May 2019. In May 2020, she teased a new song called "Lemons".

In October 2020, it was announced that Ashley would be a judge on The Masked Dancer. She joined Ken Jeong, Paula Abdul, and Brian Austin Green. In September 2021, Ashley was cast in the video game The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes. This was her first time as a video game character.

Other Activities

Helping Others and Charity Work

Ashley has supported many charities throughout her career. In 2008, she worked with the Make a Wish Foundation. She visited sick children in hospitals and helped raise money. Ashley also supports Habitat for Humanity, which builds homes for people in need. She was supposed to perform on Idol Gives Back 2008. However, she couldn't because she was filming High School Musical 3: Senior Year. Instead, she and the cast recorded a video to support the cause. She also sang "Last Christmas" for the A Very Special Christmas 7 album. Money from sales went to the Special Olympics.

Ashley worked as a phone operator during Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief. This was a charity event in January 2010. It raised money for organizations helping Haiti after the 2010 Haiti earthquake. In 2011, Ashley volunteered for the "Get on the Bus" campaign. She helped build a house for a family and performed songs to raise funds. In 2012, she became the face of Project Pink. This campaign by Puma SE raised money for breast cancer research. As part of this, she visited a school in California. She gave shoes, clothes, and gift cards to the children. In 2013, Ashley released her song "You're Always Here" as a charity single. She confirmed that 30 percent of the money from the song would go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Business Ventures

In 2014, Ashley helped launch Lindt HELLO chocolates in the U.S. She produced an episode of an online series for it. In late 2014, Ashley became the creative director of Signorelli. She launched a clothing line with the company in 2016. She also helped create their spring 2017 sportswear line. Ashley launched her Illuminate makeup line through BH Cosmetics in 2016.

Her Artistic Style

Ashley Tisdale during the signing event for Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure in Madrid, Spain, in May 2011

Ashley has said that she tries to make each character she plays unique. After the High School Musical series ended in 2008, she was unsure about taking on older roles. However, she started accepting more mature roles in 2012. Her first adult roles were in the drama series Sons of Anarchy (2012) and the film Scary Movie 5 (2013). Ashley said that Scary Movie 5 pushed her out of her comfort zone. She plans to keep challenging herself in the future. When talking about playing Logan Rawlings on Young & Hungry (2014), she said she likes to play different characters. She wants to push her own comfort level. Her main acting inspirations include Jake Gyllenhaal, Johnny Depp, Robin Williams, and Rebel Wilson.

Ashley's music is mostly pop. It also includes ballads, dance-pop, hip hop, and rock influences. Her songs often talk about relationships and overcoming challenges. She sees her music career as a way to connect with fans and inspire them. She said that Headstrong (2007) helped her learn about herself as an artist. With her second album, Guilty Pleasure (2009), she knew exactly what she wanted to do. Ashley has named many artists who influenced her music. These include Christina Aguilera, Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, Pat Benatar, Pink, Katy Perry, Kelly Clarkson, Led Zeppelin, and AC/DC. Ashley often helps write her songs. For Headstrong, she helped write four songs. For Guilty Pleasure, she co-wrote five songs. The songs she writes are often very personal. In 2009, she said many songs on Guilty Pleasure were about "survival and staying strong." She wanted them to show how she had grown. She named "What If" as the most personal song she co-wrote for Guilty Pleasure. She also wrote the song "You're Always Here" with her husband, French, about her grandfather's passing.

Personal Life

Ashley Tisdale became engaged to singer Christopher French in 2013. They had been dating for over a year. The couple got married on September 8, 2014, in a small private ceremony in Santa Barbara, California. They have two daughters, born in March 2021 and September 2024.

Film and TV Roles

Music Albums

• Headstrong (2007)
• Guilty Pleasure (2009)
• Symptoms (2019)

Concert Tours

• High School Musical: The Concert (2006)
• Headstrong Tour Across America (2007)

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Ashley Tisdale para niños