{"id":1214034,"date":"2025-02-21T22:02:04","date_gmt":"2025-02-21T22:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/?p=1214034"},"modified":"2025-02-21T22:02:04","modified_gmt":"2025-02-21T22:02:04","slug":"jessica-simpson-on-her-new-single-use-my-heart-against-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/pt\/jessica-simpson-on-her-new-single-use-my-heart-against-me\/","title":{"rendered":"Jessica Simpson on Her New Single, \u2018Use My Heart Against Me\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This cover story was originally published on February 20, 2025, as part of our Spring 2025 Fashion Issue. We\u2019re recirculating it now that Jessica Simpson<\/a>\u2019s new single, \u201cUse My Heart Against Me,\u201d is available to stream.<\/p>\n

Jessica Simpson<\/a> and Ashlee Simpson Ross<\/a> are different women today than the ones smiling above the headline \u201cSister Power!\u201d on their first magazine cover together, for Teen People<\/em>\u2019s December 2005 issue. In the two decades since, the sisters, now in their 40s, have each had three children and a couple marriages (famously gaining, in Ashlee\u2019s case, Diana Ross<\/a> as a mother-in-law) and released even more music; Jessica built her eponymous clothing and shoe label, too. Then, in 2020, Jessica\u2019s memoir, Open Book<\/em> \u2014 in which she candidly discusses her struggles with alcoholism, body image, and surviving fame in the pop-stars-with-purity-rings era \u2014 became a best seller. Jessica now finds herself on a new path, one with fewer compromises and more country rock, with the release of an emotional EP, Nashville Canyon Part 1,<\/em> which includes songs written amid the dissolution of her decadelong marriage<\/a> to former NFL player Eric Johnson. \u201cThrough the deepest heartbreak of my life,\u201d Jessica tells Ashlee at her eclectic jewel-tone-drenched Los Angeles home, filled with feathers, dogs, and memorabilia, \u201cit was the most intense yet enlightening therapy I\u2019ve ever been through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ashlee Simpson Ross: <\/strong>Well, hello, Jessica Simpson. Or shall I say \u201cRajah\u201d? I\u2019ve always called you Rajah, from Aladdin.<\/em><\/p>\n

Jessica Simpson:<\/strong> It was the only Nintendo game we played.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> We loved that one. I was just laughing because the last time that we did a joint cover was Teen People. <\/em>How do you think our lives have changed? Our marriages, breakups, children. I had a baby so early. But what a freaking journey we\u2019ve had. Holy moly. I feel like I\u2019ve changed a lot. What about you?<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> You and I both. Oh my gosh, 25 years old. I was in a newfound freedom because I was going through a divorce. I was becoming myself all over again.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> We stayed close to each other through these transitions. It\u2019s almost funny, because we\u2019ve been through so many of those.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> We stayed close as a family, no matter our parents going through a divorce, no matter all of our divorces. I probably faked it until I made it way more than most. When I first got to Nashville to write my new record last year, I listened to CeCe Winans over and over \u2014 \u201cI Surrender All.\u201d Her version still gives me chills because I was there to surrender all. I discovered so much that wasn\u2019t true about the life I was leading that led me to shed everything all over again. Here I am again like I was at 25, out here floating around in the atmosphere on my own, but I know I\u2019ve got my own back and it\u2019s all in God\u2019s hands when we surrender everything. That is our upbringing. Our faith is what always leads us back to our strength, for sure.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> I\u2019m so excited to be talking to you about this journey that you\u2019ve been on. Tell me about Nashville Canyon.<\/em> How did this all start?<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> It really all began by going backward and making a playlist of stuff that I would listen to and that would hit me in different places than a little ditty that would be a hit.<\/p>\n

The music releases from my younger years were all over the place in terms of actual direction. It was always about following pop-music trends no matter the cost. Even if I didn\u2019t love what I was singing, it was what the label needed of me. I was always going to abide by the rules because I was taught to be a rule-abider. I wish I could have broken the rules more, like you.<\/p>\n

ASR: <\/strong>You loved the rules. I\u2019ve never cared about the rules.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> You were the cool one. I was doing what other people were telling me to do because it was radio friendly and it was the only way that my name would be heard.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> When I listen to Nashville Canyon,<\/em> I hear an Americana, rockabilly, timeless, old-school, classic vibe. You worked with a live band.<\/p>\n

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\n On Ashlee:\u00a0HERM\u00c8S <\/strong>Polo Crop Top, Crop Top, A-line Skirt, and Buckle, available at boutiques. <\/em>GIUSEPPE ZANOTTI<\/strong> Intriigo Strap Sandal, at giuseppezanotti.com. <\/em>POMELLATO<\/strong> Iconica Ring in 18-Karat Rose Gold With Diamonds, at<\/em> <\/em><\/strong>pomellato.com.<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>On Jessica:\u00a0ISABEL MARANT<\/strong> Dalila Gilet and Delma Short, at<\/em> isabelmarant.com. <\/em>JESSICA SIMPSON<\/strong> Aamina Platform Sandal, at jessicasimpson.com. <\/em>POMELLATO<\/strong> Iconica Necklace in 18-Karat Rose Gold With Diamonds, at<\/em> <\/em><\/strong>pomellato.com.<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n Photo: Gillian Laub<\/span>\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

JS:<\/strong> Dad said to me the other day, \u201cHoney, since when did you start liking that rock music?\u201d I was watching documentaries on the Delta blues, on the beginnings of music. What about these songs makes them timeless? It\u2019s about the instruments, not the computer. It\u2019s about the simplicity of the story. I don\u2019t think that I would\u2019ve had the courage to do it this way if people weren\u2019t as receptive as they were to my words in Open Book.<\/em><\/p>\n

Making this record wasn\u2019t about having a hit. It was just about having a vibe. There\u2019s really not a lot of that in L.A. right now. It\u2019s formulaic. I wanted to break that mold for myself personally. I don\u2019t care if anything\u2019s a hit. I\u2019m not with a record label. I don\u2019t expect it to even be on the radio. I appreciate that you realize how deeply rooted, in unexpected ways, this project is for me to set myself apart from old versions of myself. It\u2019s not like it\u2019s not me singing.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> We like the old versions too! But we grow and we change. I feel like this is the most you<\/em> version.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> I came back to the beginning. People have so many versions of me in their head. It\u2019s confusing! Oh, is that the girl who doesn\u2019t know the difference between chicken and tuna?<\/em><\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> I\u2019ve loved that people know nothing about me.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Well, Open Book<\/em> did that for me. I had no expectations going in \u2026 I thought it\u2019d come in at No. 15 or something. When I heard it was No. 1, I was like, What? People care that much? <\/em>I was like, Wow, bravery pays off.<\/em> And it gives you freedom.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> You\u2019ve really put yourself out there in ways that I don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

JS: <\/strong>I\u2019ve only seen success in honesty. I feel like you got that with Newlyweds<\/em> \u2014 you got us being honest on reality TV. I mean, we were some of the first to ever be on reality TV! You got to see a side of our personalities. We\u2019re quirky and funky and weird and honest. We\u2019re just ourselves, and we\u2019re dorks. We\u2019re real people.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> We\u2019re talking while you\u2019re at your house in L.A. But you moved to Nashville to write the record. What brought you back to Nashville?<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Around 2016, \u201917, I was writing out here in L.A. with some of the biggest hitmakers. I have songs from those times that I never released because they just didn\u2019t feel like me. Every time I would write, I was a little afraid of myself. It was almost too much, especially because I was drinking at the time.<\/p>\n

But once I gave up the alcohol, the fears just diminished. They went away. And it was so much easier for me to access myself artistically. I\u2019d thought the more I drank, the more cool I could be and find cool words that would rhyme, that wouldn\u2019t be so expected. I overthought it when I drank.<\/p>\n

When I took alcohol out of it, it became something that wasn\u2019t so \u201cWoe is me.\u201d It became more empowering. I started pulling out my old journals, which eventually became Open Book.<\/em> I now realize the power of words put to music. I would never have found that here in L.A. because there\u2019s way too many distractions. As mothers, we\u2019re people pleasers. We want to make sure everybody\u2019s happy, nobody\u2019s crying. We come last here in L.A. I needed to go somewhere where I was first. Not that I didn\u2019t think of my children.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> We both have three kids. How does it feel now that your kids are older and let you go to Nashville for that bit of time for yourself to actually create? I feel sometimes it is nice to separate yourself from motherhood for a second, to ask yourself, Who am I?<\/em><\/p>\n

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\n On Jessica: DIOR<\/strong> Dress, available at boutiques. <\/em>JESSICA SIMPSON <\/strong>Jaycin High Heel, at jessicasimpson.com. <\/em>VAN CLEEF & ARPELS <\/strong>Palmyre Necklace with Diamonds set in 18K White Gold and Perl\u00e9e Diamonds Pav\u00e9 Ring with Diamonds set in 18K White Gold, at vancleefarpels.com. <\/em>On Ashlee: DIOR<\/strong> Top, Bodysuit, and Optical-D Boots, similar styles available at boutiques. <\/em>POMELLATO <\/strong>Catene Bracelet and Catene Ring, both in 18K Rhodium-Plated White Gold with White Diamonds, <\/strong>at pomellato.com<\/em>
\n Photo: Gillian Laub<\/span>\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

JS:<\/strong> It is a gift. Eric supported that gift. My kids supported that gift. We were out in Nashville for Maxwell\u2019s 11th birthday, and she\u2019s 12 now. I don\u2019t know why she wanted to go to Nashville for her birthday other than she loves horses. Instead of singing \u201cHappy Birthday,\u201d she wanted me to play Hank Williams\u2019s \u201cI Saw the Light\u201d when she woke up. I was having all these flashbacks of making my first record at 14, which was a gospel record, there. I was having flashbacks of writing In This Skin, <\/em>writing \u201cWith You,\u201d some of my songs that reflect me more than other stuff. I\u2019m playing \u201cI Saw the Light\u201d instead of \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d to my 11-year-old daughter. And all of a sudden, I saw the light: I had to be in Nashville. I started looking at real estate that day.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> I find it so brave. God, I just turned 40. It\u2019s like, Wait, is my life over?<\/em> No, it\u2019s just beginning.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> When you say you\u2019re 40, it really makes me feel old. By the time you turn 40, if you\u2019re still listening to what other people are telling you, you shouldn\u2019t be in the position to be making a record. By the time you turn 40, you\u2019re a woman. You need to know your place in this world \u2014 whether it\u2019s onstage, whether it\u2019s being a songwriter. We\u2019ve always been so creative, and our creative outlets have always been writing. You\u2019ve always been such an honest writer, and you don\u2019t care if it causes commotion. I had a brand to protect; I had reputations to protect.<\/p>\n

If my younger self was about to promote a new album, I would have 40 interviews lined up; I would be flying everywhere. I would be exhausting myself \u2014 and all for a song that somebody else had written that is supposed to be representing who I am as an artist. It\u2019s wild to me that I did that for so many years.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> When we were new moms, you couldn\u2019t even walk out the door without having to hide.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Another great thing about Nashville is there\u2019s no paparazzi. I literally was doing cartwheels down the Walmart aisles.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Isn\u2019t that the best? Like, Hey, I\u2019m a human!<\/em><\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> I was like, Being in CVS right now is so dope. Look at all these new little Vaselines!<\/em><\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> I always love to go to your closet or your bathroom. It\u2019s, like, 500 million products. My kids love nothing more than to go into your pantry because you have every treat on the planet. You really do love that CVS, Walmart, whatever.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> I\u2019m your all-American girl when it comes to that, that\u2019s for sure.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> You love to save memories. I would say you\u2019re not a hoarder; you\u2019re a collector, okay?<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Yeah. I got over the hoarder part when I was like, This is ridiculous. There\u2019s a million white tank tops here. Not every single one has to have its own story.<\/em><\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Let\u2019s go back to you when you were signed. We\u2019re in the \u201990s. I was at the School of American Ballet.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> You dyed your hair with Kool-Aid.<\/p>\n

ASR: <\/strong>I had braces, and I was just a little ballerina. You and Dad came to New York; you got signed. People were dicks back then. It was like, \u201cYou should be skinny; you should look like this; you should sound like this person.\u201d I saw so much of that, and I was like, Oh no, fuck that. I\u2019m never going to be that.<\/em><\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> You knew yourself from the beginning.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Only because I watched you going through it.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Yeah, you watched me going through it \u2014 you watched me getting booed onstage.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Hey, I\u2019ve been there too.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> You were watching the faces of people, and you were like, Wait a second \u2014 this is my dream, but I\u2019m going to do it my way. I see Jessica having to do it their way, and there\u2019s no backing out of that for her.<\/em><\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> There were just so many men.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> In suits.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Telling you what you\u2019re supposed to be or who you\u2019re supposed to be when having this conversation across town.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> I had to be a pop star because I signed on to be a pop star. No matter what, there was never going to be enough sales, there was never going to be recouping, because they would put so much into me trying to win. You\u2019re a by-product of this company that\u2019s making them money. I didn\u2019t realize that until I was dropped in 2008 or \u201909 by my country-music label with my first No. 1 country album. My country record was written in Nashville, and that\u2019s where I felt very much myself. All of a sudden, there were these 360 deals and I wouldn\u2019t sign. That was the first time I stood up for myself. But I was always defined by having a record deal. I had a record deal since I was 14 years old, so to be at the age of 28, 29 not having a record deal, I didn\u2019t know where I was or what I was or who I was, and I didn\u2019t know who I was working for. It took me a while to realize that I deserved to work for myself.<\/p>\n

ASR: <\/strong>If you could give me one symbol, because we\u2019re symbol people, what is your symbol of this EP?<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> My symbol for this record would be an owl. At this house, we had this owl that would show up in times when I really needed it the most, when I felt like my heart was sliced in half. It would be there through thunderstorms, lightning, just sitting there, waiting on us to arrive, to come home. It was so strange. I ended up giving it the name Prince, because me and Prince, back in the day, we would get into spiritual conversations. One time during this Grammys party, I went to his house and he was kind of waiting for me. The door opens and he\u2019s standing there. He\u2019s like, \u201cMs. Jessica?\u201d And I\u2019m like, \u201cYeah, Mr. Prince?\u201d<\/p>\n

He took me by the hand and said, \u201cI want to show you something.\u201d People are walking around with their Grammys, their accolades, and he had just released Musicology. <\/em>He couldn\u2019t stand where music was, and he wanted to school people on where music should be. He walks me to his mantel, and he\u2019s like, \u201cDo you notice anything?\u201d I look up and there\u2019s one thing on his mantel, and it was a cutout picture of just my smile framed. I was like, \u201cIs that my smile?\u201d<\/p>\n

He was like, \u201cYes, and I want you to look very closely at that smile and know that no matter how many talks we have about being Jehovah\u2019s Witness or nondenominational or Baptist or whatever it is, God is in that smile. Don\u2019t let any man ever take that smile away from you, and do not let this music business take that smile away from you.\u201d<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Well, gosh, Jess. I remember my first dance being to \u201cHow Come U Don\u2019t Call Me Anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

JS: <\/strong>I know, I thought about that. And so I put Prince on the mantel of my house in Nashville, this dope black-and-white photo that was him in his element. Just to remember the importance of my smile through whatever it is that I am going through, wherever it is I\u2019m leading myself through, that I am my own guide. And then I think of Stevie Nicks and the photos of her holding an owl.<\/p>\n

ASR: <\/strong>Between Stevie Nicks and Lauryn Hill, that\u2019s like heaven to me.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Lauryn Hill for both of us \u2014 I mean, Sister Act 2, <\/em>come on. Everything! That was probably musically what we connected over the most. We connected over India Arie. She was always ahead of the curve, always a straight shooter from the soul. When you listen to music, you know when somebody is locked in. And we loved the Romeo + Juliet <\/em>soundtrack, could not get enough of it. I had a New Kids on the Block poster, while you had an Alanis Morissette poster. I was always boy crazy.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Should we collaborate again? We\u2019ve had Christmas collaborations: \u201cThe Little Drummer Boy,\u201d and when we did \u201cWar Is Over,\u201d that was so much fun. When we are singing together, what band do we say we sound like?<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Heart.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Heart. Because we are from the same family, our tones \u2014<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Our tones really vibrate well together. There\u2019s definitely a world where there could be a Jessica and Ashlee record, for sure. We have always wanted to collaborate. It\u2019s just about our worlds colliding and the timing being right. Maybe after you come to Nashville.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> We definitely need to at least write a song for the people. Because we come from the same place. And you know me \u2014 I always want to sing with you. I also need a Nashville trip, so take me.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> I want to go too. I feel like I\u2019ve been home too long. My L.A. house is on the market. I don\u2019t know where I\u2019m going next, but it\u2019s time to go.<\/p>\n

ASR:<\/strong> Everything happens for a reason, and we find ourselves. At least we\u2019re aware of it and we see the light in the dark and we love each other.<\/p>\n

JS:<\/strong> Yep. And we always need an owl standing by.<\/p>\n