“On a Roll” by Ashley O

Ashley O’s “On a Roll” runs along two different storylines. One is based on the title, with the singer being “on a roll”, which is another way of saying that she is experiencing continuous victories, as in “achieving (her) goals”. And in that regard, the track reads like a self-empowerment anthem.

However, the other theme, i.e. what the verses themselves are based on, is the loving feelings she has for her significant other. The way they are seemingly related is that the same optimism the singer feels towards life in general she also feels towards their relationship. Or another way of looking at it is that perhaps the joy she is deriving from this romance contributes to her overall-positive outlook. Either way Ashley O is “on a roll”, thoroughly convinced that the success she is experiencing in the present will carry on into the future.

Ashley O is Miley Cyrus

Singer Ashley O is actually the famous American singer Miley Cyrus. Or put differently Ashley O is a character Cyrus portrayed on an episode, which originally aired on 5 June 2019, of the hit television program Black Mirror. And “On a Roll” is actually a song created for and derived from that episode.

“On a Roll” isn’t an Original Song

“On a Roll” is a revised version of the Nine Inch Nails’ 1990 song “Head Like a Hole”. Charlie Brooker, creator of Black Mirror, modified the lyrics with the blessings of the Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor, the writer of “Head Like a Hole”.  (Indeed the B-side of “On a Roll” features an Ashley O cover of the 2005 Nine Inch Nails’ track “Right Where It Belongs”.)  As such, Miley Cyrus receives no writing credit for this song. Brooker and Reznor are credited as the two writers of this song.

 Meanwhile the track was produced by The Invisible Men, a London-based musical trio.

 Release Date

RCA Records and Null Corporation released “On a Roll” on 14 June 2019.