Stephanie Mills
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| Stephanie Mills | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 22, 1957 |
| Origin | Brooklyn, New York U.S. |
| Genres | R&B, soul, gospel |
| Occupations | Singer |
| Years active | 1968-present |
| Labels | Motown, 20th Century, Casablanca,
MCA, GospoCentric, LightYear |
| Website | Official website |
- For the TV series character, see Stephanie Mills (All in the Family)
Stephanie Mills (born March 22, 1957) is an American Grammy Award-winning R&B and soul singer, a former Broadway star, and was originally given the title as "the little girl with the big voice."
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[edit] Career
Mills began her career appearing in her first play at the age of 9. Two years later, Mills won Amateur Night at the world-famous Apollo Theater a record six times. The victory lead to her being cast in her first Broadway role, the orphaned child of a runaway slave in the short-lived musical Maggie Flynn.
In 1973, Mills' musical career began as she opened for the Isley Brothers. A year later, after being discovered by Jackson 5 singer Jermaine Jackson, she signed with Motown Records. Her first two albums failed to generate a buzz as the label couldn't find Mills' sound, and she left the label in 1976.
In 1975, Mills' career took a rise when she portrayed Dorothy in an African-American adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz entitled The Wiz, where she began dating Michael Jackson. Filled with a more urban style of music and scenery, The Wiz made Mills a star particularly because of her stellar performance of the song "Home." It would become her signature tune for years, and would be covered later by Diana Ross for the big-screen adaptation three years later and by Whitney Houston for her dramatic musical performance debut on TV in the early 1980s.
Musical success was elusive until 1979, when signed under the 20th century Fox record label, Mills found her breakthrough in disco music, recording now-classic danceable songs such as "Put Your Body In It," "You Can Get Over," and "What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin'." The resulting album, What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin, was Mills' first gold record.
She quickly followed the success with 1980's Sweet Sensation, which featured Mills' biggest hit to date, the Reggie Lucas-produced "Never Knew Love Like This Before". The single became a #12 R&B and #6 Pop hit in 1980, even reaching #4 in the UK. 1981's Stephanie featured a top hit for her and Teddy Pendergrass entitled "Two Hearts," while her 1983 album, Merciless, featured her hit cover of Prince's "How Come You Don't Call Me Anymore?", as well as the #3 dance chart hit "Pilot Error", which was her first dance hit in the U.S. In 1984, Mills had her second UK hit with "The Medicine Song" (#29), which also reached #1 on the U.S. dance chart.
Success for Mills had peaked until 1985, when her version of the Angela Winbush-penned "I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love," hit #1 on the R&B singles chart. Mills truly returned, however, with her next release, If I Were Your Woman in 1987 under MCA Records, which she was now signed. The hits from the album include the title track, originally a hit for Gladys Knight & the Pips in 1971; a three-week #1 R&B hit, "I Feel Good All Over" (a song her label mate Patti LaBelle didn't want to cover); and "You're Puttin' a Rush on Me," to name a few of the songs released. The album reached platinum status.
Mills' success continued with 1989's Home album. The hits from that album include "The Comfort of a Man," the title track, a cover of her old standard from The Wiz and another song penned by Winbush titled "Something in the Way You Make Me Feel." It became another platinum record for Mills.
Mills would record one more album (1992's Something Real) and a Christmas album before being released from her contract with MCA in 1992. Mills released a live gospel recording in 1995 on GospoCentric Records entitled Personal Inspirations. The set was produced by Donald Lawrence and featured a spiritualized retooling of her hit "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love." Thereafter, Stephanie took a break from recording to care for her son.
Mills returned to musical theater in 1997, playing the lead in a major production of Stephen Schwartz's Children of Eden in New Jersey, which Schwartz has called "the definitive production" of the show. Mills was heavily featured in the soundtrack CD that resulted from this production.
In 2000, Mills began a comeback with singles recorded with BeBe Winans and rapper DMX to name a few. She made a comeback in independently-releasing Born For This on 3 August 2004. Her first single in over a decade, "Can't Let Him Go," garnered buzz at urban contemporary radio. Mills is currently touring. A 2-disc, career-spanning greatest hits compilation entitled Gold was released by Hip-O/Universal Music earlier last year. Mills just finished production of a live DVD recorded at BB Kings in New York which will be sold online and at her shows.
Mills made an appearance in the 2007 hit gospel TV series Sunday Best and was recently featured in a live interview on The Yolanda Adams Morning Show, where she mentioned that she now has her own record label (JM Records).
Mills performed prior to Pope Benedict XVI celebrating Mass at Yankee Stadium in New York on April 20, 2008. In a recent interview Mills stated that she would be releasing her Live CD during the end of this year and that Live CD will include two new tracks.
[edit] Personal life
Stephanie is the fifth born of six children. She was romantically involved with Michael Jackson for a short period of time while she was doing The Wiz.[1] She was married briefly (18 months) to Jeffrey Daniel from soul group Shalamar. Stephanie was also married to New York radio program manager Michael Saunders in the 1990s. Their wedding ceremony was performed by Minister Louis Farrakhan. The couple divorced sometime later.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Awards
- 1974 – nominated for Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress - Musical ("The Wiz").
- 1979 – nominated for American Music Award: Favorite Female Artist - Soul / Rhythm & Blues.
- 1980 – won Grammy Award: Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Female ("Never Knew Love Like This Before").
- 1980 – nominated for an American Music Award: Favorite Female Artist - Soul / Rhythm & Blues
- 1980 – nominated for Young Artist Awards: Best Young Musical Recording Artist - Female ("Two Hearts").
- 1981 – nominated for a Grammy Award: Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Female (Stephanie).
- 1981 – won American Music Award for Favorite Female Artist - Soul / Rhythm & Blues
- 1983 – nominated for a Grammy Award: Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Female ("Merciless").
- 1989 – nominated for American Music Award: Favorite Female Artist - Soul / Rhythm & Blues
[edit] See also
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Stephanie Mills Official website
- Stephanie Mills at Wenig-LaMonica Associates
- Stephanie Mills at Allmusic
- Stephanie Mills at the Internet Movie Database
- Stephanie Mills at the Internet Broadway Database
