New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Lisa Dawn Miller (lisadawnmiller.com) makes her debut into the EDM Dance world with her latest single release, "I've Been to Paradise," which is an interpolation of the 1982 classic, "I've Never Been to Me," written by her father, legendary songwriter, Ron Miller (lyrics) (ronmillersongbook.com) and Kenny Hirsch (music).
"The new recording is upbeat, up-tempo, and has a feel-good vibe - you just want to get up and start dancing to it," Lisa said. "I've always wanted to do something in this genre, and this was the perfect song," she continued.
Lisa also has plans to use this song as it was originally written (as a ballad) in a new show she is developing for Broadway about her father's life, "A Place in the Sun." "That's the beauty of a great song - it can be recorded in any genre, in any generation," Lisa said. The 1982 chart-topper remains popular amongst fans and continues to appear in film, stage, recording, and television projects.
"I've Never Been to Me," the song that wouldn't die, as some have referred to it, was originally produced by Ron and released by Motown Records in 1977 by recording artist, Charlene, with no financial or promotional backing and barely charted on Billboard's Hot 100. In 1982, Scott Shannon, a DJ at Tampa radio station WRBQ-FM who always loved the record, pulled it off the shelf and began playing it on the radio. The response was so overwhelming that Motown was forced to re-release the record due to popular demand. The song went on to top the charts in multiple countries around the globe and became a classic.
"I think 'I've Never Been to Me' is one of my father's best lyrics. It's brilliant, controversial, and means different things to different people. Originally, it was written from a man's point of view," Lisa said. "There's an incredible version by the
Temptations with lead vocals by
Dennis Edwards that I love. I have the first-ever recording of it that my dad recorded himself just after he wrote it in the 1970's," Lisa continued. "In addition to writing it into the new show I'm developing for Broadway where we explore the song's complexity and depth, I plan on releasing longer versions of the EDM Dance version to include all the verses."
After battling legally for years to reclaim the rights to her father's vast legacy catalogue, and succeeding, Lisa is now developing several creative projects about his life and continues to reimagine his songs. On October 8, Lisa hosted and performed in "For Once in My Life - The Songs of Ron Miller" (foronceinmylife.com), presented by 54 Below and co-produced by director, Robert W. Schneider to rave reviews: (https://www.broadwayworld.com/cabaret/article/Review-FOR-ONCE-IN-MY-LIFE-THE-SONGS-OF-RON-MILLER-Is-a-Thriller-of-a-Show-at-54-Below-20231025). The show had special guest appearances, including by
Oliver Richman (oliverrichman.com), Lisa's son, who gave a showstopping performance of his grandfather's classic standard, "For Once in My Life."
Lisa produces and stars as "Frank's One Love" in the critically acclaimed hit musical, "Sandy Hackett's Rat Pack" (sandysratpack.com) which tours throughout the U.S. and is currently in its 15th season. She also produces/directs the musical comedy, "My Buddy," and has produced multiple recordings and directed numerous music videos. She runs her own music publishing company, LDM Worldwide (ldmworld.com), and record label, J-Wall Records (jwallrecords.com). She is the managing partner of the Ron Miller Legacy Songtrust, the
Aurora Miller Legacy Songtrust, and the Ron Miller Songbook.
Lisa released two new singles this summer, "I Need Your Love," and "Rhythm of Me." In October, she released a new holiday EP collection, "My Favorite Time of Year," which includes Ron's classic "Someday at Christmas." Looking ahead to 2024, Lisa's first release, slated for January, is entitled "There You Are," a touching ballad about love and loss. In 2022, Lisa signed a new publishing deal with Sony
Music Publishing to administer her father's songs. The new deal expands upon a decades-long partnership between the Miller songs and the publishing giant. On November 1, Lisa launched Shop LDM, (shopldmworld.com), a music-inspired fashion line tied to her song releases.
