Grant Miller is well know artist from the 80's, who's performed German's Italo music. I have been arrange an interview with him several months ago. Due some circumstances interview won't be available for some time, and unforunately the big question is will ever be, so I decided to introduce Grant with story filled with some facts I have found out about him, through my conversation with him and with his best fried Shane Lear. I want to say BIG thanx to Shane sharing with me many nice things about Grant.

Grant today lives in Indianapolis, who's 12th largest city in USA in the state of the Indiana. It is near where Grant grew up and where his family resides. He was born in hospital in Marion, Indiana, in the same hospital where James Dean was born. “ I’ve been living in U.S.A. for six years now. I was in Hollywood, Los Angeles for four years and here in Indiana the last two years where I am near my whole family.“ Grant except his parents has one brother and one sister.

„Going back to 1983, after High School, I traveled U.S.A. with a band, and then performed on cruise ships for seven months in a singing/dancing cabaret-type show. Then I decided to not only sing, but also to act. New York City was my next destination and I started studying acting for film/tv, as well as Broadway“. When he was 18 years old he performed in Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida.

Grant's disco story began in 1984 in Europe, to be exact in Italy. How he came in Italy? „Within two years, my show business journey brought me to Europe with a Broadway tour of the music SHOWBOAT. We traveled all over Europe, appearing in many of the most famous opera houses, and I LOVED it and I knew I was there to stay.
I had always heard about Munich being a great place to make dance music and that was my dream...and destination! So, I cashed in my return plane ticket after SHOWBOAT ended. The rest of the cast flew back to New York from Palermo, Sicily. But I took the first train (California train) to Munich! In Munich I turned out right away where the music industry people would go out to (clubs, restaurants, bistros, etc.) and that's where I entered into the beginning of my "Italo Dance Music" career.

I came to Germany with Ciro, a friend that I met in Palermo, wo had been a successful fashion model in Southern Italy, and wanted to break into modeling in Germany. So, we were on a predestined mission to conquer Germany - as two foreigners who didn't speak a word of the German language. He also opened the doors for me at the modeling agencies. But, he had to convince me first that I could do it. I had never thought of doing modeling, too. Sure enough, an agent signed both of us on“.

Grant made huge modelling success and he did, among others, runaway show with model Eva Herzigova in Milan. This was only one among many shows. On the shows he met, of course, many famous people from fashion world, for example Donatella Versace. They became, I could freely say, good friends and he will make some nice favores to her and her family in the coming years. She asked Grant to sing at several of her dinner parties and he once serenaded her children. After years of modelling Grant became in 2001 the face of „Nivea" in 35 countries in Europe.

As we could see earlier Grant had interest, not only in modelling, but in singing as well. „Munich seemed to have a certain magic for us...and suddenly we found ourselves (Grant and Ciro) among the STARS...literally!“

„ I'll never forget the night I was at a dinner party where non-other than "Divine" himself was there! We started talking and spent hours getting to know each other. He immediately invited me to come to the music studio the next day, where he was working on a new catchy dance production with a producer I had never heard of in the U.S....someone called FANCY!?! Divine introduced me to Fancy and arranged for me to audition for him the next day. Fancy (or Tess) gave me a cassette of a song called "Colder Than Ice" and he told me to learn it by the next day! I was terrified and excited at the same time. So, the next day I met him in his long white Mercedes limousine. He popped the tape into the stereo and said, "Okay Sing". I guess he liked what he heard because that song became my first hit single, a cover version of one of Fancy's songs. Tess arranged an elaborate photo session for the cover and within 10 DAYS of that meeting at the restaurant, my first record was stacked in the windows of every record store in Germany. It was the autumn of 1985, and the soring beat of "Colder Than Ice" and "Red For Love" was pounding through the discos of Europe“.

After this great success, Grant Miller and Fancy continued to release one hit for another, many fantastic songs have been released: „California Train“, „Wings Of Love“, „I Am Alive Tonight“, „ Lost In Paradise“ just to mention a few. Grant became hugely popular and many fans could enjoy his voice and Fancy's production. Probably many of you will be suprised with fact that Divine's song „Give It Up“ was written especially for Divine and dedicated to Grant Miller!

No matter Grant Miller released many singles he never released an album. For some time, between italo fans, there is roumours that he has an album afterall, called „The One“. Grant said he has absolutely no idea about that. Perhaps somebody took it upon themselves to compile his songs and release it as that album. Who knows!? One for sure is, Grant has no official album.

Turns out that Grant has some old video of him performing a few different song. One is of him singing with a group he was in during the early 90's. In that footage, he sings a song about Madonna and he's a huge fan of hers.
Grant has other singing experience like:
- he was sang back-up for American country music star Barbara Mandrell
- he represented the United States at The Baltic Song Festival in 1988
- he sang a duet of "That's What Friends Are For" with Bonnie Tyler at a German benefit concert
- he formed a group called „Blue Vanity“ and topped German dance chart with "Her Name is Just Madonna", written about Madonna and once more we could see how he adore Madonna.

And that's not all from Grant, including his movie roles, he was a regular on American soap "Guiding Light" for over a year. It seems that Grant put together in a great way his singing and acting gifts what provided him satisfaction with his work and life. And also Grant is trained tap dancer. Perhaps Grant owe his career and voice to his mother because she can sang too. One day he suprised her by arranging for her to record two songs in a studio with Fancy. She sang two Carpenter's songs.
Grant is popular friend among his friends, and I can freely share, with all of you for the end of this little story about Grant Miller, a few words from his best friend Shane who told me one nice little story who describe Grant on the best way: „Here in the U.S., nobody knows his music or his success in Europe and he never mentions it to most people. He doesn't brag or think that he's something special. But he treats his friends like they are special. He's really supportive and hilarious. One day he fell asleep on the couch at Kari's house and I went in to wake him up because it was getting late. Suddennly he opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling and started speaking in German like he was possessed by the devil or something! I thought something was really wrong with him and at the same time I was kind of scared. And then suddenly he starts laughing because it was all a big joke!“

GRANT MILLER: „I send a big “hello” and “hug”to ALL of my fans who have been loyal after all of these years“

© Zeljko Vujkovic - 2005