Stephanie Mills
Mills for the2020 United States Census
Born	(1957-03-22)March 22, 1957 (age 68)[1] Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Occupations	Singer songwriter
Years active	1966–present
Spouse(s)	Jeffrey Daniel ​ ​ (m. 1980; div. 1983)​ [2][3][4] Dino Meminger ​ ​ (m. 1989; div. 1991)​ [5] Michael Saunders ​ ​ (m. 1993; div. 2001)​ [6][7]
Children	1
Musical career
Genres	Soul gospel pop disco dance R&B
Instrument	Vocals
Labels	ABC Records Motown 20th Century Casablanca MCA GospoCentric LightYear Expansion Records
Musical artist
Website	https://iamstephaniemills.com/

Stephanie Dorthea Mills^[8][9] (born March 22, 1957)^[1][10] is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to stardom as "Dorothy" in the original seven-time Tony Award winning Broadway run of the musicalThe Wiz from 1974 to 1979. The song "Home" from the show later became a Number 1 U.S.R&B hit and her signature song.

During the 1980s, she had five Number 1 R&B hits, including "Home", "I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love", "I Feel Good All Over", "(You're Puttin') A Rush on Me" and "Something in the Way (You Make Me Feel)". She won aGrammy Award forBest Female R&B Vocal Performance for her song "Never Knew Love Like This Before" in 1981. Her albumsWhat Cha Gonna Do with My Lovin,Sweet Sensation andStephanie went gold or platinum, all through20th Century Fox Records.

Stephanie Mills was born to Joseph and Christine Mills^[2] and raised inBedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.^[11][12] Mills was raisedBaptist and sang gospel music as a child at Brooklyn's Cornerstone Baptist Church.

Mills began her professional career at age nine, appearing in theBroadwaymusicalMaggie Flynn.^[10] After winning Amateur Night at theApollo Theater six weeks straight at age eleven, Mills went on to become the opening act for theIsley Brothers.^[10] In 1973, Mills was signed toParamount Records byMichael Barbiero, and her first single "I Knew It Was Love" was released. Mills was later signed toMotown after being suggested bySuzanne de Passe. Her first two albums there failed to produce a hit, and Mills left the label in 1976.

Mills's career took a rise when she portrayed Dorothy in the seven-time Tony Award winningBroadway musicalThe Wiz, anAfrican-American adaptation ofThe Wonderful Wizard of Oz.^[13] The song "Home" was first performed by Mills in the stage production and would be covered later byDiana Ross for the movie adaptation three years later.^[14][15] Mills’s commercial success in the music industry remained elusive until 1979, when she signed to the20th Century Fox Records label. There, Mills found her niche in mainlydisco music, recording 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', being Mills's first gold record.^[16][17]

She quickly followed the success with 1980'sSweet Sensation, which featured Mills's hit "Never Knew Love Like This Before". The single became a #12 R&B and #6 Pop hit in 1980, as well as reaching #4 in theUK Singles Chart.^[18] 1981'sStephanie featured a top hit for her andTeddy Pendergrass entitled "Two Hearts".

Her 1983 album,Merciless, featured her hitcover ofPrince'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 third UK hit with "The Medicine Song" (#29),^[18] which also reached #1 on the U.S. dance chart and #8 on the R&B chart. On May 24, 1984, Mills returned to theater to star in a short-lived touring revival ofThe Wiz.

In 1985, Mills's recording of "Bit by Bit (Theme fromFletch)" was featured in theChevy Chase film,Fletch, and reached #52 on theHot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, #78 onThe Billboard Hot 100 and #15 on the Dance Chart.^[19]

Success for Mills had peaked until 1986, when her version of theAngela Winbush-penned "I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love", hit #1 on the R&B singles chart. She truly returned with her next release,If I Were Your Woman in 1987 underMCA Records, which she was now signed. The hits from the album include the title track, originally a hit forGladys Knight & the Pips in 1971, a three-week #1 R&B hit, "I Feel Good All Over", and "You're Puttin' a Rush on Me", to name a few of the songs released. The album reachedplatinum status. That same year, she appeared in the NBC TV special,Motown: Merry Christmas along with other musical artists and actors, performing the song, "Christmas Everyday", which was written by actor/comedianRedd Foxx.

Mills's success continued with 1989'sHome album. The hits from that album include "The Comfort of a Man", the title track, a cover of her old standard fromThe Wiz and another song penned by Winbush titled "Something in the Way You Make Me Feel", which became another platinum record for Mills.

Mills would record one more album (1992'sSomething Real) and a Christmas album before being released from her contract with MCA in 1992. In 1993, she once again starred in the role of Dorothy inThe Wiz. This revival was also short lived, closing after 28 performances. Mills released a live gospel recording in 1994 onGospoCentric Records entitledPersonal Inspirations. The set was produced byDonald Lawrence and featured a spiritualized retooling of her hit "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love". Thereafter, Mills took a break from recording to care for her son.

In 1997, Mills played the lead in a major production ofStephen Schwartz'sChildren of Eden in New Jersey, which Schwartz has called "the definitive production" of the show.^{[citation needed]} She made an appearance in the 2007 gospel TV seriesSunday Best and was featured in a live interview onThe Yolanda Adams Morning Show, where she mentioned that she has her own record label (JM Records). In 2008, she began a comeback with singles recorded withBeBe Winans and rapperDMX to name a few. She made a comeback in independently-releasingBorn For This (released onExpansion Records in the UK) on August 3, 2004. Her first single in over a decade, "Can't Let Him Go", was released. A 2-disc, career-spanning greatest hits compilation entitledGold was released by Hip-O/Universal Music earlier last year

Towards the end of 2012, Mills released a new single "So In Love This Christmas", available for download. In 2015, Mills was cast as Aunt Em in theNBC live musical production ofThe Wiz, forty years after her initial Broadway run in the show.^[20]

Mills gained media attention in 2018 with her response to singerSam Smith, who remarked in a video posted toInstagram that they did not likeMichael Jackson, but the Jackson hit "Human Nature" was a "decent song".^[21] Mills' fiery response quickly gained traction as she criticized Smith in her own Instagram responses, both accusing Smith of cultural appropriation and referring to him as a "one hit wonder".^[22]

In 2021, Mills participated in aVerzuz battle with singerChaka Khan, at which both singers performed hits from their discography.^[23] In 2024, Mills returned to Broadway after forty years as Missus Hermes in the musicalHadestown.^[24]

Mills has been married three times:^{[2][25][26][27]}

• Jeffrey Daniel: (1980–1983), Jeffrey Daniel was from the R&B/soul groupShalamar.
• Dino Meminger: (1989–1991).
• Michael Saunders: (1993–2001), MinisterLouis Farrakhan officiated the wedding ceremony.

Mills has a son, Farad Mills, who was born withDown syndrome.^[28] She also once had a brief relationship with fellow singerMichael Jackson.^[29]

Studio albums

• Movin' in the Right Direction (1974)
• For the First Time (1975)
• Love Has Lifted Me (1976)
• What Cha' Gonna Do with My Lovin' (1979)
• Sweet Sensation (1980)
• Stephanie (1981)
• Tantalizingly Hot (1982)
• Merciless (1983)
• I've Got the Cure (1984)
• Stephanie Mills (1985)
• If I Were Your Woman (1987)
• Home (1989)
• Something Real (1992)
• Personal Inspirations (1994)
• Born for This! (2004)

• Maggie Flynn (1968)
• The Wiz (1974–79; 1984; 1993)
• Harlem Suite (1988)
• Stephanie Mills Comes Home to Broadway (1989)
• Children of Eden (1997)
• Purlie (1998)
• Ragtime (1999)
• Funny Girl (2002) (Actors Fund benefit concert)
• Hadestown (2024)

• List of number-one dance hits (United States)
• List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart

• Stephanie Mills at Wenig-LaMonica Associates
• Stephanie Mills atAllMusic
• Stephanie Mills atIMDb
• Stephanie Mills at theInternet Broadway Database

• 1957 births
• 20th-century African-American women singers
• 20th-century American women singers
• 20th-century American singers
• 20th-century Baptists
• 21st-century Baptists
• African-American women singer-songwriters
• American women singer-songwriters
• African-American Christians
• American child singers
• American dance musicians
• American Protestants
• American rhythm and blues singers
• American soul singers
• Baptists from the United States
• Grammy Award winners
• Living people
• Motown artists
• Musicians from Queens, New York
• Musicians from Brooklyn
• People from Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn
• Erasmus Hall High School alumni
• MCA Records artists
• GospoCentric artists
• Singer-songwriters from New York (state)
• Casablanca Records artists
• American gospel singers
• American ballad musicians
• 21st-century African-American women singers
• 21st-century American women singers

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