Lisa Heller

Lisa Heller (born April 16) is an American singer and songwriter from Simsbury, Connecticut. She achieved global recognition after the release of her song "Hope" along with its video, which trended first on YouTube in Sweden, Canada, Ireland, Finland, Denmark, Australia, and Italy.[1] The song and video premiered on Twist Magazine June 24, 2016.[2]

Lisa Heller
Lisa Heller in 2016
Background information
OriginSimsbury, Connecticut, U.S.
GenresPop, singer-songwriter
Occupation(s)
  • Singer-songwriter
  • pianist
  • guitarist
  • record producer
Years active2014–present
LabelsUnsigned, AWAL
Associated actsRozes (musician), Rachel Platten, Aaron Sterling, Jim McGorman
Websitelisaheller.com

Early life

Heller was born in Simsbury, Connecticut, the first daughter of Wendy (Loeb) Heller and David Heller. She has a younger sister (Nicole) and brother (William) who grew up in Simsbury with her. Heller's father is from Westport, Connecticut, and her mother is from West Hartford, Connecticut. She graduated from Simsbury High School.

Career

Early career

Heller has noted that she frequently wrote songs in her bedroom throughout high school as a relief from her anxiety.[3] While still in high school, Lisa placed in national songwriting competitions. Due to the support from local radio stations and newspapers she quickly gained a small local following of fans in and around her Connecticut hometown.[3] Heller started college at Colgate University in August 2014, studying psychology. While at school, Heller frequently was asked to return home to open for touring bands such as American Authors and Rachel Platten at 96.5 TIC Acoustic Cafe's.[3]

Lisa Heller in NYC

Hope, creation of the Hope Wall, Continuation of success

Heller recorded her debut single "Hope" summer 2016 with producer Jim McGorman at Sunset Sound Factory in Hollywood, California.[4] After returning home, in the weeks leading up to her single, Lisa reached out to a few individuals going through particularly hard times in and around Connecticut.[4] This led to the creation of the "Hope Wall" where people all over the world have submitted their stories of courage and bravery.[4] The release of her single, "Hope" was on June 24, 2016, with a video premiere on Twist Magazine the same day.[2] The song has achieved global success, topping the coveted YouTube Trending charts in over 5 countries and independently reaching over 1.5 million views.[5] Heller released follow-up singles "Midnight" and "Light the Fire" which caught the attention of online outlets such as HuffPost, SongFacts and Born Music.[6][1][7] "Light the Fire" was part of the #ICANHELP campaign designed to "educate and empower students to use social media positively."[8] In late 2018, her single "Hope" was featured in the Lifetime Movie The Perfect Mother.[9]

2019: Ghost, Hope

In 2019 Heller moved to Los Angeles. Within weeks of arriving, she was approached by a Nashville based music manager and label.[10] This record label helped her put out a slue of releases in the electro-pop genre, including a music video for her song "Ghost".[11][12][13] Heller then decided to go a new direction musically, as she stated on her Instagram.[14]

2020: The Lisa Heller Project

Heller announced that her debut EP would be coming out in 2020. Her first single off of the EP was released on January 3, 2020, and the music video premiered on Popmatters on January 21, 2020.[15]

Personal life

When Heller was in high school years old, she was diagnosed with vocal cord dysfunction.[1] She noticed it when she "... was in the middle of running a race and my throat started closing up."[16] She continued to say "I wasn't sure what was happening, but I couldn't get the air in."[16] She collapsed near the finish line. Her doctors advised her to hum or sing during her races to relax her vocal chords.[16]

Discography

Singles
Title Year Peaks Album
"Hope" 2016 — Non-album singles
"Midnight" 2017 — Non-album singles
"Quicksand" 2018 — Non-album singles
"Ghost" 2019 — Non-album singles
"Figure It Out" 2020 — "The Lisa Heller Project"
"Pulling Away" 2020 — "The Lisa Heller Project"
"Closure" 2020 — "The Lisa Heller Project"
"Deep End" 2020 — "The Lisa Heller Project"
"Wings" 2020 — TBD

Filmography

Music videos
Title Year Director
Hope 2016 Kurt J. Zendzian
Ghost 2019 Doltyn Snedden
Figure It Out 2020 Jamal Wade
Pulling Away 2020 Jamal Wade
Closure 2020 Alex Lepkowski
Deep End 2020 Alex Lepkowski

Awards and nominations
Awards Category Outcome
American Songwriting Awards Performance Top 5 Finalist
American Songwriting Awards Teen Won
International Songwriting Competition Pop Semi-finalist

References
  1. "Songwriter Interviews: Lisa Heller". Songfacts. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  2. Hope Kowalski, Kristine (June 24, 2016). "Exclusive: Catch the Premiere of Lisa Heller's Music Video for 'Hope'". Twist. Retrieved July 13, 2017.
  3. "Simsbury Teen Places Among Top 5 in American Songwriting Awards Competition". Hartford Courant. November 26, 2014. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  4. "ON THE RISE: Lisa Heller On Her Creative Journey, New Music and Much More!". Icon vs. Icon. June 28, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
  5. "ON THE RISE: Lisa Heller On Her Creative Journey, New Music and Much More!". Icon vs. Icon. June 28, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  6. "Lisa Heller- Midnight and Beyond". Huffington Post. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  7. "Spotlight: Lisa Heller". Born Music. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  8. "Music". Lisa Heller. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  9. https://www.instagram.com/p/BqDot6_FZKv/
  10. https://www.eartothegroundmusic.co/2020/01/04/ep-review-the-lisa-heller-project-beautifully-breaking-the-rules/
  11. Lisa Heller- Ghost (Official Music Video), retrieved December 20, 2019
  12. Lisa Heller – Ghost (Lyrics Video), retrieved December 20, 2019
  13. Desk, BWW News. "Lisa Heller Releases New Single GHOST". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  14. https://www.instagram.com/p/B61W0SklocJ/
  15. https://www.popmatters.com/lisa-heller-figure-it-out-2644872340.html
  16. "Lisa Heller Inspires with "Hope"". Colgate University News. March 2, 2017. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
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