Don’t Be Mad: Miller’s Art Basel Journey from Houston to Miami Beach

Don't Be Mad: Miller's Art Basel Journey from Houston to Miami Beach

We’re all looking for that perfect meet-cute story that leads to a happily ever after. In Miller’s case, a meet-cute led to not getting the guy but an epic performance at the Adam & Eve party, a premier event during Art Basel Miami Beach. Months after this situationship ended she received an email from Sasha Bernier, saying this guy had recommended her as a performer and that we would love to have her sing in Miami. Miller immediately phoned her stylist to start working on an outfit befitting the fifth-year anniversary celebration!

The outfit she wore did not disappoint! Miller strutted around the stage in a stunning red gown complete with red accessories and a gold choker that spelled out “Adam’s Apple”. (We’re willing to bet if that guy was watching he was rethinking his decision to let this vixen go.) Her style is only surpassed by her incredible voice which serenaded the crowd with Tina Turner’s “Whats Love Got to do with It” and Miller’s original song “Don’t Be Mad”.

Let’s hear from the singer herself on her inspiration and her road to Art Basel.

Q: Miller, you have a captivating voice and charismatic presence on stage. How did you start singing?

Miller: My journey begins at a young age, with an acapella performance of Whitney Houston’s “I Believe in You” on the fifth-grade talent show stage. While the response was a laugh followed by delayed applause, I remember taking this as a positive sign thinking if I was rejected or flopped early on it was an indication I would blow up as an artist. Hence, I used this experience as fuel to take singing lessons from that point on. I became president of my high school choir and was always painting or singing as a young girl. My father was a DJ and did have me try softball once, but after I made clear that music was my passion he was fully on board to support my creative development.

Q:Let’s get into your Adam & Eve performance. What inspires your music? “Don’t Be Mad” was so fun and it’s still ringing in my ears!

Miller: Thank you! That song was inspired by my divorce. After a few years of being married I felt like a stranger in my relationship and did not recognize who I had become anymore. “It takes two, to f*** it up, it takes two, baby, to ruin it” speaks to the effort it takes from two people to make a relationship work whilst women frequently get blamed as being crazy or too emotional. Writing and singing these words helped me process those feelings of loss and change around that time. I actually moved to Atlanta, away from my hometown, after that to take a break for a bit and am finally back in Houston and writing new music!

Q: Any albums you’ve released? What is the new music inspired by? When is it coming out?!

Miller: In 2019, I released an album “Ellipses” to say things I always wanted to say but did not have the courage to, without regret or remorse. This is my self discovery album. It is a statement on who I am as a woman but also how we see women who are direct and blunt. Society seems to prefer the passive “ellipses” women if you will.

My new album will drop in April of this year and focuses on what to do once you find yourself and what you want, what then? Dating has been my inspiration lately. I find it truly wild how men of this generation behave. I meet so many “love adjacent” men who are lover boys but for a moment before moving on as they like having their options.

Q: You brought some photography to Adam & Eve, keeping in theme with the event it was nudes of yourself. What inspired this? How did you get into photography?

Miller: As a singer, I’ve always had to do shoots for album covers. My photographer Krista is the only one I’ve let photograph me nude. However, I only am photographed nude during pivotal moments or when something kismet happens to me. The door series I presented at Adam & Eve was shot the day after I asked my husband for a divorce. I felt seen but not seen in that relationship and this series captured me in my natural state with a bit of cloudiness from the door.

Q: What drew you to nude photography?

Miller: I want to free the woman and enable other women to be comfortable in their skin. Bodies are trendy. Art from the Renaissance was all about thick women as it projected wealth and power whilst the cocaine era of the 1990s embraced “thin is in” and stick skinny women as the ideal body type. Now the pendulum swings back to body positivity. I don’t have ultimate control of my body and I want to embrace myself as thin or thicker with the same self-love and confidence. Nude photographs during these transitional moments every few years document my bodily changes. I want to love myself in every shape and encourage other women to do the same.