Award-Winning Singer-Songwriter Lacy Miller Announces New Single "Courage" – Releasing July 24

Lacy Miller. Photo by Paulo Ciccone.

"Just keep rising."

It's a simple phrase, but for award-winning New York City singer-songwriter Lacy Miller, those three words became a lifeline.

On July 24, Lacy will release her newest original single, "Courage," a deeply personal anthem of resilience, healing, and hope. The song serves as the first glimpse into her upcoming album, Flowers in the Water, slated for release in 2027.

The release follows a remarkable year for Lacy. In 2025, she received the Josie Music Award for Vocalist of the Year – Adult Contemporary, recognizing her powerful vocal artistry. She has also been nominated for a 2026 Josie Music Award for Social Impact Song of the Year, further reflecting her passion for creating music that encourages and uplifts listeners.

While many know Lacy for her dazzling performances as a jazz vocalist, Courage reveals another side of the artist—one that has quietly been writing songs of faith, perseverance, and healing for years.

Lacy Miller at the Grand Ole Opry, 2025 Josie Music Awards. Photo: Calbren Media.

A Song Born in the Middle of the Storm

Although listeners are hearing Courage for the first time this summer, the song was actually written in 2017 during one of the most difficult seasons of Lacy's life.

As she navigated the effects of Complex PTSD following several years of trauma within her family, songwriting became less about creating music and more about survival.

"I wrote the song really as a pep talk to myself," Lacy shares. "I really needed courage to get through that particular season, and I realized that that is the very season that courage grows in—if you let it."

Throughout the song, one word repeats again and again:

Rise.

It wasn't accidental.

It was a declaration.

"It became my reminder," she says. "Just keep rising."

One of the song's most powerful lyrics captures that message perfectly:

Strength does grow in the sun. Strength only grows in the rain. Courage—it grows when you fall on your face And rise up in faith.

Rather than avoiding pain, Courage embraces the truth that healing often begins in the hardest places.

Stepping Outside the Jazz Spotlight

For decades, Lacy tucked many of her original songs away while building an acclaimed career in jazz.

Audiences have long recognized her as one half of the celebrated sister duo Gracie & Lacy, known for glamorous performances, sparkling gowns, rich sibling harmonies, and unforgettable shows backed by Charleston's beloved South of Broad band.

Lacy Miller Jazz Quartet (Bass: Dan Parra, Trumpet: Augie Haas, Drums: Ben Cliness.), Laurie Beechman Theatre, NYC. Photo: Barry Morgenstein Photography.

Since marrying in 2024, Lacy has made New York City her home, where she performs regularly with her own jazz trio at venues throughout the city.

But musically, she's never enjoyed staying inside one lane.

"I'm a bit of a rebel when it comes to jazz," she laughs. "I can't help myself. I love jazz, I love R&B, I love pop, I love classical, I love Broadway. I love it all!"

Courage marks a bold artistic departure into what Lacy affectionately calls Sophisti-pop—lush, emotional songwriting infused with sophisticated musical textures while maintaining the storytelling heart that has always defined her artistry.

To bring that vision to life, Lacy traveled to the United Kingdom, where Courage was recorded at Chapel View Studios and produced by award-winning multi-instrumentalist and producer Paul Stanborough. Known for his work with artists including Katy Perry, Tina Turner, Kylie Minogue, Robbie Williams, and many others, Stanborough helped craft a soaring, cinematic soundscape that perfectly complements the song's message of resilience and hope.

"Courage" recording session at Chapel View Studios in Kent, UK. Photo: Paul Stanborough, Lacy Miller, Jonathan Dickson.

A Story That Began on a Driveway

Long before New York, Charleston, or recording studios, there was a driveway in St. Louis.

As children, Lacy and her sister dreamed of Broadway. Armed with bedsheets hung across the garage door using a garden hose as a curtain rod, they recruited neighborhood friends to perform full-scale musicals for anyone willing to watch.

What started as imaginative childhood play soon became Broadway on the Driveway, a community theatre company that would run for 18 seasons, involving more than 150 performers, musicians, technicians, and volunteers while entertaining thousands of audience members.

The productions became so popular that local police eventually suggested they move the performances somewhere larger than the driveway.

The remarkable community impact earned the sisters a Missouri Senatorial Resolution recognizing their contributions to the arts. Their talent also caught the attention of legendary composer Marvin Hamlisch, who selected them as finalists in his nationally televised Star Search.

Broadway on the Driveway's "The Music Man" at the J. Scheidegger Center. Photo Credit: Brian Side. (Lacy Miller is pictured Left in the gold skirt.)

"Are You Still Singing with Your Sister?"

It's one of the questions Lacy hears most often.

Her answer is immediate.

"Yes! I'll never stop singing with my sister."

Lacy Miller and Gracie Miller at Queen Street Playhouse. Photo by Milton Morris.

Although the sisters now lead separate musical lives—with Gracie continuing to manage the South of Broad band in Charleston while Lacy leads her jazz trio in New York—their musical bond remains as strong as ever.

"We count every moment we get to sing together as very special."

In fact, Lacy says her sister has been one of the greatest champions of her original music.

"She surprised me with prepaid studio time at Coastal Records so I could record and release my single House on a Hill."

That encouragement has been echoed by Lacy's husband as well.

"He believes in me and my music. He feels I have the ability to encourage people through my story of healing."

Choosing Hope

In an industry that can often feel cynical or discouraging, Lacy remains grounded by the support of family, close friends, and a deep faith in God.

Rather than allowing trauma to define her story, she hopes her music becomes an invitation for others to discover healing of their own.

"My hope is to start an epidemic of hope through music."

That mission is perhaps nowhere more evident than in Courage.

The single doesn't pretend life is easy.

Instead, it reminds listeners that courage isn't something we're born with—it's something that grows every time we choose to get back up.

As the chorus urges us once again:

Rise.

Because sometimes the bravest thing we can do is simply keep rising.

Lacy Miller's new single, Courage, releases worldwide on July 24. The single offers the first preview of her forthcoming album, Flowers in the Water, arriving in 2027.

To learn more about Lacy, her upcoming performances, and new music, visit LacyMiller.com or follow @LacyMillerMusic on Instagram and Facebook.

Lacy Miller performing in Charleston, SC. Photo Credit: Dena Jenkins.