Lifetime Tells Lisa Lisa’s and Gloria Gaynor’s Tough Journeys to Stardom

 

Lifetime’s Voices of a Lifetime series continues to captivate audiences with its powerful storytelling, spotlighting the journeys of musical legends who have shaped the industry. Saturday, February 1, at 8/7c, the series presents Can You Feel the Beat: The Lisa Lisa Story, a fully authorized biopic chronicling the rise of Lisa Lisa, the Latin freestyle icon who paved the way for artists like Selena Gomez and Jennifer Lopez. The series concludes on Saturday, February 8, with Robin Roberts Presents I Will Survive: The Gloria Gaynor Story, which delves into the life of the legendary disco queen.

Lisa Lisa’s Legacy and Triumph

For Lisa Lisa, the opportunity to bring her story to the screen was a long time coming. “I was convinced, actually,” she admits. “Tracy ‘Twinkie’ Bird  (executive producer) kept coming into my DMs for like five, six years. And I was like, I don’t know. I don’t know. Persistence is everything.”

Her biopic showcases her groundbreaking career, but it also doesn’t shy away from the personal pain she endured, including a difficult first marriage. Reflecting on her past, she shares, “I jumped in the marriage too fast because I felt like I wanted to grow up. I wanted to be out of everybody’s control and I felt that marriage was the thing to do.” However, she soon realized the reality of her situation. “It was immediately after the wedding. It was the control and not allowing me to do things that I wanted to do.”

Giovanni Cristoff, who portrays Lisa Lisa’s first husband Javi, sheds light on the character’s toxic influence. “Javi… he’s the reason why she fell down into a negative hole,” he explains. “When you get success, really pay attention to who’s in your vicinity because it took Javi to basically break her.” He describes the character’s manipulative nature: “Javi did that by being very gaslighting, a lot.  He basically forced her to marry him in the middle of a dinner night in the Pump Room in Chicago.”

 

Gloria Gaynor’s Powerful Story

Following Lisa Lisa’s story, Voices of a Lifetime will celebrate another trailblazing artist—Gloria Gaynor, the voice behind the timeless anthem “I Will Survive.”

The ‘First Lady of Disco’  easily defied her 81 years as she went on stage to perform the film’s theme song which she wrote

Gaynor (born Fowles) said of her enduring disco classic: ‘It just addresses the human condition, you know, it celebrates the tenacity of the human spirit and just pumps you up. It just makes you feel like I can do this.’

She told GMA, she recalled a fan in Italy told her that she was ready to go home and ‘end my life. ‘But now that I heard you sing that song I know where my strength can come from, and I don’t have to die,”‘ Gloria recalled her saying.

‘Of course we were both standing there in a puddle [of tears],’ Gaynor continues.

Gaynor- who was an executive producer shares, ‘If I can uplift, encourage, empower somebody else to make it through the difficult times in their lives by showing how I did it and showing that it can be done – then it’s worth it.’

Lance Gross, who portrays Gaynor’s ex-husband and manager Linwood Simon in a tumultuous marriage, describes his role as complex. “Well, I wouldn’t say he was a bad husband. I would just say he’s a complicated character. He was a complicated person, but through the research, I believe that Linwood was acting out in love and protection for Gloria, and it just affected people in a certain way.”

He acknowledges the emotional toll of their relationship. “Yes, they did have a divorce, he broke her heart. Yeah. Any failed relationship? There’s heartbreak though, right?”

Gaynor left her marriage of 26 years describing that as “liberating.”  The marriage was painful she revealed, saying that he often disregarded her needs. She wanted to have children, and he did not, but she “swallowed whatever he said and did whatever he said and just let him have his way.”

 

Lance Gross on What’s Next

Beyond his work on I Will Survive, Gross continues to stay busy. “We have another season of Tyler Perry’s House of Payne premiering on BET soon.” And when asked what he will survive in 2025, he humorously states, “I’m going to say Trump.” He adds, “I’m going to survive Trump. God got me.”

Gross also shares a personal victory, revealing his commitment to self-improvement through the “75 Hard” challenge. “I’ve kind of kicked my bad habit, but candy is my bad habit. I love candy like sour candy, but right now I’m doing 75 Hard, which is a challenge for 75 days where you give up, you eat healthy. So there’s been no candy. So I’m doing good. I’m on day 28. I’m good. I’m doing good.”

A Must-Watch Series

With Can You Feel the Beat: The Lisa Lisa Story and I Will Survive: The Gloria Gaynor Story, Lifetime’s Voices of a Lifetime continues to highlight the resilience and triumphs of musical legends. Lisa Lisa’s groundbreaking success and Gloria Gaynor’s enduring legacy remind us all of the power of perseverance, music, and self-discovery.

 

You can catch the carpet interviews in the video above.

 

Interview by Jazmyn Summers. Photos and video by Melissa Nyomi Stoll of Melshotya You can hear Jazmyn every morning on “Jazmyn in the Morning “on Sirius XM Channel 362 Grown Folk Jamz and subscribe to Jazmyn Summers’ YouTube. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram.