Pop Star Lands Role in New Hallmark Movie

Lisa Loeb had an unlikely rise to stardom, but nearly 30 years after releasing her first hit song, “Stay (I Missed You),” she’s proving that she has serious staying power as she continues to release music, host a national radio show and is about to appear in her first Hallmark Channel movie.

In the early 90s, she told Genius, her neighbor Ben Stiller — then an up-and-coming actor and director — added Loeb’s song to the soundtrack of his new movie, “Reality Bites.” While the 1994 movie did fairly well at the box office, the song was a smash hit, catapulting the singer-songwriter to pop star status. Nearly 30 years later, another meaningful song by Loeb appears in a new movie, along with the singer herself, in Hallmark Channel’s “Hannukah on Rye,” premiering on December 18, 2022.

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Lisa Loeb Plays Music Teacher in a Song Contest in ‘Hanukkah On Rye’

In addition to topping the pop charts, Loeb, 54, has leveraged her talents to become a Grammy-winning children’s artist, a host on SiriusXM’s “90s on 9” channel, and has made cameos in many TV series, from “Gossip Girl” to “Fuller House.” She recently told the Emmys website that acting was actually her first love as an entertainer.

“I grew up more as an actor and actually studied it,” she said. “I became a musician for my career because I had more success with it.”

Loeb gets to showcase her acting and musical skills in “Hanukkah on Rye,” when she performs her song, “Light” while playing a music teacher in a small town. The movie follows two deli owners, played by Yael Grobglas and Jeremy Jordan, who don’t realize they own competing businesses while they’re falling in love.

During a song contest held at one of the restaurants, Loeb plays part of “Light,” which she wrote several years ago about the miracle of Hanukkah. But the star doesn’t play herself in the film.

She told the Emmys, “(The producers) really wanted to create this feeling of everyday people in this little community meeting each other. And Lisa Loeb would not be a person living there.”

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Lisa Loeb Loves That Her Hallmark Movie Takes Place in Jewish Delis

Loeb, who is Jewish, told Aish that she’s always adored delis, so she was excited to be part of a film that highlights them.

“I grew up in Dallas, Texas, and there were a few there,” she said. “When I was a kid, I went with my family. That’s always where you go when you want to relax and enjoy yourself and not cook for the night. And eat a lot of matzah balls and tuna sandwiches!”

Now she frequents delis in Los Angeles with her husband and kids, but she recalls that they were also important hangouts for her when she moved to New York City after high school.

“I think delis are such a great time where you gather,” she explained. “When I got older and went to college, it was a fun place to visit with a bunch of friends for brunch. And as a musician, you gotta spend a lot of time late at night at delis! I remember thinking, ‘What a great place to go, instead of going to a bar?!’ I like that you can actually talk to each other, and eat great food! That’s what I’d rather be doing!”

Loeb said she feels like the new movie is the perfect home for her song, “Light,” which she wrote several years ago when SiriusXM asked if she’d want to write a Hanukkah-themed song to add to their holiday playlist.

“It was right up my alley because as a Jewish person, and as a person who is interested in religion in general, I think it’s so interesting to find the essence of a holiday,” she told Aish.

“It’s always important to find that light; the song has imagery that is featured in Judaism a lot,” Loeb explained. “This movie seemed like the perfect place to sing it. It’s a snippet version but you can get a feel for it.”

“Hanukkah On Rye” premieres on Hallmark Channel on December 18 at 8 pm Eastern and Pacific.

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