Mary Christine Brockert born March 5, 1956, better known by her stage name Teena Marie, was known for her distinctive soulful vocals, which initially caused many listeners to believe she was black. Her success in R&B and soul and loyalty to these genres would earn her the title Ivory Queen of Soul.
In 1976, Teena Marie gained an introduction to Motown Records staff producer Hal Davis who eventually introduced her to Rick James. Rick James was immediately impressed with her sound introduced her to his keyboard player, R. David Turner, who eventually wrote “Out on a Limb” and “Lover girl” for her.
In 1980, Teena Marie released 2 albums, Lady T and Irons in the Fire. Both albums produced hits like Behind the Groove and Irons in I need your lovin. That same year, Teena Marie appeared on James’s hugely successful album, Street Songs, with the duet “Fire and Desire”. In an interview, Teena Marie said she had a fever at the time yet managed to record her vocals in one take. After the session, she was driven to a hospital.
In 1982, Teena Marie got into a heated legal battle with Motown Records over her contract and disagreements about releasing her new material. The lawsuit resulted in “The Brockert Initiative”, which made it illegal for a record company to keep an artist under contract without releasing new material for that artist.
During the late 1990’s, Teena Marie made appearances (as herself) on the TV sitcoms The Steve Harvey Show and The Parkers. At the time of her death, Teena Marie had been in the process of completing her fourteenth album, Beautiful. It was finished posthumously by her daughter, Alia Rose. Beautiful was released on January 15, 2013. Enjoy this memory from Mr. Fire and Miss Desire.
Happy Birthday Teena Marie was originally published on kissrichmond.com
