Teena Marie: Keeping Rick James' Legacy Alive

Blue-eyed soul diva Teena Marie just celebrated 31 years in the music business.

The Santa Monica, Calif.-bred vocalist, who's affectionately known as Lady T, said she has revamped her concert show to include all of her greatest hits and some songs by those she started with in the beginning.

"I'm so excited. We have a brand new show. I'm not just doing my music now, but I'm doing the whole representation of Rick James, The Mary Jane Girls and Teena Marie. So it's pretty exciting. I feel like I have to not just represent me, but him now and the whole legacy he created," she shared. "They're back to back hits. It's crazy. Between mine and his and The Mary Jane Girls; its pretty in your face!"

The 54-year-old vocalist will debut her new concert set during the 5th Annual Jazz in the Gardens music festival in Miami this weekend.

Marie, who released her 13th CD, 'Congo Square' on the legendary Stax Records last year, will perform alongside Mary J. Blige, Robin Thicke, John Legend, Boyz II Men, Melanie Fiona, Joe Sample, Cassandra Wilson and others during the two day festival at Miami's Dolphin Stadium.

The Rick James protégé is eager to premiere her new concert show at Jazz in the Gardens because she feels that it's important to give fans a fresh experience when they see her live.

"We change the show about every two to three years so that we can just keep it exciting and do some different things. I don't like people to see the show more than twice. They'll say, 'Oh that's the same show I saw the last time.' It's okay for that to happen two or three times at the most, but after that, you have to change it up. This time, we've gone back to a lot of the original arrangements of the songs and make them pop like the records popped," she expressed.

Many learned the details of Marie's beginnings in music during her episode of TV One docu-series 'Unsung.' The singer confessed that though she's used to sharing her life in her songs, opening up on television was difficult to do.

"I'm a private person. I thought they did an amazing job of it. It was very classy and very inspirational. When I first met with them, I was a little concerned because a lot the episodes were kind of sad because of the artists that they chose and the paths the artists were on. But after I thought about it, I said I haven't had a sad life and it came off wonderful. It was awesome having all those people come together from Smokey Robinson, Mr. Gordy, my daughter, Faith Evans, MC Lyte and my mother. People loved it and it's supposed to be the most sought-after episode of 'Unsung' so far," she said.

For the young artists who ask Marie what they could do to have longevity in the business like she has, she said her advice is always the same.

"I just always say stay true to yourself. Really know that you're an artist and a human being first. It's really, really important to have integrity; not just in music, but just in your own life. If you can stay true to yourself and carry that integrity into your life, there's nothing no one can do to harm you," she closed.

*****

For related stories, read 'Tome Talk: Mary J. Blige Eager To Inspire In First Book'

& 'Faith Evans: Singer Talks About Her Hiatus From Music & Upcoming Reality Show.'

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Black Music Notes Mar. 19

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