# It has been reported that Teena Marie has died **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 27, 2010, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477 "2010-12-27T02:00:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/1 "2010-12-27T02:00:29Z")
[She was Rick James’ muse for a while.](http://hiphopwired.com/2010/12/26/breaking-news-soul-singing-legend-teena-marie-allegedly-has-passed-away-30097/). Fire And Desire and [Lover Girl.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYVWoi72Ow4) She was 54. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/2 "2010-12-27T02:12:23Z")
She was a big part of the soundtrack of my late teens/early 20’s. Who doesn’t remember getting ready to go out with \*Lover Girl \*blaring on the stereo? RIP, Teena. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/3 "2010-12-27T02:29:27Z")
Touche Ole ☹ ---
**Author:** ![enomaj](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/59ef9b/32.png) [@enomaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enomaj)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/4 "2010-12-27T04:40:12Z")
My mother had all of her albums when I was growing up. Ooo La La La, Lsdy T. Your voice lives on. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/5 "2010-12-27T05:56:29Z")
[CNN.com](http://CNN.com) confirms it: [Singer-songwriter Teena Marie dies at 54 - CNN.com](http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/Music/12/26/teena.marie.dead/index.html?hpt=T1) I have to admit, I only knew her from the _Top Gun_ soundtrack, singing “Lead Me On.” ---
**Author:** ![Hockey\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hockey\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hockey_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/6 "2010-12-27T06:34:26Z")
Everybody who thought she was black, raise your hand. _raises hand_ Really, I had no idea till reading the linked article that she was " a black voice trapped in a white body." ---
**Author:** ![enomaj](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/59ef9b/32.png) [@enomaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enomaj)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 9:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/7 "2010-12-27T09:15:01Z")
Her debut album didn’t have her picture and everyone just assumed she was black. After all, who else could sing R&B like that. Fire and Desire with Rick James is easily one of the top 10 slow jams of all time. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/8 "2010-12-27T13:27:35Z")
If that report is on the level and square biz, I am gonna be playing a lot of Teena today. R.I.P. to one of those cool ass white girls who really did get an inside ‘pass’. ETA: We’re gonna miss you, Vanilla Chile’ ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/9 "2010-12-27T15:00:57Z")
The local NBC station this morning was confirming it. ☹ They also reported that the cause of death is not yet known/being mentioned. They did say that she’d had a grand mal seizure about a month ago. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/10 "2010-12-27T15:11:48Z")
As a child she appeared in an early ‘Beverly Hillbillies’ episode as . . . a dancer. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/11 "2010-12-27T15:14:37Z")
That great voice was put out way too soon. She grew up not far from me and was one of the more famous alums from my High School. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2010, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/12 "2010-12-27T23:27:55Z")
I woke up this morning hearing “Square Biz” playing on NPR and thought “Oh shit. Lady T must be dead if they’re playing that.” And sure enough, I was right. ☹ I love me some Teena. She could blow, she had pipes, she put the stank on it… whatever metaphor you want to use, it applies. I will always insist her rap on “Square Biz” is the best to flow out of a white woman’s voice. But you know what? She never liked all the attention on her race, so I’m going to respect her wishes. She wasn’t a white girl who could sing “black”. She could _sing_, period. Bye, Lady T. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/13 "2010-12-28T01:30:48Z")
I do not like this. Not one bit. Edit: Hockey Monkey, ha. We all thought she was black until we saw her in videos. “Holy shit, that’s a white girl?!” ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-has-been-reported-that-teena-marie-has-died/565477/14 "2010-12-28T01:58:20Z")
I had a thread a couple years ago about the illest female rappers. I was remiss in not mentioning The T. Shame on me. In [Square Biz](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tLCWZWR6Fk), she drops a rhyme that is funkier than anything a sista ever dropped. When she gets to the part that drops the soul food line up, even I don’t have a clue what the hell she is saying. Anyone care to interpret? My husband and I are really trying our best to figure it out, and we just can’t tell exactly what she is saying after ‘greens’. The part of the rap I’m talking about starts at 4:10, but I linked to the whole song, because the whole song is win.