February’s Hustle ‘Ard Hero: Teairra Mari
Okay so for all of you who don’t know, Teairra Mari was the singer/songwriter who Jay Z signed as ‘The Princess of Def Jam’, and this was one of his initial collaboration projects after being made president of Def Jam Records. He also signed successful artists Rihanna and Neo around the same time, and the trio were known as Jay Z’s lethal weapons; they were seen everywhere with the mogul, from award shows, to designer shops, to club nights. Here’s a picture of the ‘then’ budding artists with Jay Z and L.A Reid:
Teairra’s first release was ‘Make Her Feel Good’, a catchy hip hop/R’n’B single which, surprisingly, only got to number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. I remember this song and thought it was really good, I used to sing along to it all the time...Both Teairra and Rihanna are the same age as me, so I would always pay attention to their progress. But shortly after this, their paths seemed to deviate...Here’s a video of Teairra performing at Jay Z’s Rocawear Fashion Show a few years back. Well four to be precise:
From this, I think she was a good enough artist! She seems happy and driven, has good stage presence, a great voice, and you get the feeling that she really wants to be there. This, I think, was nothing different from the feelings and talent shown by Rihanna...I did feel, however, that Teairra sung about more mature topics than Rihanna (the title of her first single says it all!) whilst Rihanna played on the younger crowd’s interest with more fun and innocent tracks. After this single I remember finding Teairra’s music increasingly difficult to find, it was as if she had literally disappeared into thin air! I found out that Jay Z had dropped Teairra from Def Jam Records, with ‘no apparent reason’...
Rap Up TV presents Teairra Mari: Then & Now
I can’t even BEGIN to imagine how difficult this must have been for the girl. Not only was she dropped from a major record label with no explanation, but she had to face the idea of Rihanna and Neo moving on to stardom and success without her. Personally, I think I’d be devastated. But I guess she used that time to focus and centre herself. She’s now signed to ‘Fo’ Reel Records’, and is working with Cudda Love, who was the person responsible for Nelly’s initial success.
Clutch Magazine wrote ‘Ultimately, Teairra Mari has emerged with renewed strength and inspiration...Teairra is all grown up and in control as she moves beyond the lessons of the past and realises her potential in the present’. I think this sums it up...To be fair, she was really young when she was signed to Def Jam; I’m sure that now, her past experiences will help her to make better decisions.
To me, Teairra has showed extreme dedication and perseverance, and has basically ‘hustled’ her way back to stronger position, with all odds against her. To know that you had worked with the best, and fell from grace, could be a huge detriment to your self-confidence; but she seems to have bounced back even stronger. She definitely deserves to be a Hustle ‘Ard Hero. Here’s her new video:
Teairra Mari ft. Pleasure P ‘Hunt for You’
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