Teena Marie, had Portuguese ancestry, grew up in Oakwood in Los Angeles, in an overwhelmingly African-American population. Rick James wrote and produced her first album Wild and Peaceful (1979). The title I'm Just a Sucker for Your Love, a duet of the two, was a hit. Since there was no picture of Teena Marie on the cover, Motown took her under contract. , She was initially mistaken for a black singer.

After her fourth album (1981) Teena Marie left Motown in dispute. There were legal battles, the outcome as "Brockert Initiative was announced: A label can not keep an artist under contract, if there are no publications. This was followed by several successful albums and singles on Epic Records. In the late 1980s her success slowed down, Teena Marie pulled back from the music business and devoted herself to her family. She has a daughter named Alia Rose.

Many of her hits were in the 1990s by hip-hop musicians in the form of processed samples, such Ooo La La La by The Fugees on their Hit Fu-Gee-La (1996), or by other singers again recorded , for example, I Need Your Lovin by Sheena Easton (2000). In 2004, Teena Marie had a comeback with the album La Dona, which hit number 6 in the album charts.

In 2008 she received the Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation.

By Melanie Bradley