Tamar Estine Braxton (born March 17, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality.
Braxton began her career in 1990 as a founding member of The Braxtons, an R&B singing group formed with her sisters. The Braxtons released their debut album, So Many Ways, as a trio in 1996, and disbanded shortly afterward. In 2000, Braxton released her debut self-titled album through DreamWorks Records. Following a thirteen-year break, Braxton released her second studio album, Love and War (2013), through Epic Records, which reached the number two position on the Billboard 200 chart. She later released her fourth and fifth albums, Calling All Lovers (2015) and Bluebird of Happiness (2017), respectively. Braxton has won a BET Award and three Soul Train Music Awards throughout her career. She has also been nominated for four Grammy Awards.
From 2011 to 2020, Braxton starred in the We TV reality-television series Braxton Family Values alongside her mother and sisters. She also served as a co-host on the Fox syndicated daytime talk show The Real from 2013 until 2016, for which she received two Daytime Emmy Award nominations. In 2019, she won the second season of Celebrity Big Brother.
Early life
Tamar Estine Braxton was born on March 17, 1977, to Michael and Evelyn Braxton, in Severn, Maryland. As the youngest of the Braxtons' six children, she began singing as a toddler. The Braxton children would eventually join the choir at church, where their father, Michael Braxton, was a pastor.
Career
1989–1998: Career beginnings and The Braxtons
Tamar and her sisters Toni, Traci, Towanda, and Trina, signed their first record deal with Arista Records in 1989. In 1990, they released their first single, "Good Life" with little success. In 1991, during a showcase with L.A. Reid and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, who were in the process of forming LaFace Records, Toni Braxton, minus her four sisters, was chosen and signed as the label's first female solo artist. At the time, the remaining members were told that LaFace was not looking for another girl group since it had just signed TLC. After Toni's departure from the group, the remaining Braxtons members became backup singers for Toni's first tour, and featured in her music videos including the single, "Seven Whole Days".
In 1993, LaFace Records A&R Vice President, Bryant Reid, signed The Braxtons to LaFace. However, the group never released an album or single for the label. When Reid moved on to work for Atlantic Records, he convinced executives at LaFace to allow him to take the group to Atlantic also. It was reported in Vibe magazine that in 1995, Traci Braxton had left the group to pursue a career as a youth counselor. However, it was not confirmed until a 2011 promotional appearance on The Mo'Nique Show, that Traci was not allowed to sign with Atlantic because of her pregnancy at the time.
In 1996, Tamar, Trina, and Towanda returned with a new album, So Many Ways, which peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. At the time of its release, Reid told Billboard magazine, "I had a vision for them then that was about young sophistication with sex appeal." The trio also performed a remixed version of "So Many Ways" with rapper Jay-Z on September 9, 1996, at the Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards. "So Many Ways" peaked at No. 83 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 32 on the UK Singles Chart. The group then served as the opening act for Toni Braxton on the European Leg of her Secrets Tour in 1997. The Braxtons decided to part ways as a group after Tamar left to pursue a solo career with DreamWorks Records in 1998.
1999–2009: Tamar and label troubles
In 1999, Braxton met Christopher "Tricky" Stewart. She recorded her solo debut album, Ridiculous, so-named for the many different musical styles on the album. The album spawned two buzz singles ("Let Him Go" and "Just Cuz") in hopes of garnering attention from the public eye; however, when the songs failed to gain impact on urban radio outlets, the album was pushed back and canceled. That same year, Braxton was featured on Sole's, "4 The Love of You." Instead of shelving the album, DreamWorks Records abandoned 3 old tracks, added new ones, and renamed it Tamar. The lead single "Get None" was produced by Jermaine "J.D." Dupri and also featured rap verses from him as well as former Jay-Z protégée Amil. The song also included uncredited background vocals and songwriting by R&B singer Mýa. As soon as the song began to pick up airplay, Braxton announced the album would be released in early 2000, alongside a second single, "If You Don't Wanna Love Me". The album featured production from Missy Elliott, Tim & Bob, and Tricky Stewart, and peaked at number 127 on the Billboard 200. When the album's second single failed to gain significant radio airplay, her label dropped her from their roster.
In 2001, Braxton's previously unreleased song "Try Me" appeared on the soundtrack album for the film Kingdom Come. She also began to work alongside her sister Toni Braxton in a number of songs and music video cameos, including the video for "He Wasn't Man Enough". She performed, co-wrote and sang background vocals on songs for Toni's albums, The Heat (2000), Snowflakes (2001), More than a Woman (2002), Libra (2005) and Pulse (2010). When her sister launched her Las Vegas revue Toni Braxton: Revealed, Tamar again sang backup until she was replaced by singer Sparkle.
By 2004, Braxton was signed to Tommy Mottola's reactivated Casablanca Records and had begun work on her second album. A "Grindin'"-influenced single, "I'm Leaving", was released with a guest appearance from Bump J. alongside promotional remixes featuring Sheek Louch, Styles P. and Ali Vegas.
2010–2013: Television debut and Love and War
In 2010, Braxton signed to Universal Records, where she released a single "The Heart In Me" in July of that year. The song was included on the Adidas 2: The Music compilation. Her momentum with Universal would not rise to a satisfactory level to launch a second album. In January 2010, We TV confirmed that it had signed Braxton and her mother and sisters for a reality television series titled Braxton Family Values. The show premiered on April 12, 2011. On December 15, 2011, it was confirmed that Braxton and her husband Vincent would star in their own reality series centered on her solo career and their married life. In November 2011, Braxton performed "Love Overboard" at the 2011 Soul Train Awards for Lifetime Achievement recipient Gladys Knight. In September 2012, news broke that Braxton had inked a fresh recording contract with Streamline Records, an imprint of Interscope Records founded by Vincent. Later that month, her reality television show Tamar & Vince premiered on We TV.
Braxton was the featured model for the "Front Row Couture" collection during the "ELLE/Style360" NYC Fashion Week event. Braxton was a co-host of Tameka Cottle's late night talk show, Tiny Tonight, on VH1. Basketball Wives star Tami Roman became a co-host after Braxton. Later, she hosted The Culturelist, a show on BET's sister channel Centric. In March 2013, it was revealed that Braxton had signed to Epic Records ahead of the release of her second album, Love and War. The album's lead single, the title track, was released on December 6, 2012. The song was a commercial success, spending nine weeks at number one on the Adult R&B Songs chart. Although the single reached number one on the US iTunes chart, it peaked at number 57 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 13 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
Braxton released "The One" as the second single from Love and War on May 7, 2013; it peaked at number 34 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The third single, "All the Way Home", was released August 21, 2013; it peaked at number 96 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 37 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song was followed by the release of Love and War on September 3, 2013. The…