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Toni Braxton Profile |
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Birth Date: October 7, 1966
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Birth Place: Severn, Maryland, USA
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Birth Name: Toni Michelle Braxton
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Height: 5'2"
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Biography |
Toni Braxton was born October 7, 1968, in Severn, Maryland,
the daughter of an Apostolic minister and a vocalist. Toni,
her four sisters and her brother were forced to live under
the strict rules of their family's faith. The girls of the
Braxton family were not allowed to wear pants, sandals or
makeup, were not allowed to have boyfriends, and the
children were not allowed to listen to mainstream music.
That didn't stop them from listening to music; when their
parents were out, they watched Soul Train and listened to
music.
Toni and her siblings no longer had to sneak around to watch
television once her parents joined the United Methodist
Church, which had less strict rules. Watching soul greats
such as Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan eventually contributed
to Toni's musical style.
Doe-eyed Toni discovered her talent as a member of the
church choir, which her mother encouraged her to join.
Although Toni knew she wanted to pursue a singing career,
she received a college education at Bowie State University.
While studying teaching, Toni never gave up music. She took
singing lessons to fulfill her true passion in life.
Remaining true to her love for music, Toni and her sisters
formed a group called the Braxtons. Signed with Arista, the
Braxtons released a single entitled "The Good Life".
Although the song was a commercial success, it did manage to
catch the ear of Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and Antonio
"L.A. Reid", of LaFace Records.
"The Good Life" was good enough for Toni's career, as it led
to her record contract with LaFace. The aspiring singer
broke into the music industry when she had the opportunity
to contribute to the Boomerang soundtrack, when Anita Baker
backed out because she was pregnant. Singles such as "Give U
My Heart" (a duet with Babyface) and "Love Shoulda Brought
You Home" both appeared on the Billboard charts.
Her work on Boomerang was only an inkling of what listeners
would hear from the soulful artist. Her debut album, the
self-entitled Toni Braxton, was released in 1993, and
spawned the hits "Another Sad Love Song", "You Mean The
World To Me" and "Breathe Again". Her critically acclaimed
album and Aretha Franklin/Whitney Houston style garnered her
the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1993.
Her follow-up album, the 1996 Secrets, equally did not
disappoint. The singles "You're Makin' Me High" and
"Un-Break My Heart" were huge hits, especially the latter
which can probably be considered Toni's biggest
international single. Toni also contributed to another
soundtrack, the female bonding film Waiting to Exhale.
After having won the 1997 Billboard Award for Female R&B
Artist of the Year, Toni's stroke of success crashed when
she filed for bankruptcy in 1998, after litigation with her
record company.
This did not stop Toni, who got back into the record studio
to develop her third album, The Heat, released in April
2000. Although The Heat has not had the same fiery success
as her previous albums, her first single, "He Wasn't Man
Enough" has been on the Top Ten charts for months, and has
become a staple on R&B, Pop and Adult Contemporary radio
stations.
The artist known as "The First Lady of LaFace" has triumphed
over hardship to become a modern R&B, soul diva. |
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Other
Information |
The pedestal in Toni's video for "You're Making Me High" was
used to make her appear taller than her height of 5' 2"
Actress Robin Givens was featured in Toni's video "He Wasn't
Man Enough" as the cheating husband's wife.
welcomed first child son Denim Cole Braxton Lewis on Dec
2nd, 2001. The baby weighed 5lbs 12oz.
Her albums of original material include 'Toni Braxton',
'Secrets', 'The Heat' and 'More Than a Woman'. She also
released an album of Christmas songs in 2001 titled
'Snowflakes.'
Second child, Diezel Ky Braxton Lewis, born 30 March 2003
Has 6 Grammy Awards, including one for 1993's Best New
Artist
Sister of Towanda Braxton.
Her cousin auditioned in American Idol, season 4. However,
he didn't make it past the audition.
Has three sisters.
All of her sisters (Towanda, Tamar, and Trina) and her first
name begin with the letter "T"
Suffers from the serious heart condition pericarditis.
Originally set for a role in Gregory Nava's "Why Do Fools
Fall In Love?", starring Larenz Tate, but dropped out due to
scheduling conflicts. |
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