RIP Teena Marie

Farewell to Teena Marie, aka Lady T. Best known for the song "Lovergirl", she was both professionally and romantically involved with funk superstar Rick James. Their musical collaboration helped pave the way for her Latin-flavored, R&B sound. Many at first thought Marie was either Latina or African-American: in fact, she was caucasian, earning her the nickname "The Ivory Queen of Soul" from fans. Despite being a dance-music diva, her music rocked hard: her 1986 album Emerald City was named one of the ten greatest heavy metal albums of all time by noted rock critic Chuck Eddy in his book Stairway to Hell.