Tamara Johnson-George
Tamara Johnson-George | |
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![]() George performing in 2005 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Tamara Antrice Johnson |
Also known as |
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Born | Brooklyn, New York City, U.S. | April 29, 1971
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
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Years active | 1988–present |
Member of | SWV |
Website | tajgeorge |
Tamara Antrice Johnson-George (née Johnson; born April 29, 1971), best known by her stage/nickname Taj, is an American singer and rapper. She is best known as one-third of the R&B singing group Sisters with Voices (SWV). She also competed on the eighteenth season of Survivor, Survivor: Tocantins.
Background
The youngest of six children, George was born in Brooklyn, New York, as Tamara Antrice Johnson. Her father died of pancreatic cancer when she was nine. George grew up in an abusive household; her mother, who was sick with bone cancer, was beaten regularly by her drug-addicted stepfather.[1] When George would intervene on her mother's behalf, she was also beaten.
When George was 14 years old, her mother died, which caused George and her siblings to be parceled amongst several relatives; George wound up with a cousin who molested her,[2] adding to the sexual abuse she had experienced over the years with other male relatives.[1] George graduated from high school and attended Baruch College to study accounting, but left college due to physical abuse from her boyfriend,[3] as well as to join singing group Sisters With Voices, better known as SWV.
SWV
George was recruited into SWV (then known as Female Edition) by Cheryl "Coko" Gamble, who would become SWV's lead singer.[4] She was so shy that she auditioned with the lights turned off.[5] George was known as the background dancer/model in the music video for Big Daddy Kane's "Ain't No Half Steppin" and had a bubbly, upbeat personality. This caused friction between George and Gamble, who felt that Taj's recognizable face and cheerful demeanor shielded her from criticism from the press.[6][7]
Originally, George was both a singer and an emcee; she can be heard rapping the bridge over the original version of
Post-SWV
After SWV officially disbanded in 1998, George was signed to a two-year contract with the
In 2002, George enrolled in Belmont University in Nashville, earning a Bachelor of Business Administration in May 2004.[10] The following month, Johnson married Eddie George in Rockleigh, New Jersey, thus adding his name to hers. Their son, Eriq Michael George, was born in 2005[11] after a difficult pregnancy that left George bedridden for the first five months of her pregnancy.[12] George is stepmother to Eddie's son, Jaire David, whom she refers to as her oldest son,[13] and the godmother of Coko's oldest son, Jazz.[14][15]
Along with Katrina Chambers, George wrote the book Player hateHER: How to Avoid the Beat Down and Live in a Drama-Free World in 2007. That same year, George and husband Eddie George starred in the reality TV show I Married a Baller, which depicted five weeks in the George household over a course of nine shows. The show focused on George and her marriage to Eddie George, her struggle to lose her "baby weight,"[16] and performing with SWV, who came together to perform the theme song of the show. Baller also highlighted Visions with Infinite Possibilities, the Georges' not-for-profit charity for survivors of domestic violence and their children.[citation needed]
Survivor
George was recruited to
References
- ^ a b "Tamara's Story". Visions with Infinite Possibilities. Archived from the original on July 28, 2011. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
- ^ "episode #3 ("Road Trippin'")". I Married a Baller.
I was molested as a child. There was a cousin in the family, who would ... who would make me do things.
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(help) - ^ "Story: Taj". SoulTracks.com. August 7, 2008.
- ^ "Lelee's MySpace page".
After several members and name changes, Cheryl knew a girl from Brooklyn named Tamara. Tamara was a cute Chinky eyed chocolate girl who was a background dancer/model in Big Daddy Kane's video for "Ain't No Half Steppin" and we all just grew to love. After a few rehearsals Tamara was in.
- ^ "The WTF Comeback of SWV". Rolling Stone. February 20, 2014.
- ^ "Player hateHER": 69.
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(help) - ^ "Melody Charles interview with SWV's Taj". August 7, 2008.
... Coko really loved [Player hateHER]; at the end, she actually apologized to me because she didn't realize how mean she was being in the early days that we would sing together. I was always considered 'the nice one', and the girls felt resentful toward me because they felt like 'no one ever complains about Taj and the things she does, she's not perfect!
- ^ "SWV's Music". SWV Online. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
- ^ "Eddie & Taj George". TCA INTV. 2007. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
- ^ "SWV's Tamara "Taj" Johnson". HHNLive.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2012.
- ^ "Taj Gives Birth!". SWV Online. Archived from the original on July 1, 2003.
- ^ "The Longest Yard". The Nashville News. March 17, 2005.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "episode #3 ("Road Trippin'")". I Married a Baller.
I got my sons with me ... my youngest is hyped. He's ready and excited, and my oldest is just excited to be on a bus.
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(help) - ^ "Coko Talks About SWV Breakup". Yahoo! Music. July 21, 1999.
- ^ "episode #4 ("So High or Solo")". SWV Reunited.
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(help) - ^ "episode #7 ("California Dreamin'")". I Married a Baller.
I'm still trying to get my little 17-month-old son's weight off!
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(help) - ^ Andy Dehnart (February 6, 2009). "Taj Johnson-George: "I'll [be nurturing] while I stab them all in the back; they'll love me for it"". Reality Blurred.
- ^ "Jeff Probst blogs 'Survivor: Tocantins': episode 5". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 6, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2009.
Word on the street: People like Taj and I can see why. She's coming across as a likable, hard working, and industrious player.
- ^ "Jeff Probst blogs 'Survivor: Tocantins': episode 7". Entertainment Weekly.
By the way – so many people got upset last week because I said Taj was 'second tier' smart. It had nothing to do with her being a woman, it had to do with the way she is playing the game.
- ^ "Jeff Probst blogs 'Survivor: Tocantins': episode 11". Entertainment Weekly.
Okay, I'll admit it. I had no idea Taj would be this well liked, even by me! ... Taj is also smarter than I realized. She has mastered the art of staying out of the way.
- ^ Feinberg, Daniel. "Recap: 'Survivor: Tocantins' Finale – And the winner is..." Hitfix. Hitfix, Inc. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
External links
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