Margaret Cox is an American singer. She is best known as the lead singer of the

Minneapolis sound The Minneapolis sound is a subgenre of funk rock with elements of new wave and synth-pop, that was pioneered by Minneapolis, Minnesota-based musician Prince in the late 1970s. Its popularity was given a boost throughout the 1980s thanks to Princ ...

band

Ta Mara and the Seen Ta Mara and the Seen was an American R&B group based in Minneapolis. They were signed by A&M Records to capitalize on the mid-1980s chart success of the "Minneapolis sound", which included acts such as Prince, Vanity 6, Sheila E., and the Time ...

, and for her work with

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

Early life and career

Cox was born in

Kenitra Kenitra ( ar, القُنَيْطَرَة, , , ; ber, ⵇⵏⵉⵟⵔⴰ, Qniṭra; french: Kénitra) is a city in north western Morocco, formerly known as Port Lyautey from 1932 to 1956. It is a port on the Sebou river, has a population in 201 ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

and moved to

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

with her family when she was seven years old. She learned to play several instruments, including piano, guitar, and drums. Cox attended Southeast Alternatives Free School, graduating from

Marshall-University High School Marshall-University High School was a public junior high and high school serving grades 6–12 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school was founded in 1968 through a merger between John Marshall High School (a Minneapolis public school) and Unive ...

and sang in the nightclub Bootlegger Sam's in Dinkytown when she was in ninth grade. Influenced early on by R&B and rock icons of the era like Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin, and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

, she became known for her soulful, powerful vocals, and soon graduated to other bands, including Raggs in 1980, the Doug Maynard Band, the T.C. Jammers, the Peterson-Cox Band (with Patty Peterson), Rupert's Orchestra and, in 1987,

Dr. Mambo's Combo Dr. Mambo's Combo, otherwise known as "The Combo", is a soul and R&B band that has been playing at Bunker's Music Bar & Grill in downtown Minneapolis since 1987. Original members include Tim Emerson (Dr. Mambo), Margaret Cox, Billy Franze, Bruce Ja ...

(often referred to simply as "the Combo"). She has won numerous Minnesota Music Awards for her contributions to the Twin Cities music scene. She also sang on a local ''Bar Wars'' compilation LP and on the final

Lipps, Inc Lipps Inc. ( , a pun on the phrase "lip sync") was an American disco and funk group from Minneapolis, Minnesota. The group is best known for the chart-topping 1980 worldwide hit single "Funkytown", which hit No. 1 in 28 countries and was cert ...

album, 1983's ''4''.

Ta Mara and The Seen

In 1985 Cox formed a band called The Seen and was noticed by Jesse Johnson, guitarist with Minneapolis band The Time. Johnson renamed Cox "Ta Mara" and helped the band sign a deal with A&M. He also produced their first album, ''

'', and co-wrote all of the songs. The band had one major hit with " Everybody Dance" but in 1989 they broke up after releasing their next album, '' Blueberry Gossip''.

Work with Prince

Cox was a long-time associate of the singer Prince and his band

The New Power Generation The New Power Generation, also known as The NPG, was the backing band of musician Prince from 1990 to 2013. They were replaced by 3rdeyegirl as his backing band in 2013. In 2015, the New Power Generation reunited as Prince's backing band for ...

. In the early 1990s, she recorded more than 25 songs with Prince for a band to be called M.C. Flash, although the album was never released. She also covered Prince's "Standing at the Altar" for his 1994 compilation album '' 1-800-NEW-FUNK'', and the song was released as a single.

Later work

Cox co-wrote "I Need You" with Johnson, which appeared on Paula Abdul's 1988 album ''

Forever Your Girl ''Forever Your Girl'' is the debut studio album by American singer Paula Abdul. It was released on June 21, 1988, through Virgin Records. The album was Abdul's breakthrough into the music industry after being a choreographer for high-profile ...

''. In 2003 she released her first solo album ''Margie's Little Demo''. She currently still sings with

every Sunday night at Bunker's in downtown Minneapolis.

Early life and career

Ta Mara and The Seen

Work with Prince

Later work

References

See also