LaToya "Toya" Martin (born LaToya Lacole Rodriguez; July 22, 1983), better known by her
mononym
A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. In some cases, a mononym selected by an individual may have originally been from a polynym, a word which refers to one o ...
, Toya, is an American
R&B singer from
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
, best known for her 2001 song, "
I Do!!
"I Do!!" is the debut single of American R&B singer Toya (singer), Toya, serving as the lead single from her debut album, ''Toya (album), Toya'' (2001). Produced by Antoine "Bam" Macon, "I Do!!" became a hit for Toya, reaching 16 on the US Bill ...
", which reached number 16 on the U.S.
''Billboard'' Hot 100.
Early life and education
Toya was born LaToya Lacole Rodriguez on July 22, 1983, to a
Puerto Rican father and an
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
mother. She was named after
La Toya Jackson
La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956) is an American singer and television personality. The fifth child and middle daughter of the Jackson family, Jackson first gained recognition on the family's variety television series, ''The Jacksons'', ...
. She graduated from
Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School
MICDS (Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School) is a secular, co-educational, independent school home to more than 1,250 students ranging from grades Junior Kindergarten through 12. Its campus is located in the St. Louis suburb of Lad ...
in
St. Louis County, Missouri
St. Louis County is located in the eastern-central portion of Missouri. It is bounded by the City of St. Louis and the Mississippi River to the east, the Missouri River to the north, and the Meramec River to the south. At the 2020 census, th ...
.
Career
Toya’s career jump started when Courtney Benson and Tony Davis signed Toya to their production company, Hit City Music Group. The two also managed another St. Louis native, Hip Hop superstar Nelly. They took Toya to Arista Records, where then-label chief L.A. Reid signed her to a major record deal instantly. Toya’s first single "
I Do!!
"I Do!!" is the debut single of American R&B singer Toya (singer), Toya, serving as the lead single from her debut album, ''Toya (album), Toya'' (2001). Produced by Antoine "Bam" Macon, "I Do!!" became a hit for Toya, reaching 16 on the US Bill ...
" had major chart success. And led to her self-titled debut album later that same year, which landed on the
Billboard 200
The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of art ...
. Her second single was 2002's "
No Matta What (Party All Night)".
In January 2011, Toya announced via
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
that she would like to record music again. In April 2013, she stated that she was attempting to record music again.
Personal life
Toya is married to
Tamaurice "Tee" Martin, the wide receivers coach for the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
. On March 15, 2004, their son Kaden Martin was born.
In 2012, Toya gave birth to a second child, another son Cannon, according to her via Twitter.
Discography
Albums
* 2001: ''
Toya Toya may refer to:
Places
*Tōya, Hokkaidō, a former village in Abuta District, Iburi, Hokkaidō, Japan
*Tōyako, Hokkaidō, a town incorporating Tōya, Hokkaidō
**Tōya Station (Tōyako), a railway station in Tōyako
*Lake Tōya, a volcanic lak ...
'' — US #109
Singles
Other appearances
*"Stick Out Ya Wrist" (with
Nelly
Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...
), from the ''
XXX
XXX may refer to:
Codes and symbols
* 30 (number), Roman numeral XXX
* XXX, designating pornography
** XXX, an X rating#United_States, X rating
** .xxx, an internet top-level domain intended for pornographic sites
* XXX, a symbol of the straight ...
'' soundtrack (2002)
*"Same Ol Dirty" (with
Murphy Lee
Torhi Harper (born December 18 1979), better known by his stage name Murphy Lee, is an American rapper, best known as a member of the hip hop group St. Lunatics. His debut album, '' Murphy's Law'', peaked at number 8 on the ''Billboard'' 200 m ...
), from ''
Murphy's Law'' (2004)
*"I Had A Dream" (with Terror Time), from ''Hard Times In Da Country'' (2006)
References
https://instagram.com/toyamartin
External links
*
*
1983 births
African-American women singer-songwriters
American musicians of Puerto Rican descent
Living people
Midwest hip hop musicians
Musicians from St. Louis
People from St. Louis County, Missouri
Singer-songwriters from Missouri
21st-century African-American women singers
Singer-songwriters from North Dakota
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