In 1959, Ross was brought to the attention of Milton Jenkins, the manager of the local doo-wop group The Primes, by Mary Wilson. Primes member Paul Williams convinced Jenkins to enlist Ross in the sister group The Primettes, which included Wilson, Florence Ballard and Betty McGlown.
In 1976, Billboard magazine named her the female entertainer of the century. In 1993, The Guinness Book Of World Records listed her as the most successful female artist ever (the title is now attributed to Madonna), partly due to her combined total of eighteen number-one singles, six of them recorded solo and the remaining dozen from her work with the Supremes.
Ross was also one of the few pop singers to find modest success in the acting world winning an Academy Award nomination for her role as Billie Holiday in the 1972 film, "Lady Sings the Blues" as well as having hits with other film roles such as "Mahogany", "Out of Darkness" and "Double Platinum", not to mention her role in "The Wiz".
Ross has been awarded many lifetime achievement accolades from many organizations and media outlets: she has been featured on BET, Soul Train, and awarded multiple times at the NAACP Image Awards, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2007 and given the Grammy Lifetime Achievement in 2011.
Ross' professional vocal collaborators have included the following during her career: Marvin Gaye, Lionel Richie, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Julio Iglesias, Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo, and Smokey Robinson, among many others.
Baby Love
Diana Ross Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, how I need you
But all you do is treat me bad
Break my heart and leave me sad
Tell me what did I do wrong
To make you stay away so long
'Cause baby love, my baby love
Instead of breaking up
Let's start some kissing and making up
Don't throw our love away
In my arms why don't you stay?
Need ya, need ya
Baby love, (ooh) baby love
Baby love, my baby love
Why must we separate my love?
All of my whole life through
I never love no one but you
Why you do me like you do, I guess it's me
Ooh, ooh, need to hold you once again my love
Feel your warm embrace my love
Don't throw our love away
Please don't do me this way
Not happy like I used to be
Loneliness has got the best of me my love
My baby love, I need ya
Oh, how I need ya
Why you do me like you do
After I've been true to you
So deep in love with you
Baby, baby (baby), ooh
'Til it hurt me, 'til it hurt me
Ooh, baby love
Don't throw our love away
Don't throw our love away
The lyrics of Baby Love by Diana Ross and the Supremes are about a woman who is pleading with her lover to come back to her after they have broken up. The woman is deeply in love with her partner and feels hurt and sad that they have left her. She questions why they are treating her so badly and wonders what she did wrong for them to stay away for so long.
Despite the heartbreak and sorrow the woman feels, she still loves her partner and is hopeful that they can rekindle their romance. Instead of breaking up, she asks for them to start "kissing and making up" and to not throw their love away. She wants her partner to stay in her arms and to feel their warm embrace again.
The song portrays a mix of emotions, including love, hurt, and hopefulness. It speaks to the universal experience of heartbreak and the desire to mend a broken relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby love, my baby love, I need you
Addressing the listener as her baby love and confessing her need for them
Oh, how I need you
Reinforcing her deep feelings and longing for her listener
But all you do is treat me bad
Acknowledging her partner's mistreatment towards her
Break my heart and leave me sad
Expressing the negative emotional impact of the treatment she receives
Tell me what did I do wrong
Pleading for an explanation of why she is being mistreated
To make you stay away so long
Wondering why her partner has been absent for some time
'Cause baby love, my baby love
Reiterating her affectionate address for her listener
Been missing ya (ooh), miss kissing ya
Admitting to missing her partner's physical presence and intimacy
Instead of breaking up
Proposing a way to resolve their issues
Let's start some kissing and making up
Advocating for reconciliation through affection and intimacy
Don't throw our love away
Urging her partner not to give up on their relationship
In my arms why don't you stay?
Inviting her partner to embrace her and stay close
Need ya, need ya
Reaffirming her need for her partner's love and companionship
Baby love, (ooh) baby love
Once again addressing her partner with affection
Why must we separate my love?
Expressing her frustration with the idea of their relationship ending
All of my whole life through
Declaring that she has only ever loved her partner
I never love no one but you
Affirming her exclusivity in love for her partner
Why you do me like you do, I guess it's me
Expressing confusion and self-doubt regarding her partner's behavior towards her
Ooh, ooh, need to hold you once again my love
Craving her partner's embrace once again
Feel your warm embrace my love
Describing the comfort and satisfaction she derives from being held by her partner
Please don't do me this way
Pleading with her partner not to continue mistreating her
Not happy like I used to be
Acknowledging that her partner's mistreatment has negatively affected her happiness
Loneliness has got the best of me my love
Blaming her partner's absence for the loneliness she feels
My baby love, I need ya
Repeating her declaration of need for her partner
Why you do me like you do
Reiterating her confusion and frustration with her partner's behavior
After I've been true to you
Asserting that she has been faithful and deserving of her partner's love and respect
So deep in love with you
Describing her profound love for her partner
Baby, baby (baby), ooh
Addressing her partner affectionately yet again
'Til it hurt me, 'til it hurt me
Describing the emotional pain caused by her partner's mistreatment
Ooh, baby love
Reiterating her love for her partner
Don't throw our love away
Once again imploring her partner not to give up on their relationship
Don't throw our love away
Repeating her plea so that her partner fully understands her message
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Brian Holland, Edward Holland, Lamont Dozier
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind