Erica Atkins-Campbell and Trecina Atkins-Campbell were born in Inglewood,
California. The Campbell (formerly Atkins) sisters grew up as part of a large family of nine children in Inglewood, California. Their parents are Thomasina (An evangelist and choir director at the Evangelistic Church of God in Christ) and Eddie (a youth minister). Because of their proximity in age, the two singers grew up closer to one another than to any of their seven siblings. The sisters quickly entered the world of church choirs, traveling gospel shows, and some television productions. All nine Atkins children were on the Bobby Jones Gospel show on BET.
The sisters had their sights set on making music a career and enrolled at El Camino College to study voice. There they ran up against the divide between academic music studies and the popular musical world. "We had to study classical and sing arias, which was fine," Erica told the Times, "but the teachers would tell us if we sang anything else it would damage our instrument." The sisters tours with the 1995 Michael Matthews traveling gospel show Mama I'm Sorry and Sneaky. Each sister subsequently toured as a backup singer for a variety of R&B acts including Brandy.
A meeting with producer Warryn Campbell led to their song publishing deal with the giant EMI music conglomerate and a series of songs that landed on the soundtracks. They wrote "Dance" and performed it with Robin S. for the soundtrack to the 1998 film Dr. Dolittle; "Let Go, Let God" for The Prince of Egypt Inspirational, one of three soundtrack albums for the film; and songs of theirs were recorded by Yolanda Adams and 702. At the same time, Mary Mary as a musical entity took shape.
The sisters' profile in the gospel industry was raised when their songs "Time To Change" and "Yeah" were recorded by Yolanda Adams on the Mountain High... Valley Low CD. The duo was subsequently signed to Columbia Records/C2 Records and decided to perform under the name Mary Mary, honoring Mary, the mother of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. They were first gospel act to record for the industry giant Columbia Records since Tramaine Hawkins in the mid-1990s. Their first single, "Shackles (Praise You)" became a crossover hit, being popular with gospel, R&B, and pop audiences. It was a Top 10 R&B and Top 40 pop hit, and peaked at #28 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It became the first gospel song in five years to crack the R&B top ten and gained wide exposure on the MTV video cable channel. The album was a huge success because it offered a younger, hipper version of gospel that audiences could relate to.
Their first album, Thankful (Mary Mary Album) in May 2000, which would go on to win the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album, and a second single, "I Sings". Peaking at #1 on the Gospel album chart and at #59 of the overall Top 200 chart, Thankful was certified Platinum for sales of 1 million copies in the USA. Both singles were also hits in the UK and Europe, and to this day remain popular with Christian youths in the US, Latin America, and Europe.
With their second album Incredible, the duo was able to maintain their success. The record, soon after its release, went to #1 on the Gospel chart, and was able to enter the Top 20 of the Top 200 album chart. Incredible was later certified Gold for 500,000 copies sold in the United States. The album's singles In The Morning and I Try became relatively large hits within the contemporary gospel nation.
After taking time off to have children, their third album Mary Mary appeared. It became the duo's first album to enter the Top 10 on Billboard and was later on certified Gold for sales of 500,000 copies. The first single "Heaven" containing a sample from seventies soul trio the Honey Cone's "Want Ads". Heaven made history and broke chart records as it had an unprecedented 9 week run as the #1 record on Billboard's Gospel Radio chart. The second single, "Yesterday", also became a hit, especially on the Adult R&B charts where it peaked at #10. On the R&B/Hip Hop chart, the song became their second biggest hit since "Shackles" in 2000, reaching the #53 spot so far.
On October 10, 2006`, the recording group released their most recent album inspired by Christmas songs and is called A Mary Mary Christmas.
I Sings
Mary Mary Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Sing me your song, O)
It is sung to the moon by a love-lorn loon
Who fled from the mocking throng-o
It's the song of a merry man moping mum
Whose soul was sad and his glance was glum
Who sipped no sup and who craved no crumbAs he sighed for the love of a lady
Hey-di, hey-di, misery me, lack-a-day-de
He sipped no sup and he craved no crumb
As he sighed for the love of a lady
I have a song to sing, O
(What is your song, O?)
It is sung with the ring of the songs maids sing
Who loved with a love life-long-o
It's a song of a merry maid pearly proud
Who loved a Lord and who laughed aloud
At the moan of the merry man moping mum
Whose soul was sad and his glance was glum
Who sipped no sup and who craved no crumb
As he sighed for the love of a lady
Hey-di, hey-di, misery me, lack-a-day-de
He sipped no sup and he craved no crumb
As he sighed for the love of a lady
I have a song to sing, O
(Sing me your song, O)
It is sung to the knell of a church-yard bell
And a doleful dirge ding-dong O
It's a song of a popinjay bravely born
Who turned up his noble nose with scorn
At the humble merry maid pearly proud
Who loved a Lord and who laughed aloud
At the moan of a merry man moping mum
Whose soul was sad and whose glance was glum
Who sipped no sup and who craved no crumb
As he sighed for the love of a lady
Hey-di, hey-di, misery me, lack-a-day-de
He sipped no sup and he craved no crumb
As he sighed for the love of a lady
I have a song to sing, O (I have a song to sing, O)
I have a song to sing, O
It is sung with a sigh and a tear in the eye
For it tells of a righted wrong-o
It's a song of the merry maid once so gay
Who turned on her heel and tripped away
From the peacock popinjay bravely born
Who turned up his noble nose with scorn
At the humble heart that he did not prize
So she begged on her knees with downcast eyes
For the love of the merry man moping mum
Whose soul was sad and his glance was glum
Who sipped no sup and who craved no crumb
As he sighed for the love of a lady
Hey-di, hey-di, misery me, lack-a-day-de
His pains were o'er and he sighed no more
For he lived in the love of a lady
Hey-di, hey-di
His pains were o'er and he sighed no more
For he lived in the love of a lady
"I Sings" by Mary Mary is a traditional English folk song that tells a story of unrequited love and heartbreak. The singer of the song announces that they have a song to sing, which is sung by a love-lorn loon to the moon as he fled from the mocking throng. The first verse sets the tone for the rest of the song, where they describe the sad state of a man who is pining for the love of a lady. He is depicted as a merry man who is now moping and whose soul is sad and glance glum. Interestingly, he craves no crumb and sips no sup as he sighs for the love of a lady.
The second verse of the song describes the lady that the merry man is in love with. The lady is described as a proud, merry maid who loved a lord and laughed aloud. She is depicted as someone who is happy and in love with life. The song then returns to the sad state of the merry man who sips no sup and craves no crumb. The last verse of the song speaks of redemption as the story has a happy ending. The proud, merry maid turns her back on the popinjay who turned up his noble nose with scorn to her humble heart. She goes on to beg on her knees for the love of the merry man. The result of her persistence is that the merry man's pain is over, and he sighs no more as he lives in the love of a lady.
Overall, "I Sings" by Mary Mary is a melancholy song about unrequited love and heartbreak. The song is set to a light, cheerful melody, which creates a sense of irony. The song is a reminder that love can often be painful and that sometimes it takes persistence to find redemption.
Line by Line Meaning
I have a song to sing, O
I want to share a song with you
Sing me your song, O
What song do you have to share?
It is sung to the moon by a love-lorn loon Who fled from the mocking throng-o
This song is sung by a sad man who ran away from people who made fun of him
It's the song of a merry man moping mum
The song is about a happy man who is secretly sad
Whose soul was sad and his glance was glum
Although he seemed cheerful on the outside, his inner self was sad
Who sipped no sup and who craved no crumb
He had no appetite and could not bring himself to eat anything
As he sighed for the love of a lady
He devotedly yearned for the love of a woman
Hey-di, hey-di, misery me, lack-a-day-de
He sighed deeply and felt very sad
It is sung with the ring of the songs maids sing Who loved with a love life-long-o
This song is sung like the love songs that women sing in praise of their lifelong lovers
It's a song of a merry maid pearly proud Who loved a Lord and who laughed aloud
The song tells the story of a happy maiden who loved a Lord and cheerfully laughed often
At the moan of the merry man moping mum
She was not aware of the sad man's moans
It is sung to the knell of a church-yard bell And a doleful dirge ding-dong O
This song is sung to the tolling of a somber funeral bell
It's a song of a popinjay bravely born Who turned up his noble nose with scorn
The song talks about a proud man who was disdainful of others
At the humble merry maid pearly proud Who loved a Lord and who laughed aloud
He looked down on the cheerful lady who loved a Lord
It is sung with a sigh and a tear in the eye For it tells of a righted wrong-o
This song is sung with sadness and tears because it tells of something that was set right
It's a song of the merry maid once so gay Who turned on her heel and tripped away
The song is about a happy lady who left quickly and gracefully
From the peacock popinjay bravely born Who turned up his noble nose with scorn
She left behind the proud man who looked down on her
At the humble heart that he did not prize So she begged on her knees with downcast eyes
She left the man who did not value her, and begged on her knees for the love of the sad man
His pains were o'er and he sighed no more For he lived in the love of a lady
The sad man found love and was no longer in pain
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Peter Yarrow, Mary Travers, Milton Okun, Noel Stookey, Arthur Sullivan, William Gilbert
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@danielle_schuyler
If there's any place to dance and be free it's in God's presence! Look at David! He danced in his underwear and didn't care who was watching! Loosen up and let the joy of God overflow within you, until you can't help but move those feet! Slava bogue!
@tennillelockard2931
Erica and Tina can sing. I love this group! They make gospel enjoyable without it being boring!!! Love yall!!!
@rosekansla9072
YOOO THIS SONG WAS MY JAM WHEN I WAS 9!!! Im 26 now, still jamming to this in 2019!!!! 🙌🙌🙌
@beverlymoore4527
It's now 2023!! And it's still true!!!
@RChildVision
Wow I always missed the Brandy & Sisqo cameo...and of course the Ever talented DarkChild who do SO MUCH for contemporary/urban Gospel
@siphiweafrika977
I love how they make partying with gospel music look so fun. I think I'll throw me a gospel party for my 20th birthday party, haha :) absolutely lovely
@chrisdukes1340
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@britbratnextdoort.v6440
This a good idea I want to celebrate mines like this
@unusedName1
I did not realize that Mary Mary was a gospel group until I looked at the lyrics. I ever danced this song thinking that it was just another urban soul theme. But I like it very much from the beginning. I just read the letters a minute ago and I started crying. God bless all of you.
@angelarivera9270
unusedName1 I did in 1999