Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley (born; 26 April 1981) and popularly known as Ms. … Read Full Bio ↴Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley (born; 26 April 1981) and popularly known as Ms. Dynamite is a double Brit Award and three time MOBO Awards winning R&B, UK garage, and hip hop singer and rapper.

Ms. Dynamite was born and raised in Archway, London, England, to a Scottish mother and a Jamaican father. She grew up listening to reggae and hip hop music. Though she wanted to become a schoolteacher or social worker, her biggest aspiration was to be a musician. She is the eldest of eleven siblings, one of whom is a grime artist known as Akala.

While working at the radio station RAW FM, Ms. Dynamite was discovered by Richard Forbes at a West End club. After working briefly with the garage act So Solid Crew, she released her debut album, A Little Deeper, in 2002, which won Britain's prestigious Mercury Prize for Album of the Year for 2002.
2001

Back Then
Ms. Dynamite Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Never forgot the day he came my way, hehe...
From the very first second he stole my heart
Tired to play hard to get
But I was hooked from the start
Acting grown, the things he'd say
When we were hand in hand talking in the park
My first kiss, first crush, first valentines card

So infatuated, so uncomplicated
Back then...
When love was just a smile
Memories though a window what I wouldn't give to go
Back then...
When love was just a smile

Chorus:
Back in the day when love was so sweet
Funny how simple things used to be
Reminiscing on you and me
Take me back to my memories
Back in the day when love was so sweet
Funny how simple things used to be
Reminiscing on you and me
Take me back to my memories

He'd walk me home most days of the week
Hiding down the street so my mother couldn't see him
She woulda' give us a hell of a beating,
I remember, kiss chasing, heart racing
So weak when you'd look
Writing your name on my school books

Nervous, shy and shaking
Constant feelings racing
Back then...
I still hear my trembling voice,
Floating through the echoes
When I wouldn't give to go,
Back then...
When love was just a smile

Repeat Chorus Twice

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Ms. Dynamite’s song Back Then are a beautiful representation of young love and infatuation. The song starts with the memory of the very first time the singer saw the love of her life. She remembers the day he came her way and how he immediately stole her heart, and despite her best effort to resist him, she was hooked from the start. Their innocent love was characterized by walking hand in hand, talking in the park, and the reminiscence of her first kiss, first crush, and first Valentine’s card. Ms. Dynamite paints us a picture of how when we were young, love was so much simpler, and all it took was a smile from the person we had a crush on.

The love the singer had was so pure and uncomplicated, now looking back on those days, she realizes how much she misses it. She wishes she could go back in time and relive those untroubled memories she once had with her first love. She remembers how he used to walk her home, hiding down the street, so her mother wouldn’t see him. She recalls how they would play kiss chasing, and how her heart used to race. She remembers how she used to feel weak when he looked at her, and writing his name on her school books. She is nostalgic and wishes she could go back in time, back to when love was just a smile.

Line by Line Meaning

Never forgot the day he came my way, hehe...
From the very first second he stole my heart

Tried to play hard to get
But I was hooked from the start

Acting grown, the things he'd say
When we were hand in hand talking in the park

My first kiss, first crush, first valentines card
So infatuated, so uncomplicated

Back then...
When love was just a smile

Memories through a window what I wouldn't give to go
Back to that innocent time

Chorus: Back in the day when love was so sweet
Remembering the simplicity of young love

Funny how simple things used to be
Compared to the complexity of adult relationships

Reminiscing on you and me
Nostalgic thoughts of past love

Take me back to my memories
Longing to relive those moments

He'd walk me home most days of the week
Even though we had to keep it a secret