Toni Michelle Braxton (born October 7, 1967 in Severn, Maryland) is an Amer… Read Full Bio ↴Toni Michelle Braxton (born October 7, 1967 in Severn, Maryland) is an American R&B/adult-pop/contemporary singer, songwriter, and actress who was popular during the 1990s and the new millennium with hits like "Un-Break My Heart", "You're Makin' Me High", "He Wasn't Man Enough" and "Breathe Again".

She has won 7 Grammy Awards. The RIAA named Braxton as one of the top selling R&B artists of all time.

She first burst onto the scene in 1992 on the Boomerang soundtrack, after Anita Baker turned down the opportunity. In 1993 Toni released her self-titled debut album, which stayed at the top of the charts for a year and was a critically acclaimed album.

Toni released her sophomore effort, Secrets in 1996 which also did very well on both R&B and Pop charts. From that album Toni got two #1 hits; "You're Making Me High "and "Unbreak My Heart", which spent 14 consecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard top 100, and was a worldwide hit. After 5 Grammy awards and a little break, Toni Braxton came back strong with her 2000 album The Heat. Though not as successful as her first two albums, The Heat went on to sell 4 million copies and spawned the huge hits "He Wasn't Man Enough"and "Just Be A Man About It".

Toni has released two further albums, 2002's More Than a Woman and 2005's Libra. Toni's sixth studio album Pulse was released in May 2010 via Atlantic Records. The singles "Yesterday" and "Hands Tied" were the biggest hits. Subsequent singles to be released from "Pulse" include "Make My Heart" and "Woman."

In January 2011, the WE Television Network confirmed that it had signed Toni and the rest of the Braxton family for a reality series, Braxton Family Values, which will be marketed as one of the network's flagship shows. The series debuted April 12, 2011, and looks at the relationship between Toni, her mother, and her four sisters; Trina, Tamar, Traci and Towanda — all aspiring singers themselves — along with the interpersonal relationships of each family member. The show also looked at Braxton's heavily publicized separation from estranged husband, singer Keri Lewis. Toni parted ways with her long time manager Vincent Herbert (who was also the husband of sister Tamar Braxton at the time), and signed a new management deal with Los Angeles-based entertainment/production company 'The Collective'.

In 2014, Toni released a collaborative album with Babyface entitled Love, Marriage & Divorce; primarily inspired by their individual divorces (Toni with Keri, and Babyface with Tracey Edmonds). The album was supported by the singles "Hurt You", "Where Did We Go Wrong" and "Roller Coaster"; and won Best R&B Album in the 57th Annual Grammy Awards (2015).

Toni's long-awaited eighth album Sex & Cigarettes was released on Def Jam in March 2018, which was supported by the singles "Deadwood", "Long as I Live" and "FOH". The album also featured a sole guest appearance from singer Colbie Caillat, and was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Best R&B Album in the 61st awards ceremony (2019).

Signing to Island Records in 2020, Toni released her ninth album Spell My Name in August 2020, featuring collaborations with H.E.R. & Missy Elliott. The album was released to positive reception, but was her lowest-charting album yet, peaking at #163 on the Billboard 200.

In the Late of the Night/Toni's Secrets
Toni Braxton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Always thought your promise was for life
I did not think that I
Would hear you say goodbye
And I always heard you led another life
I doubted every time
I guess my love was blind
'Cause in my eyes
Love was always something magical

But the feeling is so tragical
And all I know is in love
The thing that I want most
I can't possess
There's only emptiness

In the late of night
Just before I closed my eyes
You lied
As you kissed me goodnight
In the late of night
Just before I closed my eyes
I cried
As you kissed my lips goodbye

In my eyes
You will always be the lucky one
'Cause you know you'll always have my love
For all times until I die
Through the end I gave to you my best
You gave, you gave me loneliness

In the late of night
Just before I closed my eyes
You lied
As you kissed me goodnight
In the late of night
Just before I closed my eyes

I cried
As you kissed my lips goodbye

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Toni Braxton's "In the Late of the Night/Toni's Secrets" expresses the heartbreak of a woman who has been let down by a loved one, someone whom she thought would be with her forever. The song is a ballad, and the lyrics are melancholic and pensive, the music adding to the somber tone of the song. In the beginning, the lyrics describe the disbelief of the singer; she never thought that her partner would leave her, and yet she was told goodbye. The singer then reveals that she always had her doubts about her partner; she had a feeling that he was leading a secret life, but her love was blind, and she failed to see what was right in front of her.

The chorus of the song speaks of how the singer was deceived and left in the late of the night. She is hurt and cries as her partner kisses her goodnight and leaves her. The song ends with the singer acknowledging that in love, the thing she wanted most, she could not possess, leaving her with nothing but emptiness. The song's theme is heartbreak, deception, and the inability to possess what one desires most. The song's ballad-style gives it a haunting feel, and the lyrics leave an impression of emptiness and disappointment, leaving the listener with a feeling of empathy for the singer.

Line by Line Meaning

Always thought your promise was for life
I believed that your commitment to me would last forever.

I did not think that I
I never imagined that you would leave me.

Would hear you say goodbye
I never thought I would hear those words from you.

And I always heard you led another life
I suspected that you were leading a double life.

I doubted every time
I was always skeptical about your actions.

I guess my love was blind
Perhaps my love for you made me oblivious to the truth.

'Cause in my eyes
To me,

Love was always something magical
love was a mystical and wondrous force.

But the feeling is so tragical
Now, the emotions I feel are devastating.

And all I know is in love
The only thing I understand about love is that,

The thing that I want most
what I desire most,