Biography:
She was born and raised in Waterloo, Iowa. her parents were mixed of African- American, Caucasian, Polynesian, Asian, Spanish and Louisiana Creole descent. She began singing at the age of three and inspiration came courtesy of her father Malvin Spencer. Mr. Spencer was a singer with his own group The Cavaliers who opened for legendary singer Jackie Wilson. Preparing for a full time career in music, she would spend hours listening to musical legends like Billie Holiday and making home videos of herself singing tunes made popular by her idols Diana Ross and Mel'isa Morgan. At age five, Spencer began modeling in pageant competitions and in 1987 she won the syndicated television talent show Star Search singing Whitney Houston's "How Will I Know" and a song from her debut album entitled "Lullaby Child". Shortly afterwards, she became the youngest female artist to sign a record deal with a major label, Capitol Records, and went on to release her self-titled debut album. She found success with singles "Hide and Seek", "Symptoms of True Love" and her remake of [John Lennon's "Imagine". Her second album, "Make the Difference" was released on August 27, 1990. The first single, "Save Your Love", showed an impressive standing at #7 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. Her following single, "This House" became her biggest hit to date reaching #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Tender Kisses", one of her best known ballads, hit #1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and made her the youngest female artist to receive the ASCAP songwriter of the year award. The other singles, "This Time Make It Funky" and "Love Me", charted relatively well on The Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. She attended Columbus High School in Waterloo, Iowa. She also served on the board of the Children's Defense Fund as a teen and was given Martin Luther King Christian Leadership Award for being a positive role model for youth and she also traveled across the U.S. and abroad as part of a "Stay In School" program. In 1993, she made a guest appearance on the hit ABC sitcom, Family Matters and recorded the song "I'll Be There for You" for the 1997 film, "Good Burger", "The Rain" for "A Smile Like Yours" starring Lauren Holly and Greg Kinnear, "Down In The Delta" and "Girlfight" starring Michelle Rodriquez. She also modeled for Tommy Hilfiger, Chanel and Dollhouse, which lead to her being a part of New York and Los Angeles' fashion weeks in 1999-2000, being styled by Derek Khan, being signed to "NEXT" modeling agency and appearing in numerous magazines. On June 29, 1999, she made a comeback to released "Tracie" and found success with the hit singles "It's All About You (Not About Me) peaking in the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and "Still In My Heart", the latter showcasing her elastic soprano vocals. In the 2000s, she started singing background vocals on the Hip-Hop songs for rappers such as hip-hop artist Kanye West, 50 C and Eve as well as songwriting for other artist's projects. In 2004, she acted in the short film, "A Tale of Two Sisters and in 2006, she performed in a play called "Choices in Los Angeles. As of 2007, Ms. Spencer has taken a hiatus from music but still models and is also pursing other interests while living on both the west coast and working abroad, but there is talk of her working on a couple of different projects and a new album. As of 2008-09 Ms. Spencer started writing with producer Julian Bunetta who has produced hits for country artist Big and Rich and pop acts such as Natasha Bedingfield and Leona Lewis.
Because Of You
Tracie Spencer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It surrounds me everywhere that I go
No matter where you are
Your heart is here with me
I wanna tell you that I'm with you tonight
Though you're not here
I can see that lovely smile on your face
I'll make it true one more day
Because of you, there is nothing I can't do
And each test life puts me through
I'll get by because of you, because of you
You make love easy
You take pleasure in each thing that I do
You give unselfishly
And the gift you gave is you
I'm gonna dedicate the rest of my life giving back to you
All the trust and faith that you've given me
I've learned so much from you to show my gratitude
I'll be the best for you I can be
Because of you, there is nothing I can't do
And each test life puts me through
I'll get by because of you
With you on my side, I am free to try and fly
Every mountain I can find
I have seen love at each day because of you
Because of you
Mama, I wanna thank you for all the wonderful things you do
For being there whenever I needed you
With the love that would last forever
And mama, I'm away from you now
But never, never in my heart
Because of you, there is nothing I can't do
And each test life puts me through
I'll get by because of you, because of you
With you by my side
Tracie Spencer's song "Because of You" is a touching tribute to a loved one who is no longer physically present, but whose love and influence continue to shape the singer's life. Throughout the song, Spencer expresses the idea that the love of this special person is so powerful that it accompanies her wherever she goes. She feels their heart with her, no matter how far apart they may be. She also speaks about the positive impact that this person has had on her life, acknowledging that all her accomplishments and inner strength can be traced back to their love and support.
In the chorus, Spencer sings about how the presence of this person makes anything possible. Because of their love, she is able to face and conquer anything that life might throw at her. She is free to try and fly, to conquer any mountain she might encounter. Through this, Spencer expresses how profoundly grateful she is for the influence that this person has had on her life, and how committed she is to showing her love and appreciation in return.
Overall, the song's message is one of profound gratitude and understanding of the enduring power of love. It is a touching ode to the people in our lives who continue to inspire and uplift us, even when they are no longer physically present.
Line by Line Meaning
Your love goes with me
Your love is with me no matter where I go
It surrounds me everywhere that I go
Your love envelops me, it's always present
No matter where you are
Even if you're physically far away
Your heart is here with me
Your love and emotions are still here with me
I wanna tell you that I'm with you tonight
I want to express that I feel connected to you tonight
Though you're not here
Even though you're not physically present
I can see that lovely smile on your face
I can imagine your happiness and smile
And feel the touch of you and know I'm missing you
I can recall the sensation of being close to you and feel sadness from missing you
I'll make it true one more day
I can endure missing you for one more day
Because of you, there is nothing I can't do
Your support and love make me feel capable of anything
And each test life puts me through
In every challenging situation I face
I'll get by because of you, because of you
I will persevere because of your love and support
You make love easy
You make it effortless to love you
You take pleasure in each thing that I do
You appreciate and find joy in everything I do
You give unselfishly
You give without anything expected in return
And the gift you gave is you
The greatest gift you can give is your own self
I'm gonna dedicate the rest of my life giving back to you
I will spend my life paying you back for all you've done for me
All the trust and faith that you've given me
You have instilled trust and faith in me
I've learned so much from you to show my gratitude
I've learnt so much from you and how to show you how grateful I am
I'll be the best for you I can be
I want to be the best I can be for you
With you on my side, I am free to try and fly
You give me the freedom and confidence to pursue my dreams
Every mountain I can find
Every challenge or obstacle I face
I have seen love at each day because of you
I experience love every day because of you
Mama, I wanna thank you for all the wonderful things you do
Mother, I want to thank you for all the amazing things you've done for me
For being there whenever I needed you
For always being there when I needed you
With the love that would last forever
With the love that is eternal and everlasting
And mama, I'm away from you now
And mother, I'm currently separated from you
But never, never in my heart
But you're always in my heart
Lyrics © WRITE BY THE SEA SONGS, Spirit Music Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: DOROTHY SEA GAZELEY, ALLAN RICH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind