Throwback Thursdays: "Why Did it Have to Be Me?" by Sweet Tee fg . Charis'se Rose

Okay, so I honestly want to blog and gain a somewhat decent following. But I'll admit that I'm often much too busy living my life to blog about it. Notwithstanding, I will do my best.

I wanted to start a Throwback Thursday's feed on here where every Thursday I would post about one of my favorite old skool jams. Admittedly, it is already Friday in NYC, but CrocoEmbossed is always running a little late. So bear with me.



Today I'm featuring Sweet Tee (Toi Jackson) who was an incredible female rapper (MC) who, unfortunately, released only one album in 1988, "It's Tee Time." As her name suggests, she has a silky smooth voice that is soothing yet not debilitating. While Sweet Tee never received such recognition and commercial success as MC Lyte or Salt-N-Pepa (or even J.J. Fad), her contribution should not be discounted as her lyrics are uplifting, her delivery is swift and effortless, and her poetic rhymes have a very unique timing scheme.

My favorite release by Sweet Tee is a brilliant slow- to mid-tempo rap ballad featuring the incredibly gifted Charis'se Rose (of Changing Faces) entitled "Why Did it Have to Be Me?". The two are a perfect pairing for this jam: Charis'se's sultry vocals accompany Sweet Tee's slick verses through heartbreak, further amplifying the magnitude of the situation. You will note, Charis'se confidently sails to the whistle register just before the fadeout - I love it! I am surprised that it took her another six years before someone had the good sense to cut her a deal and hook her and Cassandra Lucas up with R. Kelly.

The beautiful dual comprised of Sweet Tee and Charis'se is a pre-cursor to the messages that Changing Faces would later sing about: no good men who cheat, the assurance of being alone, playing second fiddle to another woman, and the importance of lasting platonic relationships with friends.

While the accompanying video dates the work, the song by itself is timeless. I think the video will resonate with you as it is both retro and corny, but poignant. Sweet Tee's man drops her for some Big Booty Bonita Bitch, and in so doing screws himself in the end.


While I am grateful to Drew who uploaded the video on YouTube, he is a bit of a dick as he blocked anyone from embedding the video. It's obvious that he hijacked the joint from BET, but the buck stops there as he is not letting me cop the jam to post here. So follow the link below and check it out. Be sure to check out Bonita's hump at 0:48 as the melody palpitates.


Link to music video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNWfdEc7VxY