INTERVIEW: Tamar Braxton Spills Tea On Last Album 'Bluebird Of Happiness'

By Isha Thorpe

October 11, 2017

Tamar Braxton is, without a doubt, one of the most powerful voices in music today.

Since she was a little girl, Tamar was known to command attention every single time she opened her mouth and belted out a song. After all, singing was a major part of her upbringing. Her father, Michael Braxton Sr., was pastor and her mother, Evelyn Braxton, was a choir teacher. So, Tamar has been carrying a tune for longer than most.

Though Tay Tay has an immense amount of talent, her road to superstardom was met with many different bumps and roadblocks. In her earlier industry days, Tamar along with her other sisters Trina, Traci (who later left) and Towanda were in a group called The Braxtons and signed a record deal. Toni was already with LaFace Records as a soloist. Unfortunately, The Braxtons didn't have much commercial success and was eventually dropped. 

Never one to quit, Tamar released her first solo, self-titled album in 2000 via DreamWorks Records and RedZone Entertainment. Thirteen years later, the Braxtons' reality TV show, “Braxton Family Values,” became a mega-success. Tay Tay ceased this momentum and released new music, once again -- and she's been on top of the world ever since!

Tamar released Love & War in 2013 and it reached the No. 1 spot on both the Billboard Top R&B Albums Chart and the iTunes R&B Albums Chart. After that, she dropped Winter Wonderland – a Christmas album that was released the same year, followed by Calling All Lovers in 2015. Now in 2017, we've been blessed with Bluebird of Happiness.

Bluebird of Happiness is the vocal powerhouse’s latest album. With songs like “My Man,” “Blind,” “Forever,” “Empty Boxes,” “Pick Me Up,” and much more; the LP is definitely Tamar's best project to date. It’s a masterpiece! Sadly, the singer/songwriter said that this project will be her very last album. We still tear up saying these words…

Nevertheless, we’ve decided to savor this moment of her epic album release by speaking to the star. From talking about Bluebird Of Happiness, going on tour with Xscape and Monica, her show “Tamar & Vince” and more; Tamar – as usual – gave us all the tea.

Check out iHeartRadio's interview with Tamar Braxton below. Buy Bluebird Of Happiness here!

Why did you name your album Bluebird Of Happiness?

Well, a lot of negative things came out last year that kind of surrounded my name and I found myself on the quest for happiness. And the bluebird for me represents happiness and peace and serenity. I found myself drawn to the bluebird and so now, I'm the bluebird of happiness.

So, you were in a bad place last year?

I was in a horrible place. I lost a lot of friends. I found out a lot of friends wasn't my friends on the radio and stuff like that. And it was a lot of public things that came out that probably shouldn't have. Everything was unfamiliar. Everything was a question to me. So, I just wanted to go on a quest on what was going to be real in my life.

That's why it's such a personal album to me. Being that it was my last album (laughs), it's very personal and I'm really connected to it.

Why is Bluebird Of Happiness your last album?

Well because me and my husband work really, really close together and we have a lot of projects that we're working on and I'm most passionate about singing and writing, performing. And anything that I can do to alleviate the stress from that onto my marriage, then I'm here for.

So, are you completely done with music?

No, I'm not done with music. I'm a musical girl and I'm going on tour with Xscape and Monica. And I'm definitely going on the Bluebird of Happiness tour, and I'll still write for other people and things like that.

Are you excited for your tour with Xscape and Monica?

Oh my God, I'm so excited! Like, who gets to say they get to tour with their best friend? I'm so excited. It's just crazy that Tiny and I talked about doing things like this when we were younger and it's just amazing that we are in a place in our lives that we can actually really do it. So, I'm just really fortunate.

I don't really know Monica like that. So, that's what I'm saying. I know her in passing. But I'm really, really looking forward to getting to know her because I feel that we have a lot in common. She's a mother. She's a wife. I've always been a huge fan of hers and I just want to get to know her on a personal level, for myself.

How was it playing “My Man” for your mother and seeing her reaction?

Listen it was a lot of pressure (laughs) because the song stemmed from my parents' divorce that happened a long time ago. But, my family didn't actually really deal with it until this past season on ‘The Braxtons.’ And I was just trying to speak for her because back then, she probably didn't have the courage or the voice to say the things that she needed to say... like somebody’s a heifer, which needed to be said.

What are your favorite songs on Bluebird Of Happiness and why?

Oh my goodness. Okay, I don't want to sound like a narcissist, but I love every song on the album because it's been so therapeutic to write. “How I Feel” I love, “Blind” I love, “Empty Boxes” I love, “Run, Run” I love, “Hold Up,” of course because I’m a ratchet (laughs). I’m a ratchet music lover and it has Yo Gotti on it.

What's the message you want your fans to take away from this final album?

Well, for me, I just want everybody to realize that happiness is not an adjective. It is your birthright. It's something that you always and will always have, and it lives within you. You just can't forget about it because it's always going to be there and it belongs to you.

What is your key to finding happiness?

The key for me was not caring about what other people have to say about me anymore. You're going to think what you're going to think, when you're going to think, how you're going to think and I can't change your mind. 

Doing things that are for me, you know what I mean? And doing things that I know -- that in my heart -- makes me happy, which is my family, which is being around my loved ones. Being around my good friends, singing and dancing and having a good time in life. I don't want anything holding me back and so, I'm not getting ready to stop doing what I want to do for anybody else, ever. Never again.

Is “Tamar and Vince” coming back for another season?

Yes we are. We're coming back in November and you get a real sense of why I say this is my last album. We're very, very open. We've always been an open relationship show. But, I think you'll see why I say this is my last album.

Photos: Rachel Kaplan for iHeartRadio

Tamar Braxton
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