Macy Gray whose real name is Natalie Renee McIntyre, is an American artist who was born in Canton, Ohio, on September 6, 1967. This singer has distinguished herself in different styles including neo-soul, R’n’B without forgetting soul. In addition to her unique timbre of voice, Macy Gray has undisputed talents in composition, writing, but also in production. She has also already had some experience as an actress. Some memories of the end of the 90s will remind you of Macy Gray, whose first album was released on July 1, 1999, with a voice that cannot be forgotten! 

So if you don’t know who she is, let’s introduce you to her, and if you do know the name Mary Gray, here’s an update as recent as 2023! 

Macy Gray: Musical Career Over The Years + Recent Controversy

She is a Grammy winner:

Macy Gray is one of those singers whose talent has been recognized by the famous Grammy Award in the category “Best Pop Singer” for the song “I try” became a standard for Americans! 

It should be noted in passing that she was also nominated in the “ Song of the Year” category and in the “Album of the Year” category. 

She almost went into sports:

Macy Gray is the son of Laura McIntyre and Otis Jones and was adopted by Richard McIntyre. As a teenager, she worked part-time in the pantheon of professional American football where she would not stay long. 

At fourteen, she was expelled from the Western Reserve Academy, thus being forced to suspend her studies. Despite everything, she succeeded in entering a Californian university and graduating in 1990, at the age of 23. 

The rise of her music career began at university:

While studying, Macy Gray Has a keen interest in the world of music. Her entry into this universe occurred in a very unexpected way. Always passionate about writing and composing, she caught the attention of one of her friends who “ordered” some songs from her to be performed by a professional singer. 

On the day of the recording, the singer in question is missing. Macy Gray was then asked to interpret her compositions herself. That’s how it all started. Fate also wanted her to meet Joe Solo, a lyricist and professional producer. 

Everything since meeting Joe happens very quickly. Macy Gray and Joe Solo work together on many titles, some of which will be recorded in a private studio belonging to the producer. A “demo” disk was thus designed and noticed by people in the business. 

Macy Gray receives several invitations and performs in cafés with a “jazzy” atmosphere. The singer signed a contract with the record label Atlantic Records before joining the Epic label in 1998. 

“On How Life Is” was the most memorable album for Macy Gray:

Throughout 1998, she worked hard on her very first opus. This album will be released during the summer of 1999 under the title “ On how life is ” and will meet with phenomenal success. 

The first single from it is “Do something ” which receives only a timid welcome. The second single, ” I try “, is a planetary hit and will be one of the most popular songs of 1999. The two other excerpts from the opus, namely “Still” and “Why didn’t you call me” allowed the album to be certified platinum in many countries of the world including the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. 

Following the success of this first album, the singer won a Grammy Award in 2001. 

The 2000s helped her collab with VIP parties:

Shortly after her Grammy revelation to the public, Macy Gray is solicited from all sides. In particular, she was invited to participate in the development of the soundtrack for the second part of the film “ Rush hour ”. In this context, she works alongside renowned artists such as the group The Black Eyed Peas. 

After the great success of “On how life is”, Macy Gray continued her merry way in the world of music. Her second album “ The Id” was released on September 18, 2001, whose success in the United States was not as powerful as that of the first opus. “ The Id” reached No. 11 on the Billboard charts upon its release, but would plummet week after week. 

On the other hand, sales are much better in Europe. The singer notably reached the first place in Denmark as well as in the United Kingdom. The single ” Sweet baby ” which is taken from the album receives a warm welcome from the public. 

In 2002, Macy Gray made an appearance in the cinema. She plays her own character in the blockbuster “ Spiderman ”. On the music side, she collaborated this year with Santana and recorded “ Like the sun ” in a duet with the singer Zucchero. 

Also in 2002, she recorded “Time of my life” which would appear on the soundtrack of the film ” 8 Mile ” which featured Eminem. The following year, the singer unveiled her third opus entitled “The trouble with being myself ”. 

From 2007 to 2009, she was highly rated by critics, and danced: 

The single “When I see you” became a hit in the UK, where the album reached the Top 20 best-selling albums. Her fourth opus, “Big”, will not be released until a few years later, in March 2007. Two singles will be extracted from it, ” Shoo be doo” and “Finally made me happy” after which she was highly acclaimed by critics and all agree that it is the best work of the artist. 

In 2009, Macy Gray was a guest on the show Dancing with the stars.

On July 2021, “On How Life Is” turned 22 years old: 

Macy Gray started music almost for fun back in the late 90s began as a way to entertain her friends, to help out those who didn’t have a singer, to have fun on the weekends. But little by little, she becomes aware of the specificity of her voice, which she doesn’t really like, but which she knows is very original, and of her taste for writing – so she works on a few demos. After some procrastination from the record company, she finally found a label that signed for her first album: the famous On How Life Is. 

As its name suggests, this album is about the life of Macy Gray, which is that of a young woman, who lives a little disappointing love stories, who confesses and escapes from her daily life through music. 

But, as we are at a time when the record industry is living its golden age, it will have the means to make this album a superb studio record, with lots of great musicians in the orchestration, backing vocals, and instrumentals. There is a whole artistic direction, a technical work that will make Macy Gray’s voice resonate like never before.

Her first album will sell 10 million copies around the world – it’s huge – thanks in particular to the famous “I Try”, which still has a crazy charm. 

Others preferred to play you the title “Do Something” – because it samples Outkast and Nice and Smooth, it smells good of new soul and the muffled copper groove of the 90s, and the beautifully raspy voice of Macy Gray blends in perfectly.

Where is Macy Gray now?

Macy Gray was forced to explain herself after the outcry over her comments about transgender people. The singer assures that she was misunderstood. 

It was during an appearance on Piers Morgan’s ” Uncensored ” show, that the 54-year-old singer claimed that changing “your genitals doesn’t make you a woman.”

After these words aroused a wave of indignation, Macy Gray decided to explain herself because she claimed that she was completely misunderstood.

“I feel nothing but love for the LGBTQ+ community that I’ve supported since day one,” the soul singer said in a statement released by Billboard. “My statement on the set of Piers Morgan was extremely misunderstood. I don’t hate anyone. I respect everyone’s right to feel comfortable in their body and to live their own truth”. 

The support of the rights of trans people was in the heart of the artist who assured them that while also admitting that “everyone was going to hate her” for her remarks. A prediction she truly foresaw!