It’s all good until she starts cackling and singing. Honestly, what’s up with that cackling—like a billy goat? Not my cup of tea. Back in 1997, childhood friends Marsha Ambrosius and Natalie Stewart formed the R&B duo Floetry. They signed with DreamWorks and gave us classics like “Getting Late” and “Say Yes.” Their soulful vocals from Marsha, known as “The Songstress,” and MCing from Natalie, “The Floacist,” took the music world by storm. They were making waves and creating their own lingo. But after just two studio albums, it all came crashing down. Their messy breakup shocked many, especially given their role in promoting Black British talent in the US music industry.
This is a story about Marsha’s dramatic escapades in Philadelphia. Fix it, Jesus. It’s about a toxic romance and some scandalous voice messages. Are you ready for this mess? Does Marsha sound like a billy goat when she sings?
By 2006, Marsha and Natalie’s friendship was a hot mess. Marsha said it was because of Natalie’s dangerous relationship and her desire to go solo. In an interview with Ebony magazine, Marsha explained she couldn’t stand by and watch her friend suffer in a toxic relationship that could have ended badly. They performed their last show in the UK in December 2006, with Natalie’s boyfriend there. Marsha recalled crying in the bathroom, heartbroken over her friend’s decline. It became easier for her to leave Floetry, so she did, and signed a solo deal with Aftermath Records.
Natalie revealed to The Voice Online that Floetry’s breakup started when she decided to fire their manager. The manager wanted the group to change their style, but Natalie was determined to keep Floetry’s unique essence intact. She insisted there was no bad blood between her and Marsha, but Marsha cut her off immediately after the group disbanded.
Natalie’s New Journey: Solo Albums and Personal Healing
After the breakup, Natalie released three solo albums, collaborated with other artists, and married her longtime partner, Nolan Weeks. She shared with Young Voices, “With him, I was able to come home and heal from the experience of being in the States and of Marsha leaving the group. Our marriage helped me so much to deal with that, and he is so important to me.” There are questions about whether Nolan is the man Marsha accused of mistreating Natalie.
2012 Controversy: Natalie’s Bold Press Release
In 2012, before releasing new music, Natalie issued a dramatic press release. She stated, “Marsha left Floetry after so much joint success and foundation building to join Aftermath Records with no assurance of an album release.” Natalie accused Marsha of holding Floetry hostage for her own selfish reasons, calling it “the perfect example of someone selling out or selling their soul.”
Natalie told Young Voices she wasn’t upset about Marsha going solo, but she was hurt by what she described as “the lies that came out of Marsha’s mouth” after the group broke up. Natalie also accused Marsha and her team of trying to ruin her career. “It was heartbreaking to see my friend go along with her PR and management’s plans to blacklist me,” Natalie said. “They blacklisted me because I fired our old manager, and he wanted to make sure he could say that old cliché, ‘You’ll never work here again.'”
With Natalie out, Amanda Seales joined Marsha to keep Floetry alive. “That sounds like a great idea,” said no one ever. Seriously, Marsha, what were you thinking? Amanda joined Marsha on tour, and there were even rumors of a fistfight. On The Breakfast Club, Amanda denied any physical altercation but admitted there was definitely some beef. “There was a level of dishonesty about what I was walking into,” she said. Amanda mentioned that fans weren’t told she had replaced Natalie, and they weren’t happy about it. In fact, during a performance in DC, fans turned their backs on the stage in protest of Amanda’s presence.
That sounds like a complete lie. Try another one. Amanda called out Marsha for not introducing her to fans in a supportive, loving way. Amanda also believed Marsha was setting her up for failure by giving her little notice for each show, which varied greatly. So, you get someone like Marsha with Amanda, and you can see how the wrong kind of sparks could fly. Amanda was eventually told to hit the road, and in 2014, while Marsha was on tour, Natalie reached out to Marsha’s manager to ask if they could get Floetry back together. They met in a London café that December and talked things out. They never discussed Natalie’s toxic relationship; instead, they came back together as sisters. Afterward, Marsha invited Natalie to join her on stage, and Floetry fans loved it. They then decided to do a reunion tour, which kicked off in 2015.
But as soon as they hit the road, major issues arose. This was bound to get messy. For starters, Natalie hired a manager who happened to be a man Marsha had dated. Marsha had gotten pregnant by him, but sadly she had a miscarriage. Marsha claimed Natalie knew all this before hiring him, so she couldn’t understand why Natalie decided to work with him. Then, Natalie reportedly opened up to Marsha about having a miscarriage as well. Marsha empathized with her, only for Natalie to allegedly admit she had lied about the whole thing. Who lies about something like that? It’s giving Ticky Ticky Boom Boom vibes—completely cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.
Since Marsha and Natalie had been apart for so long, they traveled separately on the reunion tour. While Natalie focused on giving their fans an amazing performance, Marsha had her eyes on someone new. She met a man named Dez Bips, who was working on the tour as a roadie. Marsha told ABC Radio that after noticing his style, she approached him and asked him out on a date.
Dez accepted the invitation, and they became inseparable from that day forward. Marsha shared on The Breakfast Club that one day, while hanging out with Dez, some voice messages from male members of the band came through his phone. The messages went something like this:
“Yo Dez, you haven’t made a move yet? It should be easy to get with Marsha. You know she’s been with everyone in Philly already. What are you waiting for, man? You going to make a move or not?”
Marsha told Dez to let the voice messages play because, as a former athlete, she wasn’t bothered by the locker room talk and chalked it up to boys being boys. But then another voice message came through, and it was Natalie agreeing with the other men that it was time for Dez to make a move on Marsha. That’s when Marsha had to put a stop to it. Although she could overlook the guys’ comments, she couldn’t do the same for Natalie, who was supposed to be her friend. Marsha also reportedly found out that Natalie had told Dez all about Marsha’s past relationships. That was too much for her. Natalie was being incredibly messy.
So that was the first leg of their tour, and the second leg brought even more craziness. Marsha discovered she was pregnant, but she kept the news to herself. She told The Breakfast Club that even though Natalie didn’t know about her pregnancy, Marsha took offense to Natalie smoking cigarettes around her. When Marsha finally told Natalie, Natalie didn’t even congratulate her. Instead, she just said, “Oh, I kind of figured that out on my own.”
In 2016, at the end of the second leg of the tour, they broke up again. Marsha told The Breakfast Club, “We’ll never be cool because she’ll never be there for me like a friend should be.” Marsha gave birth to a healthy baby in December 2016, and she and Dez got married in 2017. As of this video, they’re still happily married. As for Natalie, she and Nolan got divorced, and she married a drummer named Robbie Maddix in 2017. Both women have continued making music separately, and Natalie also runs a poetry event organization called Flow Vortex.
For those hoping for another reunion, don’t hold your breath. Natalie told Essence magazine that Floetry had completed its cycle and the group is done. She admitted she and Marsha aren’t on speaking terms, saying, “We’ve been on different paths for a while. Do we support each other’s careers? We can only support each other’s careers no matter what we do. But no, we’re not friends, but that’s my sister.” The whole situation sounds pretty crazy.
If you’re surprised by what happened to Floetry, let us know down below, and thanks for watching RRG.
And while we’re talking about this, can I just say something? No shade to Marsha—I like Floetry. Their songs are great, and I’ll definitely vibe to them if they play in public. But none of their tracks are on my personal playlist. I’ll tell you why: I’m not a fan of that unique singing style Marsha does.
I grew up in the era of wax records, you know what I mean? When you hear that scratchy sound, it makes you think you need to replace the needle or clean the record. Personally, I don’t like it. No offense to Floetry or Marsha, but that’s just my opinion. It’s just me, Auntie Regina, sharing my thoughts with you.