Mary Ann Nagel was born as Rita Nagel in 1955. She took on the pseudonym of "Mary Ann" and began to sing from a very young age. She first released children's songs: So Viele Fragen / Laß mich nicht so lang allein" in 1968 and "Pony Girl / Du Ich Lieb' Dich Candy Man" in 1972.[1][2] This was followed by schlager single "Schau Mich Nicht So Böse An / Ein Tag So Schön Wie Heut" in 1973.[3] The singles did not make the German charts.[4] Inspired by the recent success of the Silver Convention and other girl groups, Nagel and producers sought to create another girl group.[5]
Arabesque was formed in 1977, and "Hello Mr. Monkey" was released as the first single featuring lead vocals by Nagel. Her participation in the group was short-lived however, she only recorded two songs with the group: disco songs "Hello Mr. Monkey / Buggy Boy". Mary Ann was part of Arabesque for a little over a year; she left in September 1978 and was replaced by Heike Rimbeau. Nagel's family life became more important than her career as a singer. She was married, had a son, and disliked the long commute from her hometown of Karlsruhe to Frankfurt am Main, where the group was based.