Stacey Q

Stacey Lynn Swain (born November 30, 1958), known by her stage name Stacey Q, is an American pop singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. Her best-known single, John Mitchell's "Two of Hearts", released in 1986, reached number one in Canada, number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten in five other countries.

Swain was born on November 30, 1958, in the Orange County suburb of Fullerton, California. She is the youngest of three children. Her mother, Joyce, bred Cardigan Welsh Corgis that have appeared in Hollywood films and television. In a 1989 interview, Swain said she was three years old when she asked for dance lessons, but had to wait until she was five, when she did classical ballet. In 1969, she became the youngest member of the Dance Theater of Orange County, a local company that performed at benefit shows in Anaheim. She spent 11 years studying ballet and also learned flamenco dancing. She performed at multiple Disneyland's Christmas Fantasy on Parade events. She studied at the Community Theatre of Performing Arts and the Wilshire Theatre of Arts. She also performed in costume as the "Dutch Puppet", a name she used as a publishing alias during her early recording career. She went to Loara High School during her sophomore year, but then transferred to Anaheim High School. After graduating from high school in 1976, Swain joined the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, where she performed as a showgirl in her first year, and as an elephant rider in her second year. Her first singing project was a Los Angeles radio spot where she introduced and announced programs while impersonating members of The Go-Go's.

In 1981, Swain was introduced to Jon St. James, the proprietor of Fullerton's Casbah Recording Studio, which hosted recordings for the bands Berlin and Social Distortion.