BeBe & CeCe Winansare an Americangospel/R&B musicbrother and sister duo.BeBeandCeCe Winansare the seventh and eighth of theWinans family's ten children, most of whom have had gospel music careers. Together, they have received several awards, including threeGrammys.
BeBe & CeCe Winans | |
|---|---|
 BeBe Winans(left) andCeCe Winans(right) in 1994 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Genres | Contemporary gospel,contemporary Christian music,Contemporary R&B |
| Occupation | Singers |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 1982–1996, 2009(reunion) |
| Labels | Sparrow,Capitol,EMI |
| Members | Benjamin "BeBe" Winans Priscilla "CeCe" Winans-Love |
Music career
editWhile BeBe and CeCe were in high school, four of their elder brothers formed the successfulgospelgroupThe Winans.Initially known as The Winans Part II, BeBe and CeCe first appeared in the public eye when they debuted in 1982 as part of the singing group The PTL Singers on the Christian television showThe PTL Club.They were introduced byJim Bakker,and recorded their first albumLord Lift Us Upas a duo for PTL Records.
Self-titled debut
editBeBe and CeCe left the PTL Singers in 1987 to pursue a musical career and that same year,Sparrow Recordsoffered the two siblings a Gospel recording contract. Their mainstream debut release was the self-titled albumBeBe & CeCe Winans.It was produced byKeith Thomas,who would go on to produceAmy GrantandVanessa L. Williams.The debut record gave them their first R&B hit, "I.O.U. Me", which topped R&B and inspirational charts and generated Grammy nominations, and Dove and Stellar Awards. CeCe also earned a Grammy for "Best Soul Gospel Performance, Female" for the song "For Always."
They were one of the first African American artists to receive significant airplay oncontemporary Christian musicradio stations and the second African American artists to receive theDove Awardin the Group of the Year category.
Heaven
editWith the release of their second LPHeaven,they remained steadily popular withR&Baudiences, spawning 3 R&B hit singles including two No. 1 singles. The pair became the first Gospel artists to see their album reach No. 1 on theBillboardsales charts in 1988. The title track also reached No. 12 on the Billboard R&B singles chart.[1]
Other hits from the album included "Lost Without You" and "Celebrate New Life," one of two album tracks featuring superstar and family friendWhitney Houston.[2]
The album reached the R&B Top Ten, went to No. 95 on the Pop Charts and was certifiedGold.[3]
Different Lifestyles
editThe release of their 1991 albumDifferent Lifestylesbrought their biggest success to date. It featured the singles "Addictive Love"and a cover ofThe Staple Singers' "I'll Take You There"featuringMavis Staples.Both singles topped the R&B chart.[4]RapperMC Hammerwas featured on the single "The Blood" at the height of his career. In 1992, the song peaked atNo. 8on Billboard'sChristian Adult Contemporary chart.
First Christmas
editA holiday release titledFirst Christmasfollowed in 1993. This album showcased BeBe's production skills and led to him doing production work withWhitney Houstonon the soundtrack for the movieThe Bodyguardas well as production and writing music for artists such asGladys Knight,Bobby Brown,The Clark Sistersand his younger sisters Angie and Debbie Winans.
Relationships
edit1994 saw the release of their studio albumRelationships,featuring the notable singles "If Anything Ever Happened To You," "Love of My Life," and "Stay With Me." This album conveyed a more personal approach, in CeCe's words: "A lot of people think we're supposed to be perfect, but we're people too, we go through hurt [and] pain. We get songs through experiences and as we reveal these things, people are touched."
Still
editIn 2009,Stillwas BeBe & CeCe's first album in more than 15 years. Premiering 12 new songs, the album's lead single was "Close to You".[5]The album won twoGrammy Awards:Best Gospel Performance (the song "Grace" ) and Best Gospel R&B Album.
Awards and honors
editAs a duo, BeBe and CeCe Winans' accolades include threeGrammy Awards,nineDove Awards,two NAACP Image awards, twoSoul Train Music Awards,numerousStellar Awards,threeGoldalbums, and onePlatinumalbum.
Grammy Awards
edit- 1991: Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album –Different Lifestyles
- 2010: Best Gospel Performance – "Grace"
- 2010: Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album –Still
GMA Dove Awards
edit- 1988: New Artist of the Year
- 1990: Group of the Year
- 1990: Pop/Contemporary Album –Heaven
- 1990: Pop/Contemporary Song – "Heaven"
- 1990: Contemporary Gospel Song – "With My Whole Heart"
- 1992: Group of the Year
- 1992: Contemporary Gospel Song – "Addictive Love"
- 1998: Contemporary Gospel Song – "Up Where We Belong"
- 2010: Urban Recorded Song – "Close To You"
NAACP Image awards
edit- 1990: Best Gospel Artist
- 1992: Best Gospel Artist
Soul Train Music Awards
edit- 1990: Best Gospel Album –Heaven
- 1992: Best Gospel Album –Different Lifestyles
The Walk of Fame Committee of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has announced that BeBe & CeCe Winans names will be added to theHollywood Walk of Famein 2011. The duo were inducted into theBlack Music & Entertainment Walk of Famein 2022.[6]
Discography
editAlbums
editStudio albums
edit| Year | Album | Peak positions | Label | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Gospel |
US R&B[7] |
US Pop | |||
| 1984 | Lord Lift Us Up | 20 | — | — | PTL |
| 1987 | BeBe & CeCe Winans | 12 | 49 | — | Sparrow/Capitol |
| 1988 | Heaven | 1 | 10 | 95 | |
| 1991 | Different Lifestyles | 1 | 1 | 74 | |
| 1993 | First Christmas | 23 | 17 | 163 | |
| 1994 | Relationships | 4 | 19 | 111 | |
| 2009 | Still | 1 | 2 | 12 | B&C/Malaco |
Compilation albums
edit| Year | Album | Peak positions | Label | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Gospel |
US R&B [7] |
US Pop | |||
| 1996 | Greatest Hits | 3 | 93 | — | Sparrow |
| 2006 | The Best Of BeBe & CeCe Winans | — | — | — | |
Singles
edit| Year | Song | Peak positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Hot 100 |
US Christian |
US Gospel |
US R&B | |||
| 1984 | "Up Where We Belong" | — | 27 | — | — | Lord Lift Us Up |
| 1987 | "I.O.U. Me" | — | 2 | — | 77 | BeBe & CeCe Winans |
| "Love Said Not So" | — | 11 | — | — | ||
| 1988 | "Change Your Nature" | — | 8 | — | — | |
| 1989 | "Heaven" | — | 3 | — | 12 | Heaven |
| "Celebrate New Life"(feat.Whitney Houston) | — | 4 | — | 25 | ||
| "Lost Without You" | — | 1 | — | 8 | ||
| 1990 | "Meantime" | — | 15 | — | — | |
| "You" | — | 24 | — | — | ||
| 1991 | "Addictive Love" | — | 1 | — | 1 | Different Lifestyles |
| "I'll Take You There"(feat.Mavis Staples) | 90 | 1 | — | 1 | ||
| "It's O.K." | — | 7 | — | 6 | ||
| 1992 | "The Blood"(feat.MC Hammer) | — | 8 | — | 78 | |
| "Depend on You" | — | 2 | — | 24 | ||
| 1993 | "Can't Take This Away" | — | 13 | — | — | |
| "Jingle Bells" | — | — | — | — | First Christmas | |
| 1994 | "If Anything Ever Happened to You" | — | 16 | — | 52 | Relationships |
| "Love of My Life" | — | — | — | 35 | ||
| 1995 | "Count It All Joy" | — | 7 | — | — | |
| "Stay With Me" | — | — | — | 62 | ||
| 2009 | "Close To You" | — | — | 1 | 21 | Still |
| "Grace" | — | — | 5 | — | ||
| 2010 | "Found Love (Cindy's Song)" | — | — | 11 | — | |
Music videos
edit- "Heaven"
- "Celebrate New Life"
- "Addictive Love"
- "I'll Take You There"
- "It's O.K."
- "Jingle Bells"
- "If Anything Ever Happened To You"
- "Love of My Life"
- "Feels Like Heaven (With You)"
- "Close To You" (Gospel No. 1, #38 R&B)
Solo careers
editIn 1995, they officially parted ways to work on their solo careers and other areas of interest. Both artists have gone on to have successful solo careers, receiving numerous awards and accolades. To date, BeBe has released six solo albums, while CeCe has released twelve.
BeBe and CeCe Winans recorded twice as a duo during their hiatus (before reuniting for the 2009 album "Still" ) – "What A Child", a duet on CeCe's Christmas albumHis Gift,released in 1998, and "Tonight Tonight", a duet on BeBe's 2000 albumLove & Freedom.
References
edit- ^J. Matthew Cobb (August 31, 2007)."80's Countdown".PraiseHymnOnline. Archived fromthe originalon February 15, 2008.
- ^"News, reviews, interviews and more for top artists and albums – MSN Music".MSN. Archived fromthe originalon May 18, 2011.RetrievedMay 13,2008.
- ^"Home – RIAA".RIAA.
- ^BeBe & CeCe Winans BiographyatAllMusic
- ^Fusemix."BeBe & CeCe Release New Album After 15 Years".fusemix.
- ^Nazareno, Mia (December 17, 2021)."Smokey Robinson, Berry Gordy, Jr. & More to Be Inducted at 2022 Black Music and Entertainment Walk of Fame".Billboard.RetrievedFebruary 17,2022.
- ^ab"BeBe & CeCe Winans Chart History – Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums".Billboard.RetrievedJune 24,2019.