Boyz II Men is an American New jack swing vocal group, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. Formerly a quartet featuring Michael McCary, they are currently a trio composed of baritone Nathan Morris alongside tenors Wanya Morris and Shawn Stockman. During the 1990s, Boyz II Men found fame on Motown Records as a quartet. McCary left the group in 2003 due to health issues.[1]
During the 1990s, Boyz II Men gained international success. This began with the release of the number one single "End of the Road" in 1992, which reached the top of charts worldwide.[2] "End of the Road" would set a new record for longevity, staying at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for thirteen weeks, breaking the decades-old record held by Elvis Presley. Boyz II Men proceeded to break this record with the subsequent releases of "I'll Make Love to You" and "One Sweet Day" (with Mariah Carey),
which, at fourteen and sixteen weeks respectively, each set new records
for the total number of weeks at number one. "I'll Make Love to You"
also topped the charts in Australia (for four weeks) and garnered
international success. As of 2014, "One Sweet Day" still holds the
all-time record with sixteen weeks at the top of the Hot 100.
Consequently, Boyz II Men are top ranking members with regard to time spent at number one in Billboard history, currently (as of 2014) at the number one, three, and four spots.[3] Furthermore, when "On Bended Knee" took the number 1 spot away from "I'll Make Love to You", Boyz II Men became only the third artists ever (after The Beatles and Presley) to replace themselves at the top of the Billboard Hot 100.[4]
Boyz II Men are among a select group of artists that have held at the
number-one spot for at least 50 weeks cumulatively, placing them just
fourth on that list behind Elvis Presley, The Beatles, and Mariah Carey.
These achievements were enough to earn Boyz II Men recognition as Billboard magazine's fourth most successful musical group of the 1990s.[5]
Boyz II Men continue to perform worldwide, as a trio. Their most recent studio album, Collide, was released in 2014.
1985–1990: Beginnings
The group, originally known as Unique Attraction, was started by friends Nathan Morris and Marc Nelson at the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA)[6] along with fellow schoolmates George Baldi, Jon Shoats, and Marguerite Walker in 1985. In 1987, Wanya Morris,
who sang in the school's choir along with the members of Unique
Attraction, joined the group and became a permanent member since he was
only a freshman. In 1988 Baldi, Shoats, and Walker all left the group
due to graduation. They then recruited Shawn Stockman
after seeing him perform a solo in the school's choir. One day Nate,
Marc, Wanya and Shawn were practicing their harmonies in a school
bathroom and in walked Michael McCary
who started singing along with the group and would eventually become
the group's new bass singer. Now with a permanent lineup of members the
group would rehearse in the high school's bathrooms, due to the
excellent acoustics, and on the corners of their schools and local
hangouts. They found inspiration in New Edition's
harmonies and routines, and eventually renamed the group "Boyz II Men",
after one of New Edition's songs. After performing at a Valentine's Day
party at school in 1989 they got their big break when they snuck
backstage at a concert in their hometown to sing for New Edition member Michael Bivins, who along with fellow groupmates Ricky Bell and Ronnie DeVoe just announced they were forming a New Edition spin-off trio Bell Biv DeVoe. After they sang New Edition's Can You Stand The Rain
for him, Bivins and everyone in attendance including other celebrities
were impressed. He gave the group his number and told them to give him a
call. Nate eventually called Bivins, and he agreed to manage and helped
produce the group.
The delay before recording their own material and reported
personality conflicts led founding member Marc Nelson to leave the
group, making Boyz II Men into the quartet that would find international
fame: Michael McCary, Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, and Shawn Stockman.
1991: Cooleyhighharmony
Boyz II Men's first album, Cooleyhighharmony, was released on Motown in 1991 and was produced by Michael Bivins. Cooleyhighharmony 's drum-heavy new jack swing sound and multi-layered sampled backdrops were similar to that of Bell Biv DeVoe's own work, but featured classic-soul styled vocals in place of BBD's rapping and brassier singing. This style was dubbed "hip hop doo-wop" by the group and Bivins, who presented Boyz II Men and adolescent R&B group Another Bad Creation to the public as BBD's protégés.
From the beginning, Boyz II Men featured all four members as leads,
avoiding the usual R&B group arrangement of one or two lead singers
and a team of background singers. The multiple-lead arrangement became a
Boyz II Men trademark, and it became typical to hear Wanya Morris'
vibrato-heavy tenor, Shawn Stockman's tenor voice, Nathan Morris' baritone, and Michael McCary's bass (often used in spoken-word sections of many Boyz II Men hits) trading bars in each song.
The album's liner notes identified unique nicknames for each member
of the group. These nicknames were devised in collaboration with Bivins
in an attempt at marketing. Wanya was "Squirt", Shawn was "Slim",
Michael was simply "Bass", and Nathan assumed the name "Alex
Vanderpool", after a soap opera character who brandished a nerdy style.[7]
Boyz II Men's first single, the Dallas Austin-produced "Motownphilly"
featured a rap cameo by Michael Bivins that gives the story of how he
met Boyz II Men. The single's release was accompanied with a music video
that presented the group in hip hop style. (The video also included
cameos from fellow Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing
Arts alumni Black Thought and Questlove of The Roots.) Cooleyhighharmony's second single was an a cappella cover of a classic Motown tune, G.C. Cameron's "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" from the 1975 film Cooley High, while "Uhh Ahh" served as the third single.
Cooleyhighharmony achieved major success, eventually selling over nine million copies and winning the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 1992 Grammy Awards.[8] Boyz II Men were also nominated for Best New Artist, alongside with British singer-songwriter Seal, fellow R&B group Color Me Badd, as well as dance group C+C Music Factory, but the Grammy was awarded to singer-songwriter Marc Cohn. "Motownphilly" and "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" were number 1 R&B hits and top five U.S. pop hits.
In 1992, Boyz II Men joined MC Hammer's high-profile 2 Legit 2 Quit tour as an opening act. While traveling the country, their tour manager Khalil Roundtree was murdered in Chicago,
and the group's future performances of "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to
Yesterday" were dedicated to him. As a result of this unfortunate
experience, the song would prove to help advance their success.[9]
1992: "End of the Road"
While touring during 1992, Boyz II Men returned briefly to the studio to record the single "End of the Road", co-written and produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, for the soundtrack to Eddie Murphy's film Boomerang.
This song, released as a single on June 30, 1992, would become Boyz II
Men's biggest hit. It reached the number one position on the Billboard
Hot 100 on August 15, remaining there for a record-setting 13 weeks,
until November 7, 1992. The success of "End of the Road" instantly
transformed Boyz II Men from up-and-coming R&B stars into mainstream
music celebrities.
A revamped Cooleyhighharmony would be reissued during 1993,
with "End of the Road" added as a special bonus track, but "End of the
Road" initially appeared only on the Boomerang soundtrack. Later
the track would land on a collection of singles produced by Michael
Bivins called "East Coast Family, Vol. 1".[10]
Shortly after the release of this compilation, Boyz II Men and Michael
Bivins parted ways professionally. Boyz II Men would continue to work
with Babyface and other high-profile record producers over the next
several years.
1994: II
After releasing a Christmas compilation, Christmas Interpretations in 1993, Boyz II Men returned to the studio for their highly anticipated sophomore effort. In 1994, II was released. II sold more than 12 million
copies in the United States alone, becoming one of the best-selling
albums ever released by an R&B group act, and one of the biggest
albums of the decade.
Most of the tracks on II were written and produced by Tim & Bob Tim Kelley and Bob Robinson (5) Babyface (2) and the successful team of Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis (2). Several of II 's tracks became major singles, among them Jam & Lewis's "On Bended Knee", and Babyface's "I'll Make Love to You" and "Water Runs Dry".
"I'll Make Love to You" broke "End of the Road's" 13-week record at
number 1, by spending 14 weeks at the top of the chart (a feat equaled
earlier that year by Whitney Houston's cover of "I Will Always Love You").
"On Bended Knee" replaced "I'll Make Love to You" at number 1, making
Boyz II Men only the third act ever to replace itself at number 1 on the
Hot 100, after Elvis Presley and The Beatles.[4]
At the 37th Grammy Awards on March 1, 1995, the group won two Grammy Awards: Best R&B Album for II and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. for "I'll Make Love to You".
1997–1998: Evolution and label conflicts
Motown issued The Remix Collection, a compilation of remixes of various Boyz II Men songs from Cooleyhighharmony and II.
The group itself had opposed the release of the collection, because
they felt the compilation did not represent Boyz II Men's best work.
After the label released the album without their permission, there was a
dispute between the company and the group. Boyz II Men initiated their
own recording company Stonecreek (which released material by artists
such as Uncle Sam), and they arranged for Stonecreek's distribution by Epic Records, not Motown.
Boyz II Men's third studio album, Evolution, was released during 1997 to mixed reviews and sold three million copies, far below the stratospheric success of II 's (12 million copies) and Cooleyhighharmony (9 million). Only one of Evolution 's singles, the Jam/Lewis-penned "Four Seasons of Loneliness", reached number 1 on the Hot 100 chart. The second single, the Babyface-helmed "A Song for Mama" (the theme song to the Babyface-produced film Soul Food) was a Top 10 success, but the follow-up "Can't Let Her Go" underperformed.
The global tour began in 1997 to promote Evolution was very
successful in terms of ticket sales, but behind the scenes, Boyz II Men
was wracked by conflicts with their record label and internal conflicts
among the members of the group. Making matters worse, health problems
began to take their toll on the group as well. While on tour to support
the Evolution album, Wanya Morris developed a polyp on his vocal cords, and the group was forced to postpone part of the tour until he recovered. McCary's scoliosis meant that he was unable to participate in most of the group's dance routines.
Boyz II Men were nominated for 2 Grammys in 1998: Best R&B Album for Evolution and Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "A Song for Mama".
1999–2001: Nathan Michael Shawn Wanya
In 1999, Motown's parent company, Polygram, was bought by Universal Music Group.
Amidst the major corporate restructure, Motown was merged with UMG's
Universal Records, where Boyz II Men found themselves reassigned.
Their only studio LP album for Universal, 2000's Nathan Michael Shawn Wanya,
was chiefly written and produced by the group itself, in an attempt to
update their sound and ward off critics who questioned the group's
reliance on Babyface's hit-making songcraft. While the critics were more
receptive to Nathan Michael Shawn Wanya than they had been to its predecessor, the LP sold only 500,000 copies in the US, 1 million
copies worldwide, and although its two singles, "Pass You By" and
"Thank You in Advance" received media attention, neither became hits.
Boyz II Men departed from Universal in 2001, ending their
relationship with the company that brought them to international stardom
in 1991. The label released a very successful greatest hits compilation, Legacy: The Greatest Hits Collection, to close out their contract.
2002–2003: Full Circle and "The Color of Love"
Signing a new deal with Arista Records in 2002, Boyz II Men began recording the Full Circle
album, and recruited Babyface for a new single, "The Color of Love". In
an attempt to recapture the massive success the group had enjoyed a
decade earlier, the album received a significant promotional budget.
Arista commissioned a high-budget music video, shot in four different
locales by four different directors: supervising director Little X filmed scenes featuring Michael McCary in India, Hype Williams filmed Shawn Stockman in Tokyo, Benny Boom filmed Nathan Morris in Ghana, and Chris Robinson filmed Wanya Morris in Puerto Rico and finally all were filmed in New York. The resulting music video had a debut on BET, but failed to have a great effect, and Full Circle, like Nathan Michael Shawn Wanya before it, sold slightly more than 500,000 copies in the US and 1 million copies worldwide.
Full Circle would become Boyz II Men's final album as a
quartet, and their last effort to receive extensive promotion from a
major record company. On January 30, 2003, Michael McCary retired from performing due to his ongoing battle with scoliosis. Arista terminated Boyz II Men's contract on April 30, and the remaining three members took a temporary hiatus from the music industry.
Remake era
2004–2006: Throwback, Vol. 1 and The Remedy
After a year out of the spotlight, Boyz II Men created the independent label MSM Music Group (distributed through Koch Records), and released the Throwback, Vol. 1 LP in 2004. The album is a collection of covers of classic R&B and soul songs such as The Dazz Band's "Let It Whip", Michael Jackson's "Human Nature", and, as the single, Bobby Caldwell's
"What You Won't Do for Love". For this record, Nathan took on the bass
lines as well as the baritone vocals that he sang when Boyz II Men was a
quartet. Throwback, Vol. 1 reached number 59 on the Billboard 200. The group launched an independent tour of North America and Asia in support of the Throwback series. The album sold over 200,000 copies with little to no promotion aside from the group's independent tour.
In 2005 Boyz II Men recorded a CD with Anderson Cameau called "Apocalypse", a project meant to benefit Haiti.
In 2006, Boyz II Men's seventh studio album, The Remedy, was released exclusively in Japan, where they found a thriving fan base. In other regions, The Remedy was made available online through the group's website on February 14, 2007.
2007–2008: Hitsville USA
In mid-2007, the group re-signed with Universal Records and released the LP Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA through the Decca Records label. The LP is a cover album featuring songs from the Motown Records catalog, co-produced by Randy Jackson of American Idol fame. The Motown album includes covers of songs by The Temptations ("Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)"), Marvin Gaye ("Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing", "Mercy Mercy Me"), Smokey Robinson & the Miracles ("The Tracks of My Tears"), and even Boyz II Men themselves (an a cappella version of "End of the Road").
Commercially, Motown found some success. It peaked at number 6
on the US R&B chart, and was certified Gold in the UK. The album
was also a critical success. For the 51st Annual Grammy Awards in 2009,
Boyz II Men received two nominations for the album Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA (Best R&B Album and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for "Ribbon in the Sky").
In 2008, Boyz II Men's three members appeared on Celebrity Don't Forget the Lyrics
and created a sensation with their performance. They earned $500,000
for their two nominated charities; the appearance also generated
interest in their next release.
2009: Love
In 2009, Boyz II Men announced plans for a new cover album, that
covers "artists I don't think people would expect us to cover!"
according to Shawn Stockman. Entitled Love, the album was released on November 23, 2009. The album contains remakes of love songs from outside the R&B genre.
2011–2012: Love Cruise and Twenty
Boyz II Men headlined a "Love Cruise" in honor of their 20th anniversary and in observance of Valentine's Day. The cruise took place February 11–14, 2011, and traveled from Miami, Florida, to Nassau, Bahamas.
Cruise passengers received a Boyz II Men welcome cocktail party, a
concert performance by Boyz II Men, an additional fan appreciation
concert by Boyz II Men, a photo session with Boyz II Men (in small
groups), a formal prom night, a poker
tournament, a deck party with Boyz II Men and a guest DJ, a singles
mixer, a gift bag, and onboard drawings for other Boyz II Men events.
Couples were able to renew their wedding vows in a special ceremony with Boyz II Men.[11]
Twenty,
named in recognition of Boyz II Men's twenty years in the music
business, is a double CD album with thirteen original songs and eight
rerecorded Boyz II Men classics. It was released on October 25, 2011.[12] Twenty
is the group's fourth release through MSM Music Group. It was released
in Japan 13 days before its official US release date with the help of Avex Group, the biggest Japanese independent record label.
Originally, Boyz II Men announced a reunion with original member Michael McCary for the Twenty album. On September 6, 2009, at a concert in Virginia Beach,
Virginia, Stockman announced that their upcoming 20th anniversary album
"include all 4 members", sparking a tremendous applause.[13] But soon after that announcement, McCary declined and did not join the project.
Boyz II Men contributed a cover of Japanese rock band L'Arc~en~Ciel's song "Snow Drop" to their 2012 tribute album.[14]
2013–present: The Package Tour and "Collide"
On January 22, 2013, the group appeared on The View along with New Kids on the Block and 98 Degrees to announce their joint tour that took place in summer 2013.[15]
As of February 20, 2013 Boyz II Men announced that beginning March 1,
2013 they will stop touring and begin performing shows at the Mirage
Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
On January 13, 2014, the trio appeared at the end of an episode of How I Met Your Mother titled "Slapsgiving 3: Slappointment in Slapmarra", performing an a cappella version of the show's song "You Just Got Slapped".
Their eleventh album, titled Collide, was released on October 21, 2014.[16]
Style and influence
Boyz II Men are among the biggest names in a cappella and
R&B. With what was called "crossover appeal", Boyz II Men found
themselves at the vanguard of the 1990s movement to take R&B back
into the mainstream, where it had been back in the 1970s. Their use of
hip-hop beats in combination with R&B was not unique, but it was
Boyz II Men's enormous success with mainstream audiences in "putting
harmony over the hip-hop tracks" that helped usher in the near-total
dominance of the R&B genre on the pop charts in the 2000s and 2010s.[17] On January 5, 2012, Boyz II Men were awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[18]
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