Download Free Boyz II Men * Songs

Boyz II Men music biography continued...

earned them five number one hits from 1992 to 1997.

Friends and founding members of the group, Nathan Morris and Marc Nelson, had been singing together for several years trying to put together an R&B group at the High School of the Creative and Performing Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They eventually recruited Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman and Michael McCrary to form Unique Attraction in 1988. Performing covers of their favorite group New Edition, they eventually changed their name to Boyz II Men (inspired by the song "Boys to Men" by New Edition). In 1989, after a Bell Biv DeVoe (a by-product of New Edition) concert, the boys snuck backstage and auditioned an a capella version of New Edition's "Can You Stand The Rain". An impressed Michael Bivins wished to sign them to Motown Records through a production deal with his own label Biv Ten Records. Prior to the recording of their debut album, Marc Nelson departed due to personality conflicts.

Cooleyhighharmony was released in 1991 bearing a close similarity to Bell Biv DeVoe's "new jack swing" sound incorporated with a smooth soul vocal approach which was later named "hip hop doo wop". The first single "Motownphilly" peaked in the Top Five on the pop charts. The second, "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye", a cover from the 1975 film Cooley High, was also a smash hit. Boyz won their first Grammy Award in 1992 for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. While on tour with MC Hammer, their tour manager Khalil Roundtree was murdered.

The group returned to the studio in 1992 to record the single "End of the Road" which was co-written and produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmond for Eddie Murphy's film Boomerang. The song broke Elvis Presley's record of 11 weeks at number one by spending an incredible 13 weeks occupied in that spot. Cooleyhighharmony was reissued in 1993 with "End of the Road" as a bonus track. The instantaneous hit II was released in 1994 debuting in the number one spot. The first single, "I'll Make Love to You" broke their previous record by occupying the number one spot for 14 weeks. The single "On Bended Knee" followed replacing "I'll Make Love to You" in the top spot. II sold more than twelve million copies becoming one of the best-selling albums by an R&B group. In 1995, the group collaborated with Mariah Carey on the infamous "One Sweet Day" off of her Daydream album. The single was an instant hit spending an incredible 16 weeks at number one, a record broken a third time by Boyz II Men.

In late 1995, Motown released The Remix Collection, a compilation of various Boyz II Men song remixes, despite the group's disagreement to do so. This event caused much conflict and tension between the label and the group which worsened when Boyz II Men signed a distribution deal with Sony instead of Motown for their own label Stonecreek
Evolution was issued in 1997 performing poorly compared to their previous releases. Despite the success of the single "4 Seasons of Loneliness", the album sold a mere two million copies. To make matters worse, while on tour promoting the album, Wanya had developed a benign polyp on his vocal cords. The group postponed several shows until his full recovery. In the meantime, Michael was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis which affected his dancing abilities in live performances. In 1999, Motown merged with Universal Records. Nathan Michael Shawn Wanya, released in 2000, was their debut with Universal. The album fared better than Evolution yet still disappointing in comparison with their earlier accomplishments.

Universal released Legacy: The Greatest Hits Collection in 2001 prior to the group's departure from the label. In 2002 they signed a contract with Arista Records releasing Full Circle in June of the same year. The album sold little over 500,000 copies. Michael McCreary retired in 2003 due to his illness leaving the group as a threesome. Later that year, they were dropped by Arista and went on to form their own independent label MSM Music releasing Throwback, Vol. 1, a moderate success placing in the Billboard 200 at number 59. Boyz II Men is expected to issue The Remedy, a double album, in January 2007.