Boyz II Men

For the album by Maskinen, see Boys II Men (album). For other uses, see Boys to Men (disambiguation).
Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men performing in 2011
Boyz II Men performing in 2011
Background information
Also known asUnique Attraction
OriginPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres
DiscographyBoyz II Men discography
Years active1985–present[1]
Labels
Members
Past members

Boyz II Men (pronounced boys to men) is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. Formed in 1985, they have been a trio composed of baritone Nathan Morris alongside tenors Wanyá Morris (no relation) and Shawn Stockman since 2003. During the 1990s, Boyz II Men was a quartet with bass singer, Michael McCary, who left the group in 2003 due to health issues that were diagnosed as multiple sclerosis.[2]

The group first saw commercial success in 1991 with the release of their singles "Motownphilly" and "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday," both of which peaked within the top five of the Billboard Hot 100. Their 1992 single, "End of the Road"[3] peaked atop the chart and set a then-record for spending 13 weeks at the position. Boyz II Men later broke this record twice more with the singles "I'll Make Love to You" and "One Sweet Day" (with Mariah Carey) which, at 14 and 16 weeks respectively, set records for most weeks at number one. When "On Bended Knee" took the number one spot away from "I'll Make Love to You," Boyz II Men became the third musical act, after the Beatles and Elvis Presley, to replace themselves atop the Billboard Hot 100.[4] These achievements gave Boyz II Men recognition as Billboard magazine's biggest boy band from 1987 to 2012.[5]

Boyz II Men continued to perform as a trio despite McCary's departure. Their latest studio album, Under the Streetlight, was released in 2017.[6] Boyz II Men have received four Grammy Awards.

  1. ^ Kenneth Partridge (2016-02-15). "Boyz II Men's 'Cooleyhighharmony' at 25: Classic Track-by-Track Album Review". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  2. ^ "Boyz II Men Dishes On Mike, Their Estranged Fourth Member". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2014-10-30.
  3. ^ Billboard. "(Boyz II Men > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles)". AllMusic. Retrieved 2010-05-16.
  4. ^ "Boyz II Men Music News & Info". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-04-19.
  5. ^ "10 Biggest Boy Bands (1987–2012)". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  6. ^ "Boyz II Men Release New Album UNDER THE STREETLIGHT Available October 20, 2017". Archived from the original on 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2021-04-21.