Wanya Morris is a singer, who is a band member of the famous vocal group band Boys II Men. He rose to fame with his R&B band - which led the team to international recognition. Born in Pennsylvania but raised in Philadelphia, the 43-year-old singer has been associated with his band members.
Early life
Wanya, whose full name is Wanya Jermaine Morris was born on July 29, 1973, has three siblings to parents Carla Morris and Dallas Thorton. His parents separated when Wanya was young, although the couple was never married. He completed his primary education in Philadelphia and further continued with his passion for singing in his high school years as well.
Career Rise
Wanya's band, Boys II Men was first started by Nathan Morris and Mark Nelson (Mark Nelson apparently left the band to pursue a career on his own after the band released their first album). All the band members attended Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts. Later, Wanya and Shawn Stockman joined the team as permanent members. At present, Wanya, Shawn and Nathan are the three members of the band.
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Initially, the band was named as Unique Attraction, but later changed it to Boys II Men because they were inspired by the band New Edition's song - Boys to Men. The band gained immense popularity after they released their first album, Cooleyhighharmony, leading them to win the 1992 Grammy Award for Best RnB performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.
The band has managed to release 11 albums as of 2014. They also appeared in an episode of the comedy show How I Met Your Mother. The first Lady Michelle Obama is known to be a big fan of the band. She dedicated the song of Boys II Men - It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday to President Barack's time in the White House.
At present, Wanya has opened up an online voice lesson classes under the Online School of Performing Arts named as The Cooleyhigh Experience.
Celebrity Contestant on Dancing with the Stars
Four-time Grammy Award winner Morris appeared as a celebrity contestant on the 22nd season of Dancing with the Stars. He was paired up with Lindsay Arnold - a professional ballroom dancer, it was her third season to be have been working as a choreographer to celebrity stars.
Wanya and his partner managed to reach the semi-finals with their hard work and dedication, but were unfortunately eliminated - they held 4th position in the competitive dance show despite having the highest average score.
Personal Life
The R&B star was romantically involved with singer and actress Brandy in the early years of his career. He has also been rumored to have been dating singer Janet Jackson in early 2002.
Wanya, who keeps his private life rather secretive, has been married to the owner of Toi East Designs Traci "Toi" Nash, since May 11, 2002. Traci Nash is a well-known fashion designer who maintains a very private life.The couple, along with his children lives in New Jersey. In at attempt for marketing their band, he was provided with a nickname - 'Squirt'. He is an intense dog lover and appreciates the love from his fans on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/wanmor1/status/484968876896432128
Controversy
Wanya had a rather controversial relationship with Brandy, who is the sister of rapper Ray J. The former couple was in a relationship after they shot their duet song Brokenhearted in the year 1995. Brandy's mother and her management team were unhappy with their connection because Wanya was 6 years older than her and she was very young at the time of their relationship.
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Wanya Morris with his ex-girlfriend Brandy
The couple kept their relationship a secret in front of the public eye; however, Wanya ended their relationship a month before Brandy's nineteenth birthday. She had cited Wanya as her first true love but, unfortunately, Wanya had fallen in love with someone else. Such a sudden heartbreak led young and fragile Brandy to write a whole album Never say Never in relation to Wanya.