BeBe and CeCe Winans
BeBe and CeCe Winans are a brother-and-sister duo who have made extensive inroads in the gospel music genre. Both Winans were born in Detroit, Michigan. BeBe & CeCe Winans were christened Benjamin and Priscilla, respectively. With BeBe being the youngest boy and CeCe being the oldest girl in the large family, the pair were close growing up and even shared a locker while attending Detroit’s Mumford High School. They were originally members of the Winans Family singing group, which consisted of themselves and their eight siblings, before setting off as a duo.
The rest of the members had successful solo careers. The siblings moved from Detroit, Michigan to the PTL (Praise The Lord) campus in Charlotte, North Carolina and performed five years on the television show hosted by Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker. BeBe and CeCe left PTL to pursue their singing careers and signed a second contract with Capitol Records. Thanks to BeBe’s big, deep voice that managed to be tender and powerful at the same time and CeCe’s rich alto, they were in demand from a variety of churches.
After the duo signed with Capitol Records, their debut album BeBe & CeCe Winans was released in 1987 on the Sparrow/Capitol label. CeCe was honored with her first Grammy Award for Best Soul Gospel Performance for a Female. The songs “I.O.U. Me,” “For Always,” and “Love Said Not So,” went on to become hits from the album. Not only were BeBe and CeCe popular among gospel fans–they were also popular in the so-called secular market. In addition, BeBe starred in the Broadway musical Don’t Get God Started in 1987. Together, this duo has won three Grammy awards.
They are best known for their songs “Heaven,” “With My Whole Heart,” “Addictive Love,” and “Up Where We Belong.” In addition to their Grammys, they have also won nine GMA Dove Awards. With a phenomenal career that has spanned more than 20 years, BeBe & CeCe have become one of the most commercially successful gospel artists in the business. As a duo their accolades include five Grammy Awards, eight Dove Awards, two NAACP Image Awards, one Soul Train Award and over a dozen Stellar Awards. They have also racked up 12 chart topping R&B singles, as well as numerous #1 singles on Christian AC (Adult Contemporary) and CHR (Christian) radio, three gold albums and one platinum album.