Winans Family

BeBe & CeCe Winans' smooth soul number "Lost Without You," from 1988, was among the family's first crossover hits, and established the pair as perhaps the premier male-female R&B duo of the era. But even with such breakthroughs, there was never any ambiguity about subject matter. The original Winans brothers quartet set the tone with "The Question Is" in 1981 and "Tomorrow" (their first GRAMMY®, for gospel, in 1985) for the various family tree branches to reach into contemporary styles with no compromise of values.

The Staples Singers probably stand as modern gospel's first family, but the Detroit-rooted Winans clan ruled the next generation (or two), surpassing the Staples in pop-crossover success in a variety of projects and contexts beginning in the early '80s. The run started with the vocal quartet of brothers Marvin, Carvin, Ronald, and Michael being taken under the wing of gospel producer Andraé Crouch for a 1981 debut of contemporary gospel-R&B styles. But the brother-and-sister team BeBe & CeCe soon became a top urban soul sensation, followed by another sibling pair in Angie & Debbie and even recordings by Mom (Delores) and Pop (David), the parents of the brood, as well as various other relatives. No matter the combinations, styles, or collaborators (including Stevie Wonder and R. Kelly), deep Christian faith has remained the bottom line.

"Ain't No Need to Worry" teamed the Winans brothers with Anita Baker for a breakthrough R&B hit in 1987. And if the 1986 BeBe & CeCe hit "Feels Like Heaven (With You)" is as close to a secular romantic song as they got, there's no ambiguity in CeCe's urban funk "Anybody Wanna Pray" and the Winans' gentle-yet-questioning "How Can You Live Without Christ." It seems, regardless of style or trend, the family never strayed too far from the church. And we give thanks.

The Staples Singers probably stand as modern gospel's first family, but the Detroit-rooted Winans clan ruled the next generation (or two), surpassing the Staples in pop-crossover success in a variety of projects and contexts beginning in the early '80s. The run started with the vocal quartet of brothers Marvin, Carvin, Ronald, and Michael being taken under the wing of gospel producer Andraé Crouch for a 1981 debut of contemporary gospel-R&B styles. But the brother-and-sister team BeBe & CeCe soon became a top urban soul sensation, followed by another sibling pair in Angie & Debbie and even recordings by Mom (Delores) and Pop (David), the parents of the brood, as well as various other relatives. No matter the combinations, styles, or collaborators (including Stevie Wonder and R. Kelly), deep Christian faith has remained the bottom line.