CeCe Winans Biography

You would think that being the eighth sibling in a lineup of ten may result in a wallflower, but not for gospel singing legend CeCe Winans, who is best known for her R&B-meets-gospel recordings with her brother BeBe. A musical family, the Winans were constantly pairing off into performance groups (her parents performed as Mom & Pop Winans and her brothers Marvin, Carvin, Ronald and Michael formed the Winans) but the BeBe and CeCe duo saw the most commercial success. The Detroit-born siblings were known as the PTL Singers until 1987, when they released their eponymous debut featuring cameos from their other talented family members. In the next seven years the duo would release four albums, including two gold records and 1991's platinum-selling Different Lifestyles. CeCe and BeBe's most successful efforts came when they incorporated contemporary R&B into the act, such as popular singles "Addictive Love" and "I'll Take You There."CeCe embarked on a solo career after the release of 1994's Relationships and followed her roots back to gospel for 1995's Alone in His Presence with traditional tracks "Great Is Thy Faithfulness," "Blessed Assurance" and "I Surrender All." CeCe continued to produce gospel classics, with 1998's His Gift and 1999's Alabaster Box leading the succession into the new millennium with her most recent effort, 2008's Thy Kingdom Come. Although she was born Priscilla Winans Love, this gospel singer has been the recipient of numerous accolades during her long career as CeCe, including Grammy, Dove and Stellar Awards. Although CeCe has seen success with a foray into R&B music, her heart lies in gospel and fans wouldn't have it any other way.