Country: England
Caron Melina Wheeler OBE (born 19 January 1963) is a British singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the lead vocalist of Soul II Soul. Born in London to Jamaican parents and briefly raised in Jamaica, Wheeler began performing as a teenager, forming the group Brown Sugar with Pauline Catlin and Carol Simms. Brown Sugar achieved success in the UK reggae scene with hits such as "I’m in Love with a Dreadlocks" and "Our Reggae Music". In the early 1980s, Wheeler co-founded the backing vocalist group Afrodiziak, contributing to recordings and tours with artists like Elvis Costello, Heaven 17, and Aswad. Wheeler rose to international fame in 1988 as a founding member of Soul II Soul. She provided lead vocals on the group’s debut album Club Classics Vol. One (1989), which included the UK and Billboard #1 singles "Keep On Movin'" and "Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)", earning the group two Grammy Awards. Following her initial departure in 1990, Wheeler launched a solo career with albums UK Blak (1990) and Beach of the War Goddess (1993), which produced hits like "Livin' in the Light" and "I Adore You". She briefly returned to Soul II Soul in the mid-1990s and has performed with them periodically, officially rejoining as lead vocalist in 2013. Throughout her career, Wheeler has collaborated with a variety of artists across genres, including Pete Rock, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Toshinobu Kubota, and released the live album Live at Duo Music Exchange in 2004. She has been recognized for her contributions to British soul and reggae-influenced music, receiving the PRS Heritage Plaque Award in 2012 with Soul II Soul. In 2023, Wheeler was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her services to music, cementing her legacy as a pioneering figure in…
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