Mario Winans


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Mario Mendell Winans (né Brown; born August 29, 1974)[1] is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer from South Carolina. An extended member of the Winans musical family, he is best known for his 2004 single "I Don't Wanna Know" (featuring Enya and P. Diddy), which peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100.

Mario Winans

Winans in 2014

Winans in 2014

Background information
Birth nameMario Mendell Brown
Also known as
  • Yellowman
  • Skeeter
BornAugust 29, 1974 (age 50)
Orangeburg, South Carolina, U.S.
GenresR&B
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
Years active1988–present
Labels
Member of

Prior, Winans signed with Dallas Austin's Rowdy Records as an in-house producer during the early-1990s, and received his first major credits for his work on R. Kelly's self-titled second album (1995) and Pebbles' Straight from My Heart (1995). As a recording artist, he signed with Motown and released his debut studio album, Story of My Heart (1997) to commercial failure. The following year, he contributed to Diddy's 1998 single "Come with Me", and thereafter served as in-house talent for his Bad Boy Records production team, the Hitmen. While receiving further credits on commercially successful releases, he saw mainstream attention for his guest performance on Diddy's 2000 single "Best Friend" as well as his 2002 single "I Need a Girl (Part Two)," both of which entered the Billboard Hot 100—with the latter peaking at number four—and Winans signed with Bad Boy, an imprint of Universal Records as a solo act. Moreover, "I Don't Wanna Know" served as the lead single for his debut studio album Hurt No More (2004), which peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. In the following year, he co-wrote CeCe Winans's song "Pray", which won Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards.[2][3]

Winans's recording career accompanies his career in production and songwriting, from which he has been credited on releases for artists including the Weeknd, Kanye West, the Notorious B.I.G., Ice Spice, Lil' Kim, Destiny's Child, Jennifer Lopez, Pusha T, Busta Rhymes, and Trey Songz, among others.

Hurt No More (2001–2005)

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Mario Winans recorded his second album Hurt No More in 2001, 2002, and 2003 in between working with other artists. The album is based on stories of love and betrayal.

The first single "I Don't Wanna Know" was based on a sample of the Fugees' 1996 hit single "Ready or Not", which itself was based on a slowed-down sample of the instrumental track "Boadicea" by Enya from her 1987 self-titled album. Enya and her representatives said yes to Winans and P. Diddy for her approval of the sample. She even re-recorded Boadicea for the song, although Winans had no idea that the Fugees sample he had used was a sample itself. They even gave Enya herself credit for the single as "Mario Winans featuring P. Diddy and Enya".[4] The song features a rap by P. Diddy. The song was released as a single in early 2004 and became a worldwide hit, reaching number 1 in Germany and the United Kingdom and on the rhythmic top 40 radio chart in the United States; to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the US R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart; and to number 3 on both the Australian and Norwegian singles charts. It also reached the top ten on a composite European singles chart.

Hurt No More was released on April 20, 2004, in the US and by early June 2004 had reached number 1 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, number 2 on the Billboard 200, and number 3 on the UK Albums Chart.

The album's second single, "Never Really Was", used a sample of the orchestrated beginning of Madonna's 1986 hit "Papa Don't Preach" as its background music. However, the song failed to chart in North America. A remix version was released as a single featuring rapper Lil Flip.

The song "This Is the Thanks I Get" was stated to be the album's third and final single but no official release was set. The song went on to peak on the Billboard Bubbling Under R&B chart at number 12.

  • 2009
    • Diddy - Press Play
      • "Last Night" (featuring Keyshia Cole), "Through the Pain (She Told Me)", "Thought You Said" (featuring Brandy)

Awards and nominations

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  • Grammy Awards
    • 2005, Best Contemporary R&B Album: Hurt No More (Nominated)
  • Grammy Awards
    • 2016, Best Rap Song: "All Day" (Nominated; as writer/co-producer)
  • Image Awards
    • 2005, Outstanding New Artist (Nominated)
  • MOBO Awards
    • 2004, Best Song: "I Don't Wanna Know" (Nominated)
    • 2004, Best Ringtone: "I Don't Wanna Know" (Winner)
  • Vibe Awards
    • 2004, R&B Song of the Year: "I Don't Wanna Know" (Nominated)
  • Mike Jones - American Dream (2007)
  1. ^ "Mario Winans Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  2. ^ "FOR MARIO WINANS, IT'S A CRYING FAME". NYDailyNews.com. April 27, 2004.
  3. ^ "Taking the Winans Gift in a New Direction". BaltimoreSun.com. April 29, 2004.
  4. ^ "Mario Winans : Love, Hurt, Betrayal: These Are A Few Of Mario Winans' Favorite Things - Rhapsody Music Downloads". VH1.com. Archived from the original on May 9, 2004. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g "Mario Winans – Hurt No More". australian-charts.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  6. ^ "Mario Winas Full Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "American certifications – Mario Winans". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "British certifications – Mario Winans". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 25, 2021. Type Mario Winans in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  9. ^ "Mario Winans – Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
  10. ^ "Mario Winans – Chart History: R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
  11. ^ "Mario Winans feat. Enya "I Don't Want to Know"". Australian-charts. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  12. ^ "Ray J" (select "Singles" tab). Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
  13. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2004" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  14. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Mario Winans)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  15. ^ "British single certifications – P Diddy – I Need a Girl Part II". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 9, 2022.