Wayne Wonder

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title: "Wayne Wonder" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1972-births", "living-people", "reggae-fusion-artists", "people-from-portland-parish", "jamaican-male-singers", "jamaican-male-songwriters", "jamaican-reggae-singers", "jamaican-hip-hop-musicians", "jamaican-dancehall-musicians", "trojan-records-artists", "vp-records-artists"] description: "Jamaican reggae fusion singer" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Wonder" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Jamaican reggae fusion singer ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox musical artist"]

Field	Value
image	2013-08-25 Chiemsee Reggae Summer - Wayne Wonder 6060-cropped.JPG
caption	Wonder performing in 2013
name	Wayne Wonder
background	solo_singer
birth_name	Von Wayne Charles
birth_date
birth_place	Buff Bay, Portland, Jamaica
origin	Kingston, Jamaica
genre	{{flatlist
* hip hop<ref name	"AMG"/ }}
occupation	Singer, songwriter
years_active	1985–present
label	VP Records
website
::

|image = 2013-08-25 Chiemsee Reggae Summer - Wayne Wonder 6060-cropped.JPG |caption = Wonder performing in 2013 |name = Wayne Wonder |background = solo_singer |birth_name = Von Wayne Charles |alias = |birth_date = |birth_place =Buff Bay, Portland, Jamaica |origin = Kingston, Jamaica |genre = {{flatlist|

• Dancehall
• reggae fusion
• hip hop }} |occupation = Singer, songwriter |years_active = 1985–present |label = VP Records |associated_acts = |website =

Von Wayne Charles (born 26 July 1972), better known by his stage name Wayne Wonder, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall artist. His most popular single is the 2003 hit "No Letting Go".

Biography

Early life

Wonder was born in Buff Bay, Portland, Jamaica. He sang in Sunday school as a child, Wayne attended Camperdown High School in eastern Kingston, and began songwriting at the age of 13, getting a major career break when he was given a regular weekly slot at Metro Media in Allman Town.

Auditioning and debut album

He auditioned at Sonic Sounds studio, but while Sly Dunbar was impressed, his touring commitments with Black Uhuru prevented him from signing Wonder. He had more success, however, with King Tubby, who produced his first single, "Long and Lasting Love", in 1985, with two more following. Wonder's career suffered a setback when Tubby was killed in 1988, and he recorded for several other record producers at Sonic Sound, enjoying a further hit with the Lloyd Dennis–produced "It's Over Now", leading to the release of his first album, One More Chance, although his success in this era was limited.

Second album: ''Part 2'' and further releases

His fortunes improved when he began working with Dave Kelly, a friend from primary school, who had become resident sound engineer at Penthouse Studios. The partnership enjoyed a string of hits, starting with "Saddest Day", and they also worked on Wonder's second album, Part 2. His 1990 live performance of Alphaville's "Forever Young" was recorded and later released to Alphaville fans in a limited, cassette-only album entitled History. He toured the UK in 1992 along with other Penthouse stars Marcia Griffiths, Tony Rebel, and Buju Banton. He also recorded "Bonafide Love (Movie Star)" with Buju Banton, and wrote several early hits for him, including the controversial "Boom Bye Bye". He toured again with Banton in 1994 as part of the Penthouse Showcase. Wonder formed the band Alias along with Kelly, Baby Cham, Frisco Kid, and Frankie Sly, and later Entourage.

Record label launch and further album releases

In 2000, Wonder launched his own record label, Singso, and his 2000 album Da Vibe saw him begin to incorporate hip hop into his sound. He collaborated with several other major artists, including Jason Dalyrimple of Soul for Real, Foxy Brown, and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, and the move towards hip hop increased with his 2001 album Schizophrenic.

Atlantic Records signing and international recognition

His career really took off internationally when he signed to Atlantic Records, achieving worldwide success with the song "No Letting Go" in 2003. The song is based on the Diwali riddim, which was also used by several other artists that year, such as Sean Paul, Lumidee and Missy Elliott. The single reached No. 11 in the US and No. 3 in the UK.

"No Letting Go" and the album No Holding Back were a major success on urban radio stations in the US, and this prompted the release of several compilation albums featuring older Wonder material, including Trojan Records' Inna Bashment Style: The Roots Of An Urban Warrior (2005).

Further releases

His album Foreva was released in 2007. It reached No. 6 on the US Top Reggae Albums chart.

His album My Way was released in December 2012. In October 2014, he featured on the Never Mind the Buzzcocks identity parade.

Discography

Albums

::data[format=table] | Year | Album | US Reggae Albums | US Billboard 200 | US R&B/Hip-Hop | |---|---|---|---|---| | 1989 | One More Chance | – | – | – | | 1991 | Wayne Wonder | – | – | – | | 1993 | Don't Have To... | – | – | – | | 1995 | All Original Bombshell | – | – | – | | 2000 | Da Vibe | – | – | – | | 2001 | Schizophrenic | – | – | – | | 2003 | No Holding Back | 2 | 29 | 10 | | 2007 | Foreva | 6 | – | – | | 2012 | My Way | – | – | – | ::

Compilations albums

::data[format=table]

Year	Album
1989	Wayne Wonder & Sanchez Part 1
1990	Wayne Wonder & Sanchez Part 2
1999	Collectors Series
2002	Essential
2003	You Me And She
2005	Inna Bashment Style: The Roots of an Urban Warrior
2006	Reggae Chronicles
2013	Penthouse Flashback Series: Wayne Wonder, Vol. 1
2013	Penthouse Flashback Series: Wayne Wonder, Vol. 2
2020	Reggae Penthouse Triplets: Beres Hammond, Sanchez and Wayne Wonder
::

Singles

::data[format=table] | Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | Album | Peak chart positions for singles in Jamaican Airplay: | BEL (FL) | CAN | FRA | GER | NLD | SWE | SWI | UK | US | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | 1989 | "You Send the Rain Away" (Pickout) | | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | One More Chance | | | 1997 | "Warm Jamaican Christmas" (with Baby Cham) | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Warm Jamaican Christmas | | | 2003 | "No Letting Go" | 3 | 21 | 26 | 37 | 31 | 3 | 23 | 24 | 3 | 11 | | No Holding Back | | | "Bounce Along" | }} | 60 | — | — | — | 69 | — | 42 | 19 | — | | | | | | 2004 | "Hold Me Now" (Thompson Twins) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | 50 First Dates: Love Songs from the Original Motion Picture | | | | 2006 | "You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Single only | | | | 2007 | "Gonna Love You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Foreva | | | | "Again" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | | | | | | "For My Love" (featuring Trina) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | | | | | | 2012 | "Caught Up" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | My Way | | | | 2014 | "Let Me Love You Tonight" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Sweet Songs | | | | "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. "" denotes that the chart did not exist at that time. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ::

References

References

1. "Biography by Craig Harris". Allmusic.com.
2. Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, {{ISBN. 0-313-33158-8, p. 319-20
3. [http://www.alphaville.info/main.htm]{{dead link. (April 2012)
4. Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, {{ISBN. 0-7535-0242-9, p. 320
5. "Allmusic ((( Wayne Wonder > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))".
6. "[http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/entertainment/Dec-date-for-Wayne-s-album_12722985 Dec date for Wayne's album]", ''[[Jamaica Observer]]'', 9 October 2012, retrieved 11 October 2012
7. Jackson, Kevin (2014) "[http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/entertainment/New-single--video-from-Wayne-Wonder_16674396 New single, video from Wayne Wonder]", ''[[Jamaica Observer]]'', 16 May 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2014
8. "[https://www.bbc.co.uk/webarchive/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Fblogs%2Ftv%2Fentries%2F8e2ffec1-c5c6-3aa0-85f2-578920d953ab Never Mind The Buzzcocks: Meet new host Rhod Gilbert]", [[BBC]], 6 October 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2015
9. "Wayne Wonder – No Letting Go". [[Ultratop]].
10. "allmusic (((Wayne Wonder > Chart & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". [[allmusic]].
11. "Discografie Wayne Wonder".
12. "Wayne Wonder – No Letting Go".
13. "Wayne Wonder – No Letting Go".
14. Roberts, David. (2006). "British Hit Singles & Albums". Guinness World Records Limited.
15. "Wayne Wonder, Baby Cham, Lady {{ndash}} Warm Jamaican Christmas EP".
16. {{cite certification
17. {{cite certification

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