Will Wheaton, born Willie Mack Wheaton Jr. (born October 26, 1972) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. He grew up in Los Angeles and is the son of Gospel singer Juanita Wheaton. He studied music in his teens and was eventually tutored by Furman Fordham, whose former students include

Lena Horne Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American singer, actress, dancer and civil rights activist. Horne's career spanned more than seventy years and covered film, television and theatre. Horne joined the chorus of the C ...

. He became a sought-after studio background singer and has performed on projects for

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to prominence in the mid-1970s, with the release of her debut ...

Coolio Artis Leon Ivey Jr. (August 1, 1963 – September 28, 2022), known by his stage name Coolio, was an American rapper. He was best known for his single "Gangsta's Paradise" (1995), which won a Grammy Award, and was credited for changing the cours ...

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Willy DeVille Willy DeVille (born William Paul Borsey Jr.; August 25, 1950 – August 6, 2009) was an American singer and songwriter. During his thirty-five-year career, first with his band Mink DeVille (1974–1986) and later on his own, DeVille created song ...

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, and

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

. In 1998, he did background vocals on

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

's ''

When We Were the New Boys ''When We Were the New Boys'' is the eighteenth studio album by Rod Stewart, released on 29 May 1998. It was Stewart's last studio album to be released by Warner Bros. Records. It produced the singles " Ooh La La", "Rocks", and "When We Were t ...

'', and played bass in his performances. He also sings in commercials, including spots for

American Express American Express Company or Amex is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation that specializes in payment card industry, payment cards. It is headquartered at 200 Vesey Street, also known as American Expr ...

Dr Pepper Dr Pepper is a carbonated soft drink. Dr Pepper was created in the 1880s by the American pharmacist Charles Alderton in Waco, Texas, and was first nationally marketed in the United States in 1904. It is manufactured by Keurig Dr Pepper in t ...

, The Gap, MasterCard,

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...

and Sprite.Music Remedy.com In 1992 he won

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...

's ''USA Music Challenge'' talent contest and received an MCA recording contract. Clark said of him, "Will Wheaton has a signature voice that puts you in the mood for romance." Although an MCA album never materialized, in 1995 he came to the attention of

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-winning producer

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who signed him to the vocal group ''Next Millennium''. He co-wrote four songs for the project with Foster but that album was not released either.''The New Black Magazine'' website
/ref> Wheaton began to achieve major success as a songwriter in the 1990s and has composed songs for the

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, and

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. He also co-wrote the title hit for American superstar

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's ''

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'' which sold over 10 million copies. He has released two albums on his own ''Platinum Brass Records'' imprint: ''Consenting Adultz'' in 1999, and the critically acclaimed ''Old School Soul'' in 2005. In a nationwide promotion and marketing campaign, the latter was launched in

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in Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, and New York. In 2000,

BET Black Entertainment Television (BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting Black American audiences. It is the flagship channel of the BET Media Group, a subsidiary of Paramount Global's CBS Entertainment Group. Originally launched ...

used three of Wheaton's songs from "Consenting Adultz" for its ''Midnight Blue'' movie of the week. He also sang bass on the soundtrack for ''

The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

'' mini series. The '' Felicity'' TV series used two of his songs for their syndication update. He toured with Japanese superstar

Namie Amuro Namie Amuro ( ; ; born September 20, 1977) is a retired Japanese singer. She rose to prominence as a Japanese idol, teen idol, and transitioned into a leading Pop music, pop artist due to her versatility across music styles and visual presentatio ...

on her '' Genius 2000'' tour and has worked on her recent albums. He was also a featured singer in

Ben Stiller Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. Known for his blend of slapstick humor and sharp wit, Stiller rose to fame through comedies such as ''There's Something About Mary'' (1998), ' ...

's ''

Mystery Men ''Mystery Men'' is a 1999 American superhero comedy film directed by Kinka Usher (in his feature-length directorial debut), written by Neil Cuthbert, loosely based on Bob Burden's '' Flaming Carrot Comics'', starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, ...

.'' Wheaton lives in Los Angeles.

Discography

''Projects including Will Wheaton compositions (partial list)'' * ''

'' –

single (album title song 1998) * '' In the Name of Love'' – Earth Wind and Fire * ''Somewhere in the Night'' (lyrics) –

, ''Even Now'' * ''Invitation Only'' –

* ''In The Mean Time'' – Iyanla Vanzant (Inspirational project) * ''Consenting Adultz'' – Will Wheaton * ''Old School Soul'' – Will Wheaton * ''French Exit'' – Film score contribution * ''

'' – Film (featured singer) * '' Lady in My Life'' - Will Wheaton cover of

Rod Temperton Rodney Lynn Temperton (9 October 1949 – 25 September 2016) was an English musician, songwriter, and record producer. Temperton was the keyboardist and principal songwriter for the 1970s funk band Heatwave, writing songs including "Star of a ...

composition first popularized by

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wheaton, Will Living people American jazz singers People from Laurel, Mississippi 1972 births Singer-songwriters from Mississippi Jazz musicians from Mississippi 21st-century American singer-songwriters