Walt Disney Records:
Biography of Vanessa Williams
Vanessa Williams is featured in Walt Disney's 33rd full-length animated feature, Pocahontas, singing "Colors of the Wind" (reprise) over the closing credits. The single, the first to be released from the soundtrack, features a score by Academy Award®-winning composer Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin) and renowned Broadway Iyricist Stephen Schwartz (Godspell and Pippin). Vanessa's contribution to the Pocahontas soundtrack follows her debut as Aurora/Spider Woman in the Broadway production of Kiss of the Spider Woman and the recent release of her third album, The Sweetest Days (Wing/Mercury Records). Williams, along with Gerry Brown, co-produced more than half of The Sweetest Days, and it is her most live album ever.
Vanessa has received the NAACP Image Award twice and has been nominated for seven Grammy® Awards. She also received several New York Music Awards nominations, including the Rising Star Award in 1989.
Vanessa's single "Save the Best for Last," from the double platinum album, The Comfort Zone, spent five weeks at number one on the pop chart, four weeks at number one on the adult contemporary chart, and one week at number one on the R & B chart. The album also spawned four other chart-breaking singles.
Prior to The Comfort Zone, Vanessa enjoyed instant fame with The Right Stuff, a debut album in 1988 that generated four hits. The title track became a dance floor and pop radio smash, followed by three Top 10 hits: "He's Got the Look," "Dreamin'," and "Darling I." Additionally, "Dreamin'" was recognized by ASCAP as one of the most frequently played pop singles of 1989.
In addition to her successful singing career, Vanessa has segued into acting on both the large and small screen. On TV, her presence was seen in the Emmy® Award-winning special, "Motown Returns to the Apollo"; a top-rated Perry Mason movie of the week; Eddie Murphy Productions' The Boy Who Loved Christmas; and in a scene-stealing role in CBS's Stompin at the Savoy. Earlier in her career, she had roles in Tri-Star Pictures' Another You (with Richard Pryor and Ciene Wilder), and MGM/Pathé Films' Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (with Mickey Rourke and Don Johnson). And Vanessa landed the hosting duties for her own contemporary Rhythm & Blues weekly video show, "The Soul of VH-1" (for the VH-1 network), which had a successful two-season run.
Born and raised in suburban Milwood, New York, Vanessa was surrounded by music. Both parents were, and still are, music teachers, with show music being the household mainstay. Because of this, young Vanessa developed a keen ear for the songs of Broadway, eventually majoring in musical theater at Syracuse University. Later, she won the Miss America title in 1983.
Upcoming projects include a Broadway show with the same producers of Kiss of the Spider Woman, an album featuring standards, a children's album, and more film work. She lives in New York with husband/manager Ramon Hervey and her three children, Melanie, Jillian, and Devin.