Brian McKnight

Brian Kainoa Makoa McKnight Sr. (born Brian Kelly McKnight; June 5, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, radio personality, and multi-instrumentalist. An R&B performer, he is recognized for his strong head voice, high belting range, and melisma.

McKnight was raised in Orlando, Florida, and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a musical career at the age of 19. He signed with Mercury Records to release his 1992 debut single, "The Way Love Goes", which preceded his debut album Brian McKnight (1992). A modest success, the album received platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and spawned his first hit song, "One Last Cry", which peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. The following year, he recorded the duet "Love Is" (with Vanessa Williams) for the Beverly Hills, 90210 soundtrack; the song peaked at number three on the chart. His 1997 single, "You Should Be Mine (Don't Waste Your Time)" (featuring Mase) peaked within the chart's top 20 and led his third album, Anytime (1997)—his final release with Mercury before he signed with Motown. His 1999 single, "Back at One" peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains his highest-charting song; it preceded the album of the same name (1999), which was the first of four of his albums—Superhero (2001), U Turn (2003), and Gemini (2005)—to consecutively debut within the top ten of the Billboard 200. His ninth album, Ten (2006) marked his final major label release.

He has received 16 Grammy Award nominations, third only to Zubin Mehta and Snoop Dogg for having the most nominations for the award without a win.

Early life McKnight was born in Buffalo, New York to Claude McKnight, Jr. and Ruth Elaine Willis. His introduction to music was joining his church choir as a child; it was directed by his grandfather. Brian and his family moved to Orlando, Florida when he was about 10. His father worked for Martin Marietta. He began composing instrumental material while learning to play several instruments.

His brothers graduated from Lake Howell High School in Winter Park, Florida and the family moved to Orange County, Florida. Brian McKnight then went to Maynard Evans High School in Orlando. McKnight formed a band and began performing original songs at local venues. By 18, he was offered a publishing deal and left for Los Angeles when he was about 19. His debut album Brian McKnight was released in 1992, and peaked at number 58 on the Billboard 200 chart. His first release was "The Way Love Goes", which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The duet is also featured in the 25th anniversary edition of Carey's Butterfly album.

In 1999, McKnight released Back at One, his most successful album to date, which eventually went on to sell over three million copies. Additionally, Back at One is one of four of McKnight's studio albums to reach the Top 10 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, reaching number 7 on October 9, 1999. In 2004, he co-wrote the song "Wait" with Australian soul artist Guy Sebastian, which appeared on Sebastian's Beautiful Life album.

Warner Brothers: Ten and performances (2005–2014)

In early 2005, McKnight made a cameo appearance in Mariah Carey's "It's Like That" music video directed by Brett Ratner. In late 2005, McKnight signed with Warner Bros. Records and released the album Ten during December 2006. It was his only studio album with the label. Three singles were released from the album: "Find Myself in You" (which originally appeared on the soundtrack to the 2006 Tyler Perry movie Madea's Family Reunion), "Used to Be My Girl" and "What's My Name". In October 2007, McKnight made his Broadway debut in the show Chicago.

Between 2006 and 2010, McKnight hosted The Brian McKnight Morning Show, a radio show with Pat Prescott on KTWV The Wave in Los Angeles. The show was briefly simulcast on KHJZ-FM, Smooth Jazz 95.7 The Wave in Houston. In January 2009, McKnight hosted "The Brian McKnight Show" on 98.7 KISS-FM in New York City. In 2009, he appeared as a performer in the eighth season of The Celebrity Apprentice. Each celebrity played to raise money for the charity of his or her choice. He elected to play for Youthville USA. Between September 2009 and May 2010, he hosted The Brian McKnight Show, a late night talk show billed as a combination of talk and variety which aired in syndication. McKnight sang the national anthem for MLB Opening Day in Cincinnati, Ohio with his sons Brian, Jr. and Niko on March 31, 2011. He had sung the national anthem for the 1997 NBA All-Star Game in Cleveland, Game 6 of the 2002 World Series in Anaheim, California (near his Los Angeles home), and the 2005 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Detroit. He has sung the anthem throughout his career at numerous places. He sang "God Bless America" in the 7th inning of Game 7 of the National League Championship Series in San Francisco on October 22, 2012.

On April 23, 2012, McKnight posted to YouTube "If You're Ready To Learn", which has been characterized by Billboard as a "filthy jam". Billboard selected this lyric from the song to quote: "Let me show you how your __ works / Since you didn't bring it to me first." Other media outlets including MTV, the Toronto Sun, and NewMediaRockstars have written about McKnight's recent, more adult-oriented efforts. Soon after the single's release, McKnight and Funny or Die revealed that the single was a collaboration between the two. McKnight later explained that he wrote the parody as a commentary on the state of R&B, which he noted was in a period of degradation overall with famous radio station 98.7 Kiss FM shuttering and hit singles being inferior quality music, among other ailments.

Brian McKnight Music and Kobalt: Better (2015–2016) On August 14, 2015, McKnight released the single "Uh Oh Feeling", the first track from his album Better. It was released on his own label, Brian McKnight Music LLC via Kobalt Label Services. Better was released on February 26, 2016 and the album received positive reviews.

SoNo Recording: An Evening with... and Genesis (2016–present) On September 23, 2016 (twenty years from the date of his studio album Anytime), McKnight released his first live CD, DVD and Blu-ray collection entitled An Evening with Brian McKnight (in partnership with independent recording label, SoNo Recording Group, via Universal Music Group). The concert was recorded at the historic Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, California. The release includes fourteen songs performed live with his full band, plus three newly written and recorded songs. The first single, "Everything", was in the Top 20 on the national Adult Contemporary charts in September 2016. The CD version of the concert debuted on the Billboard R&B chart at No. 13, as a Hot Shot Debut. Also included is a duet with Gino Vannelli, on the song "Brothers in the End". The Blu-ray and DVD version of the release premiered on the Billboard Music DVD chart at number 9.

McKnight released the album Genesis on August 25, 2017. It featured three Top 30 Urban AC and AC hits: "Everything", "Forever" and "I Want U". Genesis premiered on the Nielsen SoundScan Top 10 Current R&B Albums and Top 20 Current Hip Hop/R&B Albums. The album was produced by Tim Kelley of the duo Tim & Bob. In January 2018, McKnight was nominated for two NAACP Image Awards. He was nominated for Outstanding Male Artist and Outstanding Album for Genesis (alongside Bruno Mars, Charlie Wilson, Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z and Mary J Blige). In May 2018, McKnight announced that he was working on his next studio album tentatively titled Bedtime Story, which would be 60 minutes of music "for the bedroom aka baby-making music". In 2021, Brian McKnight competed on The Masked Singer spin-off The Masked Dancer as "Cricket".

Personal life McKnight was married from 1990–2003 to singer-songwriter, Julie McKnight, and they have two sons. Brian also has a daughter he fathered from a previous relationship. On May 30, 2025, Niko died of cancer.

In 2014, Brian McKnight and Leilani Malia Mendoza, a pediatric neurophysiologist, began dating and they announced their engagement in May 2017. On December 29, 2017, McKnight and Mendoza were married. Mendoza has two children from a previous relationship. McKnight and Mendoza had a son who died in infancy. In December 2022, McKnight and Mendoza had another son, Brian Kainoa Makoa Jr. Religion was important in the McKnight family, with many generations being Seventh-day Adventists. His grandfather was a pastor of a church, and his mother played the piano and sang in a gospel choir in Emanuel Temple in Buffalo, New York. Being the youngest of four boys, McKnight became a member of an a cappella gospel quartet with his brothers. He also attended Oakwood College, a Seventh-day Adventist university in Huntsville, Alabama, from 1987 to 1989. In his second year, he got into trouble for violating Oakwood's rules about dormitory visitors for having his girlfriend in his dorm room. They were both expelled.

Discography

Studio albums Brian McKnight (1992) I Remember You (1995) Anytime (1997) Bethlehem (1998) Back at One (1999) Superhero (2001) U Turn (2003) Gemini (2005) Ten (2006) I'll Be Home for Christmas (2008) Evolution of a Man (2009) Just Me (2011) More Than Words (2013) Better (2016) Genesis (2017) Exodus (2020)

Filmography

Film + Year Title Role Notes 2000 A Diva's Christmas Carol Himself TV movie 2003 The Beat Record Executive 2005 Leverage Joe 2009 Black Dynamite Sweet Meat 2011 Cheaper to Keep Her Raymond Mays Video 2012 Note to Self Doctor William Thompson Fuzzy Giners Professor Short 2013 The Country Christmas Story Danny Gibson TV movie 2017 Sandy Wexler Testimonial Naked Himself

Television + Year Title Role Notes 1993 Stanley T in Da House Himself Episode: "Boyz II Men" The Mickey Mouse Club Himself Episode: "Episode #6.18" 1993–01 Showtime at the Apollo Himself Recurring Guest Soul Train Himself Recurring Guest 1994 Martin Himself Episode: "Love Is in Your Face: Part 2" 1995 New York Undercover Himself Episode: "CAT" Midnight Mac Himself Episode: "Episode #1.1" 1996 Living Single Himself Episode: "Wake Up to the Breakup" Martin Himself Episode: "Where the Party At" 1997 The Steve Harvey Show Himself Episode: "Coming to Chicago" 1998 Beverly Hills, 90210 Himself Episode: "Ready or Not" Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards Himself/Co-Host Main Co-Host Soul Train Christmas Starfest Himself/Host Main Host 1998–99 Sister, Sister Keith/Clarence Recurring Cast: Season 6 1999 Mad TV Himself Episode: "Episode #4.16" Soul Train Music Awards Himself/Co-Host Main Co-Host 2000 Hollywood Squares Himself/Panelist Recurring Panelist 2001 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Himself/Contestant Episode: "Top of the Charts Edition, Show 2-4" The Wayne Brady Show Himself Episode: "Pilot" The Parkers Himself Episode: "Crazy Love" Himself Main Guest VH1 Presents the 80's Himself Episode: "Hip Hop/R&B" 2002 My Wife and Kids Himself Episode: "Anniversary" 2003 Star Search Himself/Guest Judge Episode: "The One with Singer Brian McKnight" American Juniors Himself/Guest Judge Episode: "Episode #1.9" & "#1.10" MTV Cribs Himself Episode: "Oct 13, 2003" Pyramid Episode: "Oct 16, 2003" Platinum Mace Episode: "Power" 2004 The Chris Isaak Show Himself Episode: "Home Improvement" Soundstage Himself Episode: "Chris Isaak Christmas" 2005 American Dreams Stokely Carmichael Episode: "The Commencement" 2006 Celebrity Duets Himself Episode: "Episode #1.2" 2007 Hey Paula Himself Episode: "All That Glitters" 2008 Secret Talents of the Stars Himself/Judge Episode: "Episode #1.1" America's Got Talent Himself Episode: "Episode #3.20" Great Performances Himself Episode: "Hit Man: David Foster and Friends" 2009 The Apprentice Himself/Contestant Contestant: Season 8 2009–10 The Brian McKnight Show Himself/Host Main Host 2012 Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives Himself Episode: "A Place Called Home" The Mumblesteens Himself Episode: "Secret Lover" 2013 Shark Tank Himself Minute Motivations Himself Episode: "Holiday Special" 2015 Hollywood in Vienna Himself Episode: "Hollywood in Vienna 2015: Tales of Mystery" 2015–16 Celebrity Name Game Himself/Celebrity Player Episode: "Brian McKnight & Nia Vardalos 1-3" 2017 Grown Folks Pastor Episode: "Take 'em to Church" 2021 The Masked Dancer Contestant/Cricket Main Contestant American Idol Himself Episode: "410 (All Star Duets and Solos)" 2022 Star Tracker Himself Episode: "The Pursuit of the Dream" Atlanta Himself Episode: "The Goof Who Sat By the Door"

Awards and nominations

Award Year Nominee/work Category Result American Music Awards 1999 Brian McKnight Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist Anytime Favorite Soul/R&B Album BET Awards 2007 Brian McKnight BET J Cool Like Dat Award Grammy Awards 1994 "Love Is" with Vanessa Williams Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals 1999 "Anytime" Best Male Pop Vocal Performance "The Only One For Me" Best Male R&B Vocal Performance 2000 Back at One Best R&B Album "Back at One" Best Short Form Music Video 2001 "6, 8, 12" Best Male Pop Vocal Performance "Stay or Let It Go" Best Male R&B Vocal Performance "Coming Back Home" with BeBe Winans & Joe Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals 2002 "Still" Best Male Pop Vocal Performance "My Kind of Girl" with Justin Timberlake Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals "Love of My Life" Best Male R&B Vocal Performance Best R&B Song "Win" from Men of Honor Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media 2003 "All the Way" with Kenny G Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals 2004 "Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda" Best Male R&B Vocal Performance 2005 "What We Do Here" Best Male R&B Vocal Performance MTV Video Music Awards 1998 "Anytime" Best Male Video 2000 "Back at One" Best R&B Video NAACP Image Awards 2000 "Back at One" Outstanding Male Artist 2001 "Stay or Let It Go" Outstanding Male Artist 2002 Superhero Outstanding Male Artist 2018 Genesis Outstanding Male Artist Outstanding Album Pop Awards 2018 Brian McKnight Lifetime Achievement Award Soul Train Music Awards 1999 "Anytime" Best R&B/Soul Single, Male 2000 "Back at One" Best R&B/Soul Single, Male Back at One Best R&B/Soul Album, Male 2002 "Love of My Life" Best R&B/Soul Single, Male