Mary Wilson (born March 6, 1944) is an American vocalist, best known as a founding member of the Supremes. Wilson remained with the group following the departures of other original members, Florence Ballard in 1967 and Diana Ross in 1970. Following Wilson's own departure in 1977, the group disbanded. Wilson has since released three solo albums, five singles and two best selling autobiographies, Dreamgirl: My Life As a Supreme, a record-setter for sales in its genre and Supreme Faith: Someday We'll Be Together, both books later released as an updated combination. A singer, a best-selling author, motivational speaker, businesswoman, former U.S. Cultural Ambassador, wife, mother, and grandmother, the legendary Mary Wilson continues to make great strides in her inevitable journey to greatness.
Mary Wilson is best famous as a founding member of the musical band "Supremes" and for her three solo albums, five singles and two best selling autobiographies, Dreamgirl: My Life As a Supreme, a record-setter for sales in its genre and Supreme Faith: Someday We'll Be Together.
Mary Wilson was born on March 6, 1944, to father, Sam, and mother, Johnnie Mae Wilson in Greenville, Mississippi on 6th March 1944. She is the eldest of three children including a brother, Roosevelt, and a sister, Katherine. Mary holds American nationality and belongs to White ethnicity. Her religion is Christianity and her zodiac is Pisces. Wilson moved to St. Louis and later to Chicago before living with her aunt Ivory “I.V.” and uncle John L. Pippin in Detroit. Wilson reunited with her mother and siblings at the age of 9. To make ends meet, Wilson’s mother worked as a domestic worker. Before reaching her teenage years, Wilson and her family had settled at Detroit’s upstart housing project, the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects. Wilson graduated from Detroit’s Northeastern High School on January 1962. Despite her mother’s insistence 5o go to college, Wilson instead focused on her music career.
Wilson started her career from the music group known as The Primettes, with Diana Ross and Betty McGlown around the 1960s. They signed to Motown Records in 1961, changing the group’s name to The Supremes. In 1962, the group was reduced to a trio after Martin’s departure and was replaced by Barbara Martin. By 1964, the group rose to international superstars. In 1967, Motown president Berry Gordy changed the name of the group to Diana Ross & The Supremes. The Supremes recorded seven top-40 hit singles in a three-year period. some of them are "One River Deep/Mountain High", “Up the Ladder to the Roof”, “Stoned Love”, “Nathan Jones” and “Floy Joy”. Of these releases, "Stoned Love" reached a No. 1 status (R&B Chart) and one of the hits, “Automatically Sunshine”, succeeded in reaching the top 20 charts, with two breaking into the top 10. They were signed to the Invictus label, owned by the Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting-production team (who composed 10 of the Supremes No. 1, 1960s singles) around 1975.
Wilson began doing almost half of the group’s lead vocal duties, as she was considered the group’s main attraction and reason for continuing. In late 1977, Wilson left The Supremes, following a performance at London’s Drury Lane Theatre. After that, the Supremes officially disbanded. Wilson once again signed with Motown for solo work, releasing a disco-heavy self-titled album in 1979. She did her second solo album "Red Hot" in 1979. In 1990, Wilson released her second memoir: Supreme Faith: Someday We’ll Be Together, also a best-seller, which focused on the Supremes’ in the 1970s. Wilson was also a frequent guest on several TV shows and talk shows and began regularly performing in Las Vegas casinos and resorts. In late 1999, a proposition to unite all former living Supremes for a summer 2000 tour, was negotiated by Ross and SFX. However after repeated rejections of the deal. The promoter ceased negotiations with Wilson and Birdsong eventually.
That year, Wilson released an updated version of her autobiographies as a single combined book. That year, an album, I Am Changing, was released by Mary Wilson Enterprises, produced through her and her then-management, Duryea Entertainment. In 2001, Wilson starred in the national tour of Leader of the Pack – The Ellie Greenwich Story. A year later, Wilson was appointed by Secretary of State Colin Powell as a “culture-connect ambassador” for the U.S. State Department, appearing at international events arranged by that agency. The law was passed in 27 states. From 2011 to 2016, Wilson has also toured and lectured internationally, as well as across the United States, speaking to various groups worldwide. Her lecture series, “Dare to Dream”, focuses on reaching goals and triumph over adversity. With no sign of slowing down, Ms. Wilson is getting ready to release her fourth book “Supreme Glamour” on September 17, 2019. She has been honored with several titles and accolades throughout her career.
In 2019, Mary was honored at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills celebrating her work in music and her influence on young African-Americans and entertainment. Southern California Motion Picture Council. Further, She also has been garnered with several honors that include, LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD (2010) by Southern California Motion Picture Council, Phenomenal Woman(2008), Avenue of the Stars(2007) by City of Wildwood, Advocacy award(2007) by Floyd Washington Auto Safety, LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT (2005) by Exceptional Woman,LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT(2003) by National Foundation Of Woman Legislators, PACE SETTERS(2003) by Heroes & Legends, Pioneer Award(2003) by Rhythm & Blues Foundation, CULTURE CONNECT AMBASSADOR(2003)-Mary Wilson appointed by Sec State Colin Powell, Nasdaq Market open(2002), Payne College, HONORARY DOCTORATE(2001), ASSOCIATES DEGREE, NYU(2001), VOCAL GROUP HALL OF FAMER(2000),2nd Plc- division(1992) in Rene Enriquez Celebrity tennis, LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT by American Legacy Magazine and ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAMER(1988)
Wilson is estimated to be worth it. Her salary is still unknown. She has accumulated most of her net worth through her musical tours and albums. Information regarding her cars, houses, businesses and their worths are still under review.
Wilson married Pedro Ferrer in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 11, 1974. Their union produced three children: Turkessa, Pedro Antonio Jr. and Rafael. However, They divorced in 1981.
Mary Wilson has a height of 5ft. 4inch. Her weight is still unknown. She has black hair and black eyes. Her other body measurements are not yet known. She has a straight sexual orientation.
Lauren is quite active on social media such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Currently, she has more than 20.5k followers on Facebook with profile id @MWilsonSupreme, she has over 3.5k followers on Instagram with id mwilsonsupreme and almost 3k followers on Twitter with id @MWilsonSupreme.