Wayne Wonder
Artist. Dancehall
- Active
- 1985-present
- Sunrise
- July 26, 1972, Buff Bay, Portland, Jamaica
Von Wayne Charles, who records as Wayne Wonder, is a singer whose voice sits between dancehall and American R&B, and who had one of the largest crossover hits reggae has produced.
He auditioned at Sonic Sounds, where Sly Dunbar liked him but was touring with Black Uhuru, and his first single, "Long and Lasting Love," was produced by King Tubby in 1985. Through the 1990s he worked with Dave Kelly at Madhouse, building a Jamaican following with "Saddest Day of My Life" and a long run of singles, and recording with Baby Cham, Spragga Benz and Buju Banton.
"No Letting Go" (2003) was written with and produced by Steven "Lenky" Marsden, on Marsden's Diwali riddim, the syncopated handclap track that also carried Sean Paul's "Get Busy" and Lumidee's "Never Leave You" that year. Released by Atlantic and VP, it reached number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three in Britain. The album No Holding Back reached the Billboard 200 and was nominated for Best Reggae Album; "Bounce Along" was the follow-up single. Joseph Liftman wrote that his "smooth, powerful voice" carried "some of the album's lesser tracks."
He has continued to record and perform.
Last updated November 5, 2026
Connections
- King Tubby (engineer)
- Bobby Digital (producer)
- Steely & Clevie (producer)
- Donovan Germain (producer)
- Dave Kelly (producer)
- Wee Pow (producer)
- Sly Dunbar (collaborator)
- Buju Banton (collaborator)
- Black Uhuru (session work)
- Mafia & Fluxy (session work)
- Spragga Benz (collaborator)
- Terror Fabulous (collaborator)
- Penthouse (studio)
Notes
- The Rough Guide writes of "the phenomenal global chart success" in 2003 of "the dancehall crooner Wayne Wonder" and Sean Paul. Steve Barrow and Peter Dalton, The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd ed. (London: Rough Guides, 2004), 291.
- Wikipedia gives the Sonic Sounds audition, Sly Dunbar's Black Uhuru commitments and the 1985 Tubby single. "Wayne Wonder," Wikipedia, accessed October 5, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Wonder. Tubby's studio manager Phantom recalled auditioning him there. Barrow and Dalton, Rough Guide to Reggae, 304.
- Wikipedia says Kelly, a primary-school friend, was then the engineer at Penthouse, where "Saddest Day" began their run of hits, and names "Bonafide Love" with Buju Banton. "Wayne Wonder." The Rough Guide places him on Penthouse records and on Kelly's later Mad House rhythms ("Joy Ride," "Bug"), and among Bobby Digital's singers. Barrow and Dalton, Rough Guide to Reggae, 310, 313-18.
- Wikipedia credits the song to Marsden and Wonder (as V. W. Charles), with Marsden as producer. "No Letting Go (Song)," Wikipedia, accessed October 5, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Letting_Go_(song). Riddimguide lists Sean Paul's "Get Busy" and Lumidee's "Never Leave You" on the Diwali rhythm. "Diwali," riddim page, Riddimguide, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.riddimguide.com/tunedb/riddim_Diwali/.
- DancehallMag gives VP's partnership with Atlantic and the peak of number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100. "Wayne Wonder's 'No Holding Back' Turns 20," DancehallMag, April 2, 2023, https://www.dancehallmag.com/2023/04/02/features/wayne-wonders-no-holding-back-turns-20.html. The single entered the British chart on June 28, 2003, and peaked at number three. "No Letting Go," search results, Official Charts, accessed October 5, 2026, https://www.officialcharts.com/search/singles/no%20letting%20go/.
- DancehallMag says the album peaked at number twenty-nine on the Billboard 200 and brought his "only Grammy Award nomination for Best Reggae Album in 2004." "Wayne Wonder's 'No Holding Back' Turns 20."
- Michael Belfiore, "Wayne Wonder," Contemporary Musicians, Encyclopedia.com, accessed November 5, 2026, https://encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/wayne-wonder, quoting Liftman in America's Intelligence Wire.
