Shawn Stockman: The Quiet One

Shawn seems like a quiet guy to outsiders, but he defiently puts his "two cents" into the Boyz II Men sound.

"Shawn has a soft, sultry type voice, and brings out the sound of a classicaly trained singer," Wanya points out. Shawn may sound smooth, but he's anything but a "smooth operator." People who meet him for the first time are taken wit his good manners and interest in their lives. Charming he is-pompous he's not!

Shawn says that both his personal and professional goal is to make people feel great. "There's a lot of dreariness in day-to-day living. We want people to think about the good things-love, family, God, romance, peace. I'd say those are the Big Five, and all of them belong together."

Shawn tries to stay high-spirited, but something that really brings him down is the current condition of the Southwest Philly neighborhood he grew up in. In the past few years, buildings have been abandoned, graffiti has become abundant, crime is at an all-time high-and it pretty much resembles a war-torn area. As a result, Shawn moved his family to a pretty suburb in New Jersey, about an hour from Manhattan. He still, however, considers himself a Philly boy.

As for personal interests, Shawn hopes to find time to take piano and music theory lessons in the near future. He loves to read about music from both a professional and fan's standpoint. Whenever he gets a free moment, he can be found playing Sega Genesis TV video games or wielding a hand-held Gameboy. He loves sports, especially football and basketball.

Shawn turned 22 in September, and says that despite his age, he isn't rebelious in any way. He notes, "Our parents instilled in us a lot of things that can't be taken off our souls. Like how we act, from washing our hands before dinner to treating people a certain way."

When asked to describe his relationship with other members of Boyz II Men, Shawn reveals, "We might have a little argument about socks, but we're friends. We always come to some agreement."

Go Back II the Articles or the Main Page
1