Leslie Sebastian Charles (born 21 January 1950), known professionally as Billy Ocean, is a Trinidadian-British singer and songwriter. Between 1976 and 1988, he had a series of hit songs in the UK and internationally.
He achieved breakthrough success with the 1976 single "Love Really Hurts Without You". His second single was released under the stage name Billy Ocean, and peaked at no. 2 in the UK and no. 3 in Australia. In 1977, his single "Red Light Spells Danger" also peaked at no. 2. He released the single "Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run)" in 1984. In the UK, the song peaked at no. 6. In the U.S., it entered the Billboard Hot 100 at no. 85 but peaked at no. 1 ten weeks later. Ocean won the 1985 Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for the song. It also charted in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa and across Europe under three different titles. In 1985, "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" peaked at no. 1 in the UK and no. 2 in the U.S. the following year. In July of 1986, he achieved an American no. 1 with the single "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)". In 1988, his single "Get Outta My Dreams, Get into My Car" reached no. 1 in the U.S. and no. 3 in the UK.
In 2010 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the MOBO Awards and he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours for services to music.
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