'Dancing With the Stars' Fall 2019 Cast: Who Is Mary Wilson?

Now that the new cast of Dancing With the Stars has been announced, plenty of notable faces from yesteryear are returning to our TV screens — including the iconic singer, Mary Wilson.

Who is Mary Wilson?

The 75-year-old is perhaps best known for being a founding (and the longest) member of the legendary female singing group The Supremes. Mary and other members of the group, including Diana Ross, kicked off their career after signing with Motown records in 1961. Their first hit, “When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes,” would come just two years later. Following exits of various women from the group, Mary herself would leave the band in 1977 — she headed towards a solo career.

Her solo career

After reaching great heights with The Supremes, Mary would go on to have a ton of success as a solo artist. She would release three albums, including five hit singles. That wasn’t it for this legend, as she would put another one of her talents to great use: she wrote two best-selling autobiographies: Supreme Faith: Someday We’ll Be Together, and Dreamgirl: My Life As a Supreme.

Other accomplishments

Aside from singing and climbing up the best-sellers list, Mary would also make herself known in other facets — she became a musicians’ rights activist, as well as an organizer of various museum displays of the Supremes’ famed costumes musical. So great! Her accomplishments in the music industry were finally recognized in 1988, when she, along with former group members, Diana, and Florence Ballard, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Mary Wilson The Supremes — Marc Sharratt/Shutterstock

Family Life

Mary has been married once in her life — the first, in 1974, to Pedro Ferrer. The pair would go on to have three kids, Turkessa, Pedro Antonio Jr., and Rafael, before parting ways in 1981. Tragically, Rafael would pass away in 1994 after suffering fatal injuries in a car accident. His mother was also in the car, but she survived.