Greetings Geniuses! Please show your love for Bunny DeBarge – Legendary Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Background Vocalist, Author, and Actor of the R&B Family Group Music Sensation Debarge.
THE MUSIC ARTIST: In 1979, following the success of her brothers Bobby and Tommy, who achieved fame as members of the band Switch, Bunny teamed up with her three brothers Randy, Mark, and El, and later, her brother James was added to the group to form DeBarge. CEO of Motown Records, Barry Gordy soon signed them and they went on to become Grammy nominated music recording artists. The eldest of the ten DeBarge children, Bunny’s unique high and soulful soprano vocal style and love of writing began at a tender young age and ultimately led to her world debut as a songwriter for the famous R&B band, Switch, which starred her brother’s Bobby & Tommy DeBarge. Later, she became a writer, lead vocalist, and co-producer behind the classic R&B ballad, A Dream, from her own group’s 1983 breakout, certified GOLD album, In A Special Way. Produced by her brother El DeBarge, the album also included hits Bunny co-wrote like Time Will Reveal, I Like It and Stay With Me. Her famed song, A Dream was covered by various exemplary artists like Tupac Shakur, Blackstreet, and Mary J. Blige, to name a few.
To date, music artists of all statues continue to use her songs in samples and in social media tributes. A full listing of songs written by Bunny DeBarge can be found at OfficialBunnyDebarge.com. Her 1985 Rhythm of the Night album became the band’s best-selling work, going platinum and featuring further hits such as Who’s Holding Donna Now and You Wear It Well. The music video for their hit song, Rhythm of the Night, which was featured in the 80’s hit film, “The Last Dragon” was DeBarge’s first and last music video as a group. Following the end of its successful promotion, both El and Bunny DeBarge departed from the group after Motown offered them lucrative solo deals. SOLO ALBUM: Bunny DeBarge had a Top 20 R&B hit the first time out as a solo artist with her hit song, Save the Best for Me. She also co-wrote Let’s Spend the Night and I Still Believe for her In Love LP. TV APPEARANCES: During her music career, Bunny DeBarge has been featured on several television broadcasts and commercials including McDonald’s commercials, Soul Train, American Bandstand, Unsung, Inside Edition, Motown 25, and more.
Additionally, there have been numerous television shows, including reality shows and interviews about her family. A made for tv movie about her brother Bobby DeBarge called “The Bobby DeBarge Story” was released a few years ago, however, Bunny DeBarge is pursuing her biopic, which will be based on her 2023 book, “The Kept Ones”. RECENT YEARS: During the late 90’s Bunny co-wrote, recorded, and co-produced several unreleased songs with her former manager, Daniel Richardson. Unedited and raw versions of those songs were released from her audio vault as a premiere to share with her fans from her YouTube and social media brand accounts in 2022 and 2023.
In 2011, after previously appearing on the Dr. Drew show with her brothers to discuss her battle with drug addiction, Bunny returned for a show update to share that she was clean after receiving help. During the show, she performed her original song, All That I Am. In 2016 Bunny DeBarge, in collaboration with Shamar Star & Stephen Knight released a single, “God Is Good”. THE AUTHOR: Bunny DeBarge first self-published her memoir, “The Kept Ones” in 2008. The book was originally published as a two-part series with the first book titled, “The Kept Ones – The Beginning Years” and the second one being “The Kept Ones – The Fame Years”.
Her deeply insightful and complete true story takes us from the first book, themed with admissions of early childhood trauma stemming from the abuse that she and her siblings suffered at the hands of trusted family members, to their rise to fame, in the second book, and ultimately, their tragic losses resulting from drug abuse. Though pieces of her family’s story have been published in other forms and through other sources, including a made for tv biopic about her brother Bobby DeBarge, Bunny believes that because she is the eldest of all of the DeBarge siblings, there is nobody alive today who is more knowledgeable about the events that occurred.
Her brother El was too young to recall the tumultuous details. Unfortunately, rumors began to circulate after the initial subsidy publisher misprinted the copyright page of her book stating that her story was fiction. Then, allegedly, sources claimed that her brother El defamed her work publicly in a Twitter post adding fuel to the fire.
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