I was born on March 10, 1955 as Etterlene DeBarge in Detroit, MI to Etterlene Abney (who’s known to most people as “Mama DeBarge”) and the late Robert Louis DeBarge, Sr. However, most of my fans know and remember me as, simply, “Bunny”, a nickname given to me on account of my birthday coinciding so close to Easter.
I’m also the oldest of a whopping 13 siblings—Bobby, Tommy (both formerly of the Motown R&B group Switch), Randy, Marty, El, James (all of whom, along with me, became what would be known as DeBarge, another of Motown’s iconic and successful family musical R&B groups), Jonathan (a/k/a “Chico”, who launched a successful R&B solo career), twins Darrell and Carole, and half-siblings Deathra DeBarge, Shawn DeBarge, Alice Pitts and Chantal Jones to round out the clan.
In 1960, at the age of five, my mother (who hails from a musical family dynasty) recognized that I, too, was a musical prodigy whose raw talent had to be cultivated and guided. She well understood that because of my gift, I’d have to be groomed to showcase that skill in the best way possible. All the while, as I blossomed into a songbird in my own right, I was hiding a horrid secret, living with and burdened by a veritable nightmare behind closed doors because of it. Walking out a painful and traumatic double life, my family and I finally moved to Grand Rapids, MI in 1970 when I was 14 years old. As my father, Robert DeBarge, Sr., was notably absent from the move, Grand Rapids was the place I called at the time, gladly, “Freedom Town”. Moving was a godsend and a respite for all of us. Nevertheless, you can run, but you can’t hide. It’s true what they say, you’re only as sick as your secrets. I learned that in spades. However, I never realized how true that would be until years later when I’d have to confront the very demons that not only haunted me, but my entire family.
Despite our tribulations and challenges, our faith in Jesus Christ was central to our lives. My mother reared all of her children in the Pentecostal church, specifically Bethel Pentecostal Church where my Uncle Bill—really, the family patriarch and the late Bishop William C. Abney–was pastor. Uncle Bill played quite a significant role in my life and I miss him very much–still.
Nevertheless, as I matured, my mother, Etterlene, had been working with my younger brothers all along as well, cultivating their talent, and instilling in all of us what she’d been taught of music from her own family. My mom’s tutelage, her diligent and tender guidance and unrelenting encouragement ultimately paid off, resulting in the family musical group “The DeBarge Children”. When she felt we were ready, the group (comprised of my brothers Bobby, Tommy, Randy, Marty and I) began singing in churches across the city and in every youth program my mom could find. Even my uncle, James Abney, who directed our church choir, took me under his wing to assist in perfecting my singing and songwriting skills. He wrote songs to showcase my vocal prowess and broad range. It wasn’t long before I was the lead vocalist in the church choir. Soon, local radio stations and gospel programs called on my brothers and me to perform. Even more, traveling to different states gave me a taste of real independence, affording me the opportunity to perform on my own, especially at times as a guest soloist with Uncle Bill whenever he was called upon to preach a sermon.
At the age of 16, Madison Square Garden called on me to perform. It was a watershed moment that opened the door to a scholarship to attend summer arts camp at the highly acclaimed Interlochen Center for the Arts. Another opportunity to further hone and showcase my skills as the songstress and songwriter I wanted to become, an invitation to Interlochen was the chance of a lifetime.
In 1975, as my career continued to gather strength and momentum along with modest acclaim, I decided to get married and become a mother (to daughters Damea and Janae), pausing my career to devote quality time to my family. However, that break wouldn’t last long, as I regrouped with my younger brothers (El, Randy, Marty and James) to form “God’s Children of Harmony” to finally unleash what I had in the way of songwriting skills on the group, collaborating with Randy and El to pen many of the songs the group performed before congregations across the region and on the East Coast.
At last, the time came when California called four years later when I followed my brothers, Bobby and Tommy–who’d already signed with Motown Records, wowing audiences around the world as members of the group Switch–to Hollywood. It wasn’t long before Motown auditioned and signed me, and my brothers El, Randy, Marty and James, to form the group that our fans have come to know, happily, as DeBarge. It was with Motown that I established myself not only as a recording artist, but as a songwriter and producer, writing R&B classic hits “A Dream”, and co-writing “Time Will Reveal” and “I Like It”, just to name a few.
With the Motown years behind me, not only am I blessed with four children (Damea, Janae, Tonee, and Daniel), I’m doubly blessed to be the grandmother of 15 grandchildren.
At last, the time came when California called four years later when I followed my brothers, Bobby and Tommy–who’d already signed with Motown Records, wowing audiences around the world as members of the group Switch–to Hollywood. It wasn’t long before Motown auditioned and signed me, and my brothers El, Randy, Marty and James, to form the group that our fans have come to know, happily, as DeBarge. It was with Motown that I established myself not only as a recording artist, but as a songwriter and producer, writing R&B classic hits “A Dream”, and co-writing “Time Will Reveal” and “I Like It”, just to name a few.
With the Motown years behind me, not only am I blessed with four children (Damea, Janae, Tonee, and Daniel), I’m doubly blessed to be the grandmother of 15 grandchildren.
Even more, after years of struggling with substance abuse issues resulting directly from domestic violence coupled with the physical and sexual abuse I suffered at the hands of my father, I was ready to come clean with myself, my family, and, ultimately, my fans. Walking the difficult road to complete sobriety could never have happened without my faith in Christ. It was my faith that gave me the strength to write The Kept Ones. Published in 2006, The Kept Ones not only chronicles my early life in painstaking detail, but working on it was also cathartic, helping me to confront the abuse and domestic violence that haunted me and my family for so many years.
The rest, as they say, is history, right? No way, not by a long shot. With another book in the works, along with other projects in the queue, truth is, I’ve only just begun. So stay tuned.
Much love, Bunny
