Bobby DeBarge, born Robert Louis DeBarge Jr., was an American singer and musician. Switch, a Motown R&B/Soul vocal group, included him as the lead singer. His excellent falsetto vocals were a highlight of his career. DeBarge, his siblings’ band, later hired him as a mentor and co-producer. He eventually became a member of the group. In 1988, he was charged with cocaine trafficking.  He became infected with HIV,in the 1980s. In 1995, he died of AIDS complications at the age of 39.

Where was Bobby DeBarge Born?

Bobby DeBarge was born on March 5, 1956 . Robert Louis DeBarge Jr. was his birth name. Robert DeBarge Sr. was his father, and Etterlene DeBarge was his mother. He was born in the United States, in the city of Detroit. He was an American citizen. Due to his father’s abuse, he had a difficult upbringing. At the age of 15, he was introduced to heroin, which became his lifelong addiction. In the early 1970s, his parents split. El DeBarge, James DeBarge, Chico DeBarge, Bunny DeBarge, Thomas DeBarge, Mark DeBarge, Randy DeBarge, Darryl DeBarge, and Caro “Peaches” DeBarge are his brothers and sisters.

What was Bobby DeBarge Famous For?

– lead singer of the Switch.

– His siblings’ group, DeBarge.

Career in Music:

• Along with his younger brother Tommy, he began performing in local bands.
• In 1975, he formed a band with Gregory Williams, a Grand Rapids musician.
• The duo auditioned for Barry White’s backing group, White Heat, along with numerous other Midwest musicians.
• White Heat, the group’s debut album, was released in 1975.

• Concerned about taxes, White disbanded the band in 1976.
• In addition to DeBarge, Williams and Phillip Ingram, Hot Ice included TC Brown and Stanley Brown, Jody Sims, Arnett Hayes, Adam Frye, Darnell Wyrick and MC Clark.
• Hot Ice was the band’s 1977 album Pall Mall Groove.
• DeBarge returned to Grand Rapids and found heroin.
• He rejoined the gang to beat his addiction. Swap was named by their ability to “switch” instruments.
• Switch’s first album came out in 1978.
• Switch II came out in 1979.
• Their third gold album, This Is My Dream, was out in 1980.
• DeBarge had returned to heroin and had started doing cocaine. His addiction caused a split with the rest of the group.
• In 1981, after the publication of Switch V, he abruptly departed the group.
• The DeBarge clan had formed. DeBarges co-produced The DeBarges’ debut album.
• He ultimately joined the group.
• Bunny and El DeBarge left the group.
• DeBarge reunited the band in 1987 and released Bad Boys.
• Bobby was convicted of drug trafficking in Grand Rapids in 1988. His musical career was put on hiatus after a five-year prison sentence.
• After leaving prison in 1993, he returned to music. He’d been fighting AIDS since the late 1980s.
• He worked on It’s Not Over. In 1995, he died.

Who was DeBarge Married to?

DeBarge had a relationship with La Toya Jackson, a member of the Jackson family. By 1984, the pair had broken up. Teri was his wife. With Teri, he had two children, Christian and Bobby III.

Death:

Before being sentenced to prison for cocaine trafficking in 1988, DeBarge developed HIV.

On August 16, 1995, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, he died of an AIDS-related illness. He died when he was 39 years old. He is interred in Grand Rapids’ Garfield Park Cemetery.