Da Brat facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Da Brat
Da Brat in August 2018
Born	Shawntae Harris (1974-04-14) April 14, 1974 (age 50) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Education	Kenwood Academy
Occupation	Rapper actress
Years active	1992–present
Spouse(s)	Jesseca Dupart ​ (m. 2022)​
Children	1
Relatives	LisaRaye McCoy (half-sister)
Musical career
Genres	Hip hop
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	So So Def
Associated acts	Jermaine Dupri Kris Kross Mariah Carey Missy Elliott Bow Wow

Shawntae Harris-Dupart (née Harris; born April 14, 1974), better known by her stage name Da Brat, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Chicago, she began her career in 1992, the year she signed with So So Def Records. Her debut album Funkdafied (1994) sold one million copies, making her the first-ever female solo rap act to receive a platinum certification, and the second-ever female rap act (solo or group) after Salt-N-Pepa.

During the first half of her career, she released two top-ten songs on the Billboard Hot 100, with 1994's "Funkdafied" and 1997's "Not Tonight" (with Lil' Kim, Lisa Lopes, Missy Elliott and Angie Martinez), both tracks reaching the #6 spot on the Hot 100; additionally, "Funkdafied" reached the #2 spot on the Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart, with "Not Tonight" reaching #3 on the same chart. Da Brat has also had commercial success with other songs and collaborations, including with Jermaine Dupri (JD) on "I Think They Like Me". She has appeared on several songs/remixes with friend Mariah Carey, notably 2001's "Loverboy" remix which features Brat, Ludacris, Shawnna and Cameo (peaking at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100), as well as with Xscape on JD's 1996 remix of Carey's #1 hit "Always Be My Baby", on JD's 1997 remix to Carey's #1 hit "Honey", with Carey and Krayzie Bone on a 1999 mashup "I Still Believe/Pure Imagination" (which features a chorus based on the "Willy Wonka" song "Pure Imagination"), and a lighthearted 2002 duet with Carey called "Gotta Thing For You" (a hip-hop-inspired version of the Bobby Caldwell song "What You Won't Do For Love"). Brat has received two Grammy Award nominations.

Early life and education

Da Brat was born on April 14, 1974 in Chicago, Illinois, and was raised primarily on the West Side of the city. Her father is David Ray McCoy, a businessman, and mother, Nadine Brewer, a city bus driver. Her parents never married. Brat was subsequently raised in two different households. Da Brat lived part of the time with her mother and grandmother and attended an Apostolic church four times a week, where she sang in the choir. She is the paternal half-sister of LisaRaye McCoy. Da Brat attended Kenwood Academy during her sophomore and junior year, where she ran track and played basketball. She graduated from the Academy of Scholastic Achievement, a continuation charter school that caters to at-risk students in 1992.

Career

1992–1995: Early success

In 1992, Da Brat's big break occurred when she won the grand prize in a local rap contest sponsored by Yo! MTV Raps. For the prize, she met the young rap duo Kris Kross. They introduced her to their producer, Jermaine Dupri, who signed her to his So So Def label. Da Brat's debut album Funkdafied was released in 1994 and entered the rap albums chart at number 11. The album went platinum, making her the first female solo rapper to sell one million copies. The single "Funkdafied" reached number 1 on the rap singles chart and number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. Her follow-up single from the same album, "Give It 2 You", reached number 26 on the Hot 100.

1996–1999: Collaborations and film projects

In 1996, Da Brat released her second full-length album, Anuthatantrum, which included the single "Ghetto Love" featuring T-Boz of TLC. During the rest of the 1990s, Da Brat came to be known more for her "featured" appearances on other rappers' and R&B singers' albums rather than for her own solo work. Da Brat was also featured with Kris Kross on the title track of their album Da Bomb (1993) as well as on their third album Young, Rich and Dangerous (1996). She contributed a rhyme to the hip hop remix of Mariah Carey's hit, "Always Be My Baby" (1996). She also made her feature film debut that year in Kazaam (1996) with Shaquille O'Neal. In 1997 she and Dupri appeared on the remix of the Dru Hill hit "In My Bed". That same year, Da Brat appeared along with Dupri on a remix of Carey's "Honey (So So Def mix)" (1997) and recorded the hit remix of "Ladies' Night (Not Tonight)" (1997) with Lil' Kim, Left-Eye of TLC, Angie Martinez, and Missy Elliott. Also in 1997, she was featured on "Sock It 2 Me", a track on Missy Elliott's debut album, Supa Dupa Fly. In 1999, she appeared, alongside Krayzie Bone, on the remix to Mariah Carey's cover of Brenda K. Starr's "I Still Believe" (1998). She also appeared as a guest artist with Elliott on Carey's remix of "Heartbreaker" (1999), and on the remix of Brandy's "U Don't Know Me (Like U Used To)". That year, she was also featured on a remix of the Destiny's Child single "Jumpin', Jumpin'" (1999).

2000–2003: Return to solo work

In early 2000, Da Brat released her third full-length album Unrestricted, which produced the moderately successful singles "That's What I'm Looking For" (U.S. number 56) and "What'chu Like" (U.S. number 26), featuring soul singer, Tyrese. The album was not well-received compared to Brat's earlier work.

In 2001, Brat continued her trend of being featured on other artist's remixes, reaching number 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop Singles chart along with rapper Ludacris on the main remix of Mariah Carey's "Loverboy" and being featured artist on Destiny's Child's "Survivor" remix. Da Brat also appeared as Louise in Carey's 2001 movie Glitter. In 2003, Brat released her fourth album, titled Limelite, Luv & Niteclubz, including the single In Love wit Chu which peaked at peaked at n°9 on the Billboard rhythmic. In the same time, she appeared on the fourth season of VH1's The Surreal Life.

2005–present: Current activities

In 2005, she made a comeback of sorts when she was featured on the remix of the song "I Think They Like Me", by Dem Franchize Boyz, which also featured Bow Wow and Jermaine Dupri. The song peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop Singles chart and No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2006, she was an onstage guest on Mariah Carey's The Adventures of Mimi Tour in Atlanta, New York City, Long Island, Washington DC, Chicago, and Los Angeles performing her rap verses on the "Heartbreaker" and "Honey" remixes. She was also featured on Kelly Rowland's "Gotsta Go", a bonus track from her 2007 album Ms. Kelly and is also featured on "4real4real", a bonus track from Carey's E=MC². She also co-wrote a song with Carey called "O.O.C." which appears on E=MC² and contributes backing vocals on the track. In 2007, she participated in the fifth season of the VH1 reality series Celebrity Fit Club. In 2011, she did a remix with Kelly Rowland called "Motivation" featuring Lil Wayne. Following her release from prison, she launched a web series about life after the experience titled "Brat Chronicles: In Transition" on YouTube. She released her new single "Is It Chu?" on iTunes and other digital services on July 2, 2013. She now works for the Rickey Smiley Morning show as a co-host (July 2015 – present) and is part of the Dish Nation cast out of Atlanta. Since 2016, Da Brat has appeared on the reality TV series The Rap Game, as a mentor to young talent. In 2017 Da Brat joined the reality TV series Growing up Hip Hop: Atlanta which follows around Atlanta legends and children of Atlanta legends.

Personal life

Da Brat dated Allen Iverson in the late 1990s. On March 26, 2020, Da Brat confirmed that she is in a relationship with hair product businesswoman Jesseca Dupart. On February 22, 2022, Da Brat and Dupart married in Georgia.

Da Brat announced in February 2023 that she and Harris-Dupart are growing their family and that she is expecting her first child. She gave birth to their son on July 6, 2023.

Discography

Studio albums

• Funkdafied (1994)
• Anuthatantrum (1996)
• Unrestricted (2000)
• Limelite, Luv & Niteclubz (2003)

Tours

Joint tour

• Rainbow World Tour (with Mariah Carey and Missy Elliott) (2000)

Filmography

Film

Television

Music Videos

Documentary

Awards and nominations

Grammy Awards

Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards

BET Awards

Billboard Awards

See also

In Spanish: Da Brat para niños