DeVante Swing facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
DeVanté Swing
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| Born |
Donald Earle DeGrate Jr.
September 29, 1969 Hampton, Virginia, U.S.
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| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1987–present |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Dalvin DeGrate (brother), Derek DeGrate (brother) |
| Musical career | |
| Origin | Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Instruments | keyboards, piano, guitar |
| Labels |
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Donald Earle DeGrate Jr. (born September 29, 1969), known as DeVanté Swing, is an American music producer, singer, songwriter, and rapper. He is famous for being the main songwriter and producer for the R&B group Jodeci. His younger brother, Dalvin “Mr. Dalvin” DeGrate, is also in Jodeci. DeVanté Swing also started a music group called Swing Mob. This group helped many artists he found and taught, like Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Ginuwine, and Tweet.
Contents
Music Career and Success
Early Steps in Music
When DeVanté Swing was 16, he went to Minneapolis. He hoped to visit Paisley Park, which was Prince's music studio. He wanted to try out for Prince. Swing later said he went to Paisley Park every day, asking for a job and for people to listen to his music. The people there could not help him. This made Swing want to go back to North Carolina. He worked hard to get better at writing songs and producing music.
Rising to Fame with Jodeci
In his early career, Swing worked as a mix engineer. This means he helped make sure the sound of songs was just right. He also produced music for other artists. He became well-known in the 1990s. He was a founding member of the R&B group Jodeci. He started the group with his younger brother Dalvin DeGrate. The singers Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey and Joel "JoJo" Hailey also joined. Swing was the leader of Jodeci. He wrote and produced most of their songs.
Creating Swing Mob
In 1991, Swing started a music group called Swing Mob. Many artists who were not yet famous joined this group. These artists included Timbaland & Magoo, Tweet, Missy Elliott, and Ginuwine. Swing also helped direct music videos for Jodeci. He worked with famous directors like Hype Williams and Brett Ratner. Swing also helped the rapper Flo Rida when he was just starting his career.
Music Albums
Here are some of the albums Jodeci released:
- Forever My Lady (1991)
- Diary of a Mad Band (1993)
- The Show, the After Party, the Hotel (1995)
- The Past, the Present, the Future (2015)
More Information
- Devante Swing Interview with Sterlen Roberts
- James T. Jones IV (March 10, 1992). "Jodeci throws its voice into the doo-wop" . USA Today, p. 4D
