Swingfly facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Swingfly
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| Background information | |
| Born | New York City, New York, US |
| Origin | Stockholm, Sweden |
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| Years active | 1991–present |
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Ricardo DaSilva II, known by his stage name Swingfly, is an American-Swedish rapper and singer. He is also called Swing-Fly, Richie Pasta, and Swing. Swingfly started his career by singing on other artists' songs. Later, he also began his own solo music journey.
He became very famous after appearing in Melodifestivalen 2011. His song "Me and My Drum" finished fifth in the contest. This song became his biggest hit, reaching number 2 on the Swedish Singles Chart.
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Early Music Days
Ricardo DaSilva II was born in New York City. He lived in Trinidad and Tobago and Panama before moving to Stockholm, Sweden in 1991. In Stockholm, he joined the growing hip hop music scene. He became part of a group called Timebomb.
With Timebomb, he worked with producer Christian Falk and rapper ADL. They released a few songs, including Swingfly's "Smoke 'em Swing."
First Big Hits
In 1995, Swingfly teamed up with Dr. Alban. They recorded a Euro-disco song called "Sweet Dreams." This song was a cover of a famous Eurythmics song. It became a hit in Sweden, reaching number 12 on the music charts. The song also became popular in other European countries.
In 1996, Swingfly worked on several songs for ADL's "Absent Minded" project. They even toured with the famous group Fugees in Europe. Swingfly also sang on albums with the soul-jazz group Blacknuss All-Stars. He often performed live with them in Europe and the UK.
Working with Teddybears
Swingfly had a huge success in 2004. He worked with the band Teddybears on their song "Hey Boy." This song became one of the most played songs on Swedish radio that summer. It stayed on the Sweden Singles Top 60 chart for 21 weeks and reached number 13.
After this success, Swingfly toured with Teddybears in Sweden, Europe, and the US.
Solo Career
Swingfly signed a music deal with Dolores Recordings. This record label was known for helping Swedish artists become famous around the world. Through Dolores, he released some singles. His first album, God Bless the IRS, was released on April 29, 2009.
Melodifestivalen Appearances
Melodifestivalen 2011
Swingfly took part in Melodifestivalen 2011. This is a big music contest in Sweden to choose their song for the Eurovision Song Contest. He sang the song "Me and My Drum." The singer Christoffer Hiding also sang on the song, but he was not officially named in the contest.
Swingfly came in second place in his semi-final. This meant he moved on to the final competition. In the final, he finished in fifth place overall. Even though he didn't win, "Me and My Drum" became very popular. It was released as a single and reached number 2 on the Sverigetopplistan chart.
Melodifestivalen 2016
Swingfly returned to Melodifestivalen in 2016. He performed the song "You Carved Your Name" with Helena Gutarra. The song was written by Joakim Åhlund and Andreas Kleerup. They performed in the third semi-final on February 20, 2016. However, they did not make it to the finals that year.
Music Releases
Swingfly has released several albums and singles throughout his career.
His albums include:
- God Bless the IRS (2009)
- Awesomeness - An Introduction to Swingfly (2011), which reached number 12 on the Swedish charts.
Some of his most popular singles are:
- "Sweet Dreams" (1995) with Dr. Alban
- "Hey Boy" (2004) with Teddybears STHLM
- "Me and My Drum" (2011), which was a platinum-selling hit.
