DeVante Swing (born Donald DeGrate, Jr. on September 24, 1969) is an African-American record producer, songwriter, and singer. One-quarter of the R&B chart-topping group Jodeci, Devante Swing served as the group's leader, and main songwriter and producer. He is the older brother of Jodeci member Dalvin DeGrate. September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years). ... 1969 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... African Americans, also known as Afro-Americans or Black Americans, are an ethnic group in the United States of America whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Sub-Saharan Africa. ... In the music industry, record producer designates a person responsible for completing a master recording so that it is fit for release. ... A songwriter is someone who writes either the lyrics or the music for songs. ... In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... R&B/Soul group Jodeci was formed in 1990. ...

At the age of 16, Devante went to Minneapolis to join Prince's organization but was turned down. He went back to Charlotte to work on his production skills. Meanwhile, he cut some songs with K-Ci and JoJo. They ended up with 29 demo tapes, and shopped them around to different labels. Soon one of the tapes landed in the hands of Heavy D and Uptown Records CEO Andre Harrell. They both loved it, and signed Jodeci immediately. This article is about the city in Minnesota. ... Prince changed his stage name into an unpronounceable symbol in 1993, but took up the name Prince again in 1999. ... he Civil War largely bypassed Charlotte, though the city was the site of the Confederate Cabinets final meeting. ... Heavy D. & the Boyz was an American hip hop group led by 250-lb Heavy D., who is known for his wild boastings about his sexual prowess. ... Uptown Records was a record label acquired in 1990 by MCA Records, later it became part of Universal Records. ...

Devante Swing produced nearly all of the tracks on all three Jodeci albums, and also did outside production work for artists such as Tupac Shakur. In 1992, DeVante founded the Swing Mob, a collective of touring musicians and upcoming musicians who were signed to his Swing Mob imprint with Elektra Records. Among its members were future stars Ginuwine, Magoo, Tweet, Playa, and Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, many of whom did work on various Jodeci recordings. Another Swing Mob member, Elliott's friend Tim "Timbaland" Mosley, was trained by DeVante as a production apprentice. After Swing Mob folded, Elliott and Mosley would become the most influential songwriting/production team of the late 1990s. For other people named Tupac, see Tupac (disambiguation). ... Elektra Records is a record label started in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickholt, who both invested $300. ... Ginuwine (born Elgin Baylor Lumpkin on October 15, 1975 in Washington, DC) is an African American R&B singer. ... Magoo (born Melvin Barcliff) is an African-American rapper. ... For other meanings of bird, see bird (disambiguation). ... Timbaland (born Timothy Mosley in Norfolk, Virginia on March 10, 1971) is a hip hop and R&B record producer, whose style of production and arranging was very influential in both genres of music during and after the mid-1990s. ... Events and trends Technology Explosive growth of the Internet; decrease in the cost of computers and other technology Reduction in size and cost of mobile phones leads to a massive surge in their popularity Year 2000 problem (commonly known as Y2K) Microsoft Windows operating system becomes virtually ubiquitous on IBM...

In 1993, DeVante and bandmate K-Ci Hailey were accused of sexually abusing a young fan. The following year, Devante's home was robbed of $160,000 worth of jewelry and clothes, while the robbers held guns to his head. K-Ci (born Cedric Hailey on September 2, 1969 in Charlotte, North Carolina) is an African-American R&B/soul singer and songwriter, one-half of the duo K-Ci and JoJo and one-quarter of the R&B quartet Jodeci. ... This article is about firearms and similar devices. ...

See also

• Jodeci
• New Jack Swing