Source: Upscale Magazine, July 2008 edition

In the '80s when Bunny DeBarge and her brothers were at the top of the music charts as the group DeBarge, the singer was addicted to morphine and using cocaine.

In fact, the oldest of 10 children by a Black mother and a White father says for years her family life was a dysfunctional ride.

"Growing up as mixed children in the '60s always felt odd. My father's family disowned us. We witnessed a very abusive relationship between my parents. We were sexually, physically and emotionally abused", says DeBarge, 53, now a mother of four.

Today her reality is a different story, one she has detailed in a new multi-part memoir, The Kept Ones (Deborah Smith Publications, $18.95), which has garnered interest from HBO.

"This book showed me all the things that I thought were right were wrong", says DeBarge. "I wrote the book so my family can be healed."
[Edited 7/8/08 8:22am]

Wait a minute, when they did the article in Vibe, their mother was black AND she has a myspace and their father was latino

Their father is white and their mother is black

yeah dad's french thus the 'DeBarge' last name and mom's black

Evvy said:

Yep,that's what I recall hearing back then

No their father is american, just a french name

bboy87 said:

The Vibe article listed the father as being white

banks said:

that's correct,their father is indeed White.The Vibe article even included a photo of him.

I corrected the magazine's oversight.

Whoa, I always thought they were Latinos. Wow, I learned something new today. I miss DeBarge for real.

I've been knowing the DeBarges were black, lol.

purplecam said:

It's funny, they could have easily passed 4 Latino.

Graycap23 said:

That's true. Plus Jonathan DeBarge's nickname (and stage name) is Chico.

purplecam said:

I thought they were black and latino.