If you grew up in the 1980s, you’re definitely familiar with R&B sensation Chico DeBarge. His father, Robert Louis DeBarge, and his mother, Etterlene DeBarge, gave birth to him. The couple had ten children, just two of whom did not sing. Bunny, Randy, Mark, El, and James, his five elder brothers, were members of The DeBarge, a band founded in 1979. In terms of skill, the five musically brilliant DeBarge siblings were second only to the Jacksons. Chico, who also sang and danced, was poised for greatness, but the family strife behind the scenes brought the whole family down.
Sufferings of Chico DeBarge and His Siblings
Chico and his brothers experienced nightmares about their father. Robert not only assaulted and harassed his wife, but his children said the same thing happened to them. The musician told Vibe magazine that his father sexually abused several of his siblings and sisters. Bobby, his second oldest sibling, was the one who suffered the most. Bobby was his mother’s favorite kid, and his father, who couldn’t bear it, vented his rage on him.
However, this did not absolve the other DeBarge children of their responsibilities. They were all cruelly punished. Bunny, the eldest kid, said that she had suffered years of physical, mental, and sexual abuse at the hands of her father. She said that he began sexually abusing her when she was seven years old and continued until she was thirteen. Chico, on the other hand, managed to get away from his father but not from his siblings or classmates at school. He got into arguments because the youngsters nicknamed him “Oreo, zebra, half-breed.” But it wasn’t the battles that frightened him. What frightened him was the prospect of his brother beating him up if he lost. Despite all of his children’s assertions, Robert denied ever assaulting his family.
Drug Abuse and Crime With Chico DeBarge And His Siblings
The fact that all of Robert’s children were involved in drugs and crime has long been public knowledge. One may argue that the ramifications of previous tragic occurrences drove them down one dark road after another. Bobby was the first of the DeBarge children to get addicted to narcotics. He was just 15 when he became hooked, and as he grew older, he often got into conflict with the authorities.
The singer was sentenced to five years in jail in 1988. He died at the age of 39 from complications from HIV/AIDS, and he was caught in jail. Bunny also turned to drugs as a result of peer pressure. “You weren’t in if you weren’t using drugs,” she said. And when the DeBarges weren’t using drugs, they were locked up for it. Chico, Bobby, Tommy, Mark, James, and El were all condemned to jail at some time for drug trafficking. Chico was arrested for marijuana possession on November 14, 2021, according to TMZ. Prior to it, he was apprehended in early 2021 while posing as his brother, James. After all that has transpired, his mother just has one regret: letting her children work in the music business.
