Dalvin DeGrate

Dalvin Ertimus DeGrate (born July 23, 1971), better known by his stage name Mr. Dalvin, is an American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and rapper. He is one-quarter of the R&B group Jodeci,^[1] and the younger brother of Jodeci member DeVante Swing.

Dalvin DeGrate
Birth name	Dalvin Ertimus DeGrate
Also known as	Mr. Dalvin
Born	(1971-07-23) July 23, 1971 (age 53) Hampton, Virginia, U.S.
Origin	Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
Genres	R&B hip hop soul
Occupations	Record producer singer songwriter rapper
Instruments	Vocals drums talk box piano
Years active	1988–present

Career

The rapper for the group, DeGrate rarely sang lead on Jodeci tracks, although he has production and songwriting credits on Diary of A Mad Band and The Show, The After Party, The Hotel.^[2] He occasionally played drums onstage.^{[citation needed]}

He released his first solo album, Met.A.Mor.Phic, on April 18, 2000, with the single "Why Can't We".^[3]

He moved to Def Jam Recordings, and recorded his second album, Met.A.Mor.Phic 2: The Rivalry of a Singer and A Rapper, with appearances by Method Man, Redman, Ludacris. The album was due to be released in 2010, but he decided to leave Def Jam and form his own label, DeGrate Productions, after a dispute. ^{[citation needed]}

In 2012 he announced he was working on an album called "Egomaniac", but it was shelved (and later released).

In 2014 DeGrate set up a new record label with music executive Cassandra Mills, called Christo Chrome Music.

In 2017 he released a single called "Vindication (Get Money) feat GOODZ", he also made a video for this single.^[4]

In 2020 Mr. Dalvin released his first single in 3 years with "GoodTimez feat. Tali".

In 2021 he released a string of singles, including a remix to "GOODTIMEZ" that featured rapper GOODZ, and the songs "She Bad feat. GOODZ and Ms. Toi", "AND I", INSEPERABLE", and "LOVE U DOWN".

On his 52nd birthday on July 23, 2023, DeGrate released an EP called FAMOUS. Mr. Dalvin wrote, produced, performed lead and background vocals, and was the studio engineer for the release. His nephew Justin Burton provided additional production. Of the release, Mr. Dalvin wrote the following: "'FAMOUS' is a project I made to have the nostalgia of 90's harmonies, production and lyrical story telling. Also, paying homage to some of my favorite MC's grouping up such as LL COOL J, RAKIM and Big Daddy Kane."^[5]

In early 2024 he released a compilation album called FAMOUS The Collection, which included many of the 2020 & 2021 singles, songs from the FAMOUS EP, and a new single he released in December 2023 called She Needs Me.

In 2024 he released his final solo album (as of now) "Egomaniac", an album which had previously been shelved.

Family

DeGrate has a brother, Devante Swing, born Donald DeGrate, Jr.^[3] They toured as Gospel singers before they joined with JoJo Hailey and K-Ci Hailey (born Cedric Hailey), forming Jodeci,^[3] and a younger brother Derek DeGrate.

Discography

with Jodeci

• 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)

Solo albums/EPs

• Met.A.Mor.Phic (2000)
• Famous (2023)
• Egomaniac (2024)