George Warren McCrae, Jr., a baritone/falsetto R&B singer, was born in West Palm Beach, Florida, on October 19, 1944, to George Warren McCrae, Sr. and Mary McCray. He was the second child of nine. McCrae founded the Jivin’ Jets, a vocal group, in 1962. It was, however, brief. He married Gwen Mosley of Pensacola, Florida, the following year, in 1963. McCrae also enlisted in the United States Navy at this time. He and his wife worked as a duo for Henry Stone’s Alston record label after being honorably discharged four years later. The couple divorced in 1976 after having two daughters, Sophia and Leah.
McCrae released the single “Rock Your Baby” in 1974, which sold an estimated 11 million copies worldwide and topped the charts in the United States, the United Kingdom, and 80 other countries. This single was one of the first disco hits, and Rolling Stone magazine ranked it first in the new disco category that year. In addition, McCrae was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocalist for the hit.
McCray also released “I Can’t Leave You Alone,” which peaked at number 9, and “You Can Have It,” which peaked at number 23 in 1974. McCrae’s “Sing a Happy Song” reached number 38 on the R&B chart in 1975 and remained there for four weeks. In 1975, “It’s Been a Long Time” peaked at number four and stayed on the charts for 11 weeks, while “I Ain’t Lyin'” peaked at number twelve and stayed on the charts for seven weeks.
McCrae released the album Diamond Touch in 1976. We Did It! was released two years later, in 1978. McCrae released One Step Closer to Love in 1984. As his career waned in the United States, he moved to Sittard-Geleen, Netherlands, in 1989, with model Yvonne Bergsma. Shaka was their son.
McCrae’s career continued in Europe, and by 2010, he was regularly performing in Germany, England, and Spain. In Germany, he released the album LOVE in 2016, which included the single “Sexy Woman.” McCrae, 75, was still performing his hit “Rock Your Baby” on the StarVista Cruise Line’s floating disco extravaganza from Miami to Key West, Florida, and then Nassau, Bahamas, in 2019.