D’Angelo, the R&B crooner who helped lead the neosoul motion, has died after a non-public battle with most cancers. He was 51.
His household verify his loss of life in an announcement, saying the “(Untitled) How Does It Really feel” singer handed away on Tuesday.
“The shining star of our household has dimmed his gentle for us on this life… After a chronic and brave battle with most cancers, we’re heartbroken to announce that Michael D’Angelo Archer, recognized to his followers all over the world as D’Angelo, has been known as residence, departing this life right this moment, October 14th, 2025. We’re saddened that he can solely go away expensive recollections along with his household, however we’re eternally grateful for the legacy of terribly shifting music he leaves behind. We ask that you just respect our privateness throughout this troublesome time however invite you all be part of us in mourning his passing whereas additionally celebrating the reward of tune that he has left for the world.”
D’Angelo got here on the scene in 1995 with Grammy-nominated debut ”Brown Sugar.’’ The album’s funky R&B grooves recalled the ‘70s sound with its give attention to instrumentation as an alternative of sampling tracks or counting on machines for beats. Critics labeled D’Angelo the chief of a brand new neosoul motion, together with the likes of Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill and Maxwell.
The Richmond, Virginia, native started taking part in the piano on the tender age of three, and by the point he was 4, he was taking part in piano at a church the place his father was pastor.
“I did that quite a bit once I was rising up: taking part in in church, directing choirs, and issues like that,” he advised The Related Press in a 1996 interview. “I had my very own band, with my cousins, and my buddies, and we toured everywhere in the metropolis.”
Earlier than he reached 18, he went to New York Metropolis, the place he and his band carried out — and gained — thrice on the famed Apollo Theater’s beginner showcase. He earned buzz within the trade as an up-and-coming songwriter and producer after co-writing the 1994 hit “U Will Know,” recorded by a choir greater than 40 of the most well liked male R&B artists of the 90s for the movie “Jason’s Lyric.”
D’Angelo’s music blended hip-hop grit, emphatic soul and gospel-rooted emotion. His sultry vocal type — a mixture of raspy texture and church-bred fluidity — set him aside from his friends. That voice turned inseparable from the placing visuals of his 2000 single “Untitled (How Does It Really feel).” The minimalist, shirtless music video turned a cultural touchstone, igniting conversations round artistry, sexuality and vulnerability in Black male illustration. The tune earned him a Grammy for finest male R&B vocal efficiency and propelled his sophomore album “Voodoo.” topping the Billboard 200 chart and profitable the Grammy for finest R&B album.
Past his personal catalog, D’Angelo’s artistry shined in collaborations. He memorably duetted with Lauryn Hill on the soulful ballad “Nothing Even Issues,” a spotlight of her landmark 1998 album “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” He additionally contributed to The Roots’ 1996 album “Illadelph Halflife” and was a part of the supergroup Black Males United, which yielded one tune: “U Will Know,” which D’Angelo wrote and co-produced, for the movie “Jason’s Lyric” in 1994.
D’Angelo was partnered to Grammy-nominated R&B singer Angie Stone within the ’90s. The pair met whereas he was ending “Brown Sugar” and bonded over their comparable backgrounds: Each are from the South and each grew up within the church. Stone labored on the album with D’Angelo and the pair co-wrote the tune “On a regular basis” for her 1999 debut album, “Black Diamond.”
Stone described D’Angelo as her “musical soul mate,” to The Related Press in 1999, including that their working relationship was “’like milk and cereal …. Musically, it was magic. It’s one thing that I’ve not been in a position to do with some other producer or musician.”
They’d a son collectively, the artist Swayvo Twain, born Michael Archer Jr.
Stone died earlier this 12 months in a automotive crash. She was 63.
D’Angelo additionally has a daughter, Imani Archer.
