R&B and soul icon D’Angelo has passed away at 51 years old. According to his family and his former manager, Kedar Massenberg, he was privately battling pancreatic cancer. He is survived by two sons and a daughter. His firstborn son’s mother was Angie Stone, who also passed away from a car accident in March 2025.
Born Michael Eugene Archer in Richmond, Virginia in 1974, D’Angelo revolutionized what R&B could sound like. He’s often associated with the neo-soul movement and the Soulquarians with Questlove and J. Dilla. This blend of hip-hop, soul, funk, rock, and the blues breathed new life into R&B as it transitioned out of New Jack Swing frequencies.
This all starts with his 1995 debut album Brown Sugar on EMI. The arrangements were fresh and vibrant, blending live instrumentation and vivid arrangements with electric equipment. Records like the title track, “Lady,” and his rendition of Smokey Robinson’s “Cruisin” were as smooth as the brown leather jacket D’Angelo rocks on the album cover. Within a year, Brown Sugar became platinum and notched him four Grammy nominations in the process.
D’Angelo Tragically Passes Away at 51 Years Old
Then, Voodoo further radicalized the neo-soul image with something even funkier. It’s hot and humid, sweaty and sensual, so challenging on a textural level how he utilizes his voice in conjunction with the bass hits. With Voodoo, D’Angelo goes down south and emerges with something muddier and funkier, an image of what Black music could become.
The big hit was “Untitled (How Does It Feel),” a record with a music video so provocative that it drastically changed the trajectory of his life and career. Fully undressed and slowly panning outwards, it left an imprint on everyone. The aftermath saw fans aggressively sexualize D’Angelo. Once the album rollout and tour were done, he retreated from the spotlight for over a decade.
After a long time grappling with his personal struggles, he came back with the wildly anticipated Black Messiah. It was like D’Angelo never left. He recaptured vintage funk and soul with a righteous disposition to match. He toed around with sociopolitical themes in his music before, but Black Messiah fully leans into this. “It’s about people rising up in Ferguson and in Egypt and in Occupy Wall Street,” he writes in the album notes. “In every place where a community has had enough and decides to make change happen.” It’s a gorgeous final album from one of the greatest artists to ever live.
The post R&B Icon D’Angelo Dead at 51 After Private Cancer Battle appeared first on VICE.
