Music world mourns as R&B legend D'Angelo dies

D'Angelo passed away

The artist passed away on Tuesday, October 14, in New York after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

"He was in hospice for two weeks but had been in the hospital for months," a source said.

Famous producer and DJ DJ Premier, who worked with D'Angelo on the track "Devil's Pie" in 1998, shared an emotional post on X (formerly Twitter) on October 14 expressing his condolences.

"Such a sad loss to the passing of D'angelo. We have so many great times. Gonna miss you so much. Sleep Peacefully D' Love You KING," he wrote.

D'Angelo (photo: Getty Images)

From church choir to global stages

The future musician was born in Richmond, Virginia, to a Pentecostal pastor's family.

He mastered music very early: by the age of three, he was playing the piano, and from five, he accompanied his father during church services.

Later, he performed in a church choir led by his grandfather.

As a child, D'Angelo formed his first band, Three of a Kind, with two of his cousins, and performed at local talent contests.

At 16, he founded another group, Michael Archer and Precise, which included his brother Luther.

D'Angelo (photo: Getty Images)

A turning point came with his participation in "Amateur Night" at the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem.

After an unsuccessful attempt, he returned the following year, performed Johnny Gill's "Rub You the Right Way," and won first place.

D'Angelo used the cash prize to buy a four-track tape recorder, on which he began recording music that would later appear on his debut album.

Global success and iconic status

His first album, Brown Sugar, released in 1995, was a breakthrough in the neo-soul genre.

The album reached number four on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart, went platinum, and earned the artist four Grammy nominations.

His next work, Voodoo (2000), only cemented his success. The album topped the US Billboard 200 and R&B Albums charts, while the song "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" won a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.

The album itself also received a Grammy for Best R&B Album.

With recognition came the darker side of fame. The media began calling D'Angelo the new sex symbol of the American music scene, while he gradually fell into addiction to drugs and alcohol.

In 2005, he was arrested for possession of cocaine and marijuana, as well as driving under the influence.

A few days after his sentencing, he was involved in a serious car accident, reportedly sustaining significant injuries.

Despite these challenges, D'Angelo never abandoned music. After a long hiatus, he returned with the album Black Messiah (2014), which immediately topped several US charts, won a Grammy, and was hailed by critics as one of the best albums of the decade.

Throughout his career, D'Angelo collaborated with genre legends including Questlove, Common, Lauryn Hill, Q-Tip, J Dilla, Raphael Saadiq, and Angie Stone.

In 2024, he recorded the track "I Want You Forever" with Jay-Z for the film The Book of Clarence.

That same year, Raphael Saadiq confirmed on the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast that D'Angelo was working on new material.

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