D'Angelo
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| D'Angelo | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Michael Eugene Archer |
| Born | February 11, 1974  Richmond, Virginia, U.S. |
| Genre(s) | R&B, soul, neo soul, pop, dance-pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter Keyboardist Producer |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, piano/keyboard, Hammond Organ, drums, bass, and guitar |
| Years active | 1994-present |
| Label(s) | EMI Virgin[J Records] |
| Associated acts | Soulquarians The Roots Raphael Saadiq Angie Stone The RH Factor |
| Influences | Prince Marvin Gaye Jimi Hendrix Al Green Curtis Mayfield |
D'Angelo (born Michael Eugene Archer, February 11, 1974), is a Grammy Award winning American soul singer, pianist, guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. D'Angelo is known for his production and songwriting talents as much as for his vocal abilities, and often draws comparisons to his influences, Marvin Gaye, and Prince. He has himself influenced the sound of modern R&B, particularly neo-soul. D'Angelo has a son named Michael by former girlfriend R&B singer Angie Stone. Rock critic Robert Christgau has described him as "R&B Jesus".[1]
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[edit] Biography
He was born in Richmond, Virginia, the son of a Pentecostal preacher, and began performing as a young child. By his late teens he had signed a songwriting deal with EMI, and penned the hit song "U Will Know", performed by Black Men United for the Jason's Lyric motion picture soundtrack. Shortly after, he began recording his debut album, Brown Sugar, which was released in June of 1995. Though sales were sluggish at first, the album was eventually a hit, in large part to "Lady," a Top Ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, peaking at #10, and helped kickstart the burgeoning neo soul singers of the 1990s (along with Maxwell, Erykah Badu and others). The album was a critical success as well, and appeared on many critics' "best of" lists for the year.
In the five year gap between Brown Sugar and the follow-up, D'Angelo appeared on several soundtracks, including Belly ("Devil's Pie"), frequently singing covers like "Girl You Need a Change of Mind" (Eddie Kendricks, Get on the Bus), "She's Always in My Hair" (Prince, Scream 2) and "Heaven Must Be Like This" (The Ohio Players, Down in the Delta), as well as appearing on Lauryn Hill's landmark The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill on the duet "Nothing Even Matters". The much-delayed follow-up to Brown Sugar, Voodoo, was finally released in 2000. It debuted at #1 and went on to win 2 Grammy Awards, one for Best R&B Album, and the other for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. The lead single was "Left & Right" (featuring Method Man and Redman), but it was the album's second single, "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" (a tribute to the legendary artist Prince), that became a huge R&B hit buoyed by an innovative yet infamous video featuring a presumably nude D'Angelo (from his face to his hips). The video was nominated for 4 MTV Video Music Awards and currently ranks #44 in VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Videos. He also performed "Be Here" (with Raphael Saadiq) from Saadiq's album Instant Vintage.
D'Angelo has a son, Michael Jr., with fellow neo-soul singer Angie Stone, and a daughter, Imani, born in October 1999.
In 2002, Q magazine named him in their list of the "50 Bands To See Before You Die", and in 2003 Voodoo was ranked at number 488 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
In January of 2005, D'Angelo was arrested and charged with possession of marijuana, possession of a controlled substance, and driving while intoxicated. He pleaded guilty to the DUI and marijuana charge and, on April 13, was given a fine and suspended sentence and his driver's license was revoked. On September 12, he received a three-year suspended sentence on the cocaine possession charge.
On September 19, 2005, just a week after being sentenced for cocaine possession, D'Angelo was critically injured in Powhatan County, Virginia when the SUV he was riding in hit a fence, ejecting him from the vehicle. He was not wearing a seatbelt.
A follow-up to the Voodoo album has yet to be released; however, in recent months, D'Angelo is said to be hard at work on a third album, tentatively titled James River.[1] After a long period of inactivity, D'Angelo has made guest appearances on several albums, including releases by J Dilla, Common [2], Red Hot & Riot and The RH Factor.
In August 2006, D'Angelo is confirmed to have exited a rehabilitation stint on the island of Antigua and has begun collaborations with Common and Q-Tip. He also entered discussions with Jermaine Dupri on how to market what appears to be a forthcoming LP, though the official news of a release has not been made public yet. [3] Although music for his own album has yet to materialize, D'Angelo was featured on the song "Imagine", by Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, from his album Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, released on November 21, 2006.
On April 17, 2007 a new song called "Really Love" was leaked on Triple J Radio in Australia by ?uestlove[2] D'Angelo also had a guest appearance on Common's most recent album, Finding Forever on the track, "So Far to Go".
On August 10, 2007 D'Angelo was sent to court on charges relating to a car accident that occurred on September 19, 2005. These charges included reckless driving and driving with a suspended license. He pleaded guilty to these charges and was ordered to pay a $1,250 fine, in addition to forfeiting his license for 15 months. He also received a nine-month suspended jail sentence. After the proceedings, the artist confirmed that new music is "in the works" although the album remains untitled.[3]
[edit] Music samples
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Untitled (How Does It Feel?) (1999) From the album Voodoo (2000) - Problems playing the files? See media help.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Album information |
|---|
Brown Sugar
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| Live at the Jazz Cafe |
Voodoo
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[edit] Singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Hot 100 | US R&B/Hip-Hop | |||
| 1995 | "Brown Sugar" | #27 | #5 | Brown Sugar |
| 1995 | Cruisin'" | #53 | #10 | Brown Sugar |
| 1996 | "Lady" | #10 | #2 | Brown Sugar |
| 1996 | "Me and Those Dreamin' Eyes of Mine" | #74 | #25 | Brown Sugar |
| 1999 | "Heaven Must Be Like This" | - | #74 | Voodoo |
| 1999 | "Left & Right" (featuring Method Man & Redman) | #75 | #18 | Voodoo |
| 2000 | "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" | #25 | #2 | Voodoo |
| 2000 | "Send It On" | - | #33 | Voodoo |
[edit] Other musical recordings
This list excludes recordings which only include samples of D'Angelo recordings.
- "U Will Know" collaboration as B.M.U (Black Men United) on Jason's Lyric (soundtrack) album (1994)
- "Pray" on Vertical Hold's 'Head First' album (1994)
- "Crew" keyboards on A Tribe Called Quest's Beats, Rhymes and Life album (1996)
- "Overjoyed" on Boys Choir of Harlem's 'Up In Harlem' album (1996)
- "Cold World (Remix)" single collaboration with GZA (1996)
- "Your Precious Love" collaboration with Erykah Badu on High School High soundtrack album (1996)
- "Girl You Need A Change Of Mind" on Get On The Bus soundtrack album (1996)
- "The Hypnotic" collaboration on The Roots' Illadelph Halflife album (1996)
- "I Found My Smile Again" on the Space Jam (soundtrack) album (1997)
- "Ain't Nobody Home" collaboration on B.B.King's Deuces Wild album (1997)
- "The 'Notic" collaboration with The Roots (featuring Erykah Badu) on Men In Black soundtrack album (1997)
- "Heaven Must Be Like This" on Down In The Delta soundtrack album (1998)
- "Nothing Even Matters" collaboration on Lauryn Hill's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill album (1998)
- "Break Ups 2 Make Ups" collaboration on Method Man's Tical 2000: Judgement Day album (1998)
- "She's Always In My Hair" on Scream 2 soundtrack album (1998)
- "The Spark" keyboards on The Roots' Things Fall Apart album (1999)
- "Everyday" collaboration and production on Angie Stone's Black Diamond album (1999)
- "Time Travelin'", "Time Travelin' (Reprise)", "Geto Heaven Part Two" and "Cold-Blooded" collaborations on Common's Like Water for Chocolate album (2000)
- "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" on D'Angelo's Untitled (How Does It Feel?) single (2000)
- "Tell Me" collaboration on Slum Village's Fantastic, Vol. 2 album (2000)
- "Caravan" collaboration with The Roots on the various artists' Red Hot + Indigo Duke Ellington tribute / charity fund-raising album (2000)
- "Talk S*** 2 Ya" collaboration on Baby Boy soundtrack album (2001)
- "Be Here" collaboration on Raphael Saadiq's Instant Vintage album (2002)
- "Water No Got Enemy" collaboration with various artists on Red Hot + Riot: The Music and Spirit of Fela Kuti tribute / charity fund-raising album (2002)
- "I'll Stay" collaboration on Roy Hargrove's The RH Factor: Hard Groove album (2003)
- "Be Here" live collaboration on Raphael Saadiq's All Hits at the House of Blues album (2005)
- "Sing A Simple Song" virtual collaboration with Sly and The Family Stone, featuring Isaac Hayes and Chuck D on Different Strokes By Different Folks tribute album (2006)
- "Bullsh*t" collaboration on Roy Hargrove's The RH Factor: Distractions album (2006)
- "So Far to Go" collaboration on J Dilla's The Shining album (2006)
- "Imagine" collaboration on Snoop Dogg's Blue Carpet Treatment album (2006) featuring Dr.Dre
- "Feel Like Makin' Love" cover featured on the L Word Soundtrack (2006)
- "So Far To Go" collaboration on Common's Finding Forever album (2007).
[edit] References
- ^ Robert Christgau: Jesus Saves: D'Angelo
- ^ HHNLive.com - Media - Really Love - D'Angelo
- ^ Style Weekly : Richmond's alternative for news, arts, culture and opinion
[edit] External links
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