The legendary soul artist D’Angelo passed away from a quiet battle with pancreatic cancer. In the wake of his passing, we remember the artist as a visionary and one of the pioneers of neo-soul, a sub-genre of soul that combines jazz, funk, hip-hop, and rock.
Despite being recognized as one of the genre’s pioneers, D’Angelo never embraced being placed in the category. He has spoken publicly on multiple occasions, never claiming neo-soul due to the belief that tying his music to a singular genre limited him as an artist and put him in a box. At a Red Bull Music Academy lecture at the Brooklyn Museum in New York, he states firmly: “When I first came out, I said, I do Black music.”
The Start of a Legend
D’Angelo’s debut album, Brown Sugar, introduced a sound that came when ‘New Jack Swing‘ began to phase out. The 10-track album was love at its core, giving us hits like “Cruisin’” and “Lady.” Even with the double entendre meaning of the album’s first track, it was all about expressing the act of consuming love and giving it in some sense.
He continued the act of expressing love within his collaborations. His duet with Lauryn Hill on her album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, titled “Nothing Even Matters,” is a soulful ballad of romantic expression. The vocal chemistry of the pair singing in alto manifests a story that can make a cynic believe in the existence of a love that is so powerful it can make any catastrophe irrelevant.
Upon his debut, he began working closely with Questlove, the drummer of The Roots, and formed Soulquarians, along with producer-rapper J Dilla. Soulquarians was a group of Black artists who worked together to create music at Electric Lady Studios in NYC. Members included Erykah Badu, Roy Hargrove, Yasiin Bey, Common, and more.
D’Angelo developed a love for music at a young age, when he began playing the piano at three years old. He was heavily inspired by Prince and often would study his music to gauge what he could learn from him. In the span of his 30-year career, he only released three albums. To be remembered and beloved with only three projects in his discography is a true testament to his artistry.
D’Angelo was experimental with his music, always incorporating a different tone of his instruments or his voice. While trying new sounds he never strayed away from the soul of his music completely. His most experimental album was his third and final project, Black Messiah.
Black Messiah
After an almost 15-year hiatus, D’Angelo released his third studio album Black Messiah in late 2014. It was the first album since his 2000 release Voodoo and debuted at number five on the Billboard 200. Black Messiah sold over 100,000 copies in its first week.
Following the release of his third album, D’Angelo went on a nine month tour in 2015. Fans who were lucky enough to witness him live described his performances as “electrifying” and “redeeming.“
Black Messiah built on the grown and sexy essence of Voodoo and the soul of Brown Sugar. But the album itself was of its own and felt like a fresh sound amongst the common music being released in the 2010s. His layered vocals in the chorus of his opening track “Ain’t That Easy” plays with different musical tones of both soul and rock, leading the rest of the album into raw sounds. He faced the political turmoil happening in America when he created Black Messiah, influencing other artists to do the same. He inspired artists like Kendrick Lamar in the making of his sophomore album To Pimp A Butterfly. The influence flowed heavily in terms of the addition of funk instrumentals and political messages.
Including the face of reality into his music is something D’Angelo has done since his debut. As we look back on the artist that influenced generations, he will be remembered for his poetic interpretations of love and the impact he had on music in general.
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