We lost a giant in the music world yesterday, y’all. And I don’t even know if I have the words to express how saddened I, along with many others, are over the loss of D’Angelo.
Every now and then you encounter musicians that are so enmeshed in the music, their aura becomes the art. D’Angelo was one of them ones.
He felt like soul. Felt like sneaking in your aunt’s bedroom to watch that new “Cruisin” video and being serenaded by the saccharine smooth voice belting from the TV screen. Felt like listening to Voodoo for the first time with your cousin, completely transfixed by the melodies hours after the CD stops whirring in your Play Station. Felt like having a mini concert in another cousin’s living room each time the “Send It On” video played on cable TV.
Experiencing D’Angelo’s music through many pivotal moments in my life feels like a sensual dance some days. Plays out like a spiritual encounter on other days. That’s why every time I hear “One Mo’ Gin,” I mourn a heartbreak from 20+ years ago, but when I hear “I Found My Smile Again,” I’m embraced by a ten-year friendship that comforts me like a wool blanket on crisp winter nights. I will pour libations, set a mood, and get cozy in my beloved plant space playing Black Messiah with no interruptions, lingering in booming instrumentation and larger-than-life sociopolitical rhetoric. I feel the heaviness of the times and consider solutions within my grasp. And still, after all these years, I still choose D’Angelo’s “Cruisin” over the original. Nothing has ever held me quite like that rendition.
D'Angelo’s music is truly a gift, wrapped in the most intricate bow and ribbons, that lovers of soul music drink deeply from. I never had the opportunity to see him perform live, but I'm grateful to experience his art in this lifetime. As I shared with another neo-soul artist today, soul music like D’Angelo’s transcends space and time. It touches people he may never meet but will feel his essence all the same. I’m glad to have memories of discovering his music, how it feels to indulge in his music now, and to know the genius that was D’Angelo. I send prayers to his family, friends, and all who have been touched by his life in some way. May he rest in peace 🕊👑
I’ll be spinning his music until further notice.
