Top 10 facts about D’Angelo

Top 10 facts about D’Angelo

Michael Eugene Archer was born on February 11, 1974, in Richmon, Virginia. Michael is an American singer, record producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who’s famously known by his fans as D’Angelo which is his stage name. D’Angelo began teaching himself piano at a very young age and by the age of 18, his talent was recognized after winning awards three consecutive nights at the famously known Amateur Night contest at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. He achieved his first major success when he became the co-producer and co-writer of Jason’s Lyric soundtrack single “U Will Know” in 1994, and it was after this that he released his first known debut album “Brown Sugar.” In 1995. He was briefly a member of a hip-hop group called I.D.U and he signed a publishing deal in 1991 with EMI.

Throughout his musical journey, D’Angelo has continued to be known as an artist who restores music to its former glory and this is seen in his albums such as Voodoo (2000). Therefore, this article is going to explore more facts about D’Angelo so that the reader can be able to have more information about the artistic musician.

1. He started playing the piano when he was 3

A picture of D’Angello performing. Photo by Roquai-Wikimedia

D’Angelo was the age of 3 when his brother found him playing a song from Prince’s self-titled album. His brother explained during an interview that it wasn’t the typical banging sounds that any three-year-old could emanate. His brother went ahead and said that he had never seen him playing the piano until that day when he heard him playing a full song. At the age of five, Archer was playing the same instrument alongside his father and by the age of 16 he had expanded his palette as a pianist his talent started to be recognized after winning the amateur talent competition at Harlem’s Apollo Theater three consecutive weeks.

2. He played for the church

D’Angelo was born to Mariann Smith and Luther Archer who was a Pentecostal minister. At the age of 5, Archer started playing the piano alongside his father at the church. He was the main musician for his father’s church but not the musical director. It reached a point Michael’s parents divorced and he moved in with his mother. It was at this time he also began playing the piano for his grandfather Elder Linberg Cox’s Pentecostal church, Refuge Assembly Church until the age of 12. Later he started forming his own groups because growing up, he wasn’t restricted to the church.

3. D’Angelo is an award-winning artist

The Billboard logo by Billboard-Wikimedia

D’Angelo’s first debut album “Brown Sugar” was released on July 3, 1995, and it spent 65 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart. The album earned D’Angelo several awards, including four Grammy Award nominations. He released his second album Voodoo on January 25, 2000, which won the Best R&B Album and it also became number one on the Us Billboard 200. Its lead single “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” made him take home the Grammy Award for Best Male R&B vocal performance. He produced his third album “Black Messiah” in December 2014 and it peaked at number five on the US Billboard 200. Its first single from the album “Really Love” was nominated for Record of the Year, and it won Best R&B Song at the 58^th Annual Grammy Awards in 2016.

4. He was viewed as a sex symbol

When D’Angelo released his single “Untitled (How Does It Feel?)” which was from his second debut studio album, Voodoo, the song became an instant sensation among his fans especially the women who found the shirtless singer irresistible and they completely lost their minds over him. D’Angelo fans shifted the focus of listening to his music and they started sexualizing him until he felt the pressure to give them what they wanted. He started to delay shows to do stomach crunches and peeled off his shirt while performing. The growing status of him being a sexual symbol tortured him and he would explode and throw things, sometimes he would want to cancel shows. He also started struggling with alcoholism and he eventually left the music industry for fourteen years.

5. He was in a rap group called I.D.U in high school

The Hip Hop logo by Angelus-Wikimedia

D’Angelo being influenced by hip-hop music joined the intelligent, Deadly, but Unique hip-hop group where he was an MC and co-produced the group’s beats. In 1992 the I.D.U members were in New York looking for a record deal when they meet record executive Jocelyn Cooper who asked them for the person representing the music they were rapping over after hearing the tracks of the group’s songs. D’Angelo meet with Cooper who later introduced him to another record executive Gary Harris. Garry and cooper were really impressed by D’Angelo’s singing and producing talents and they ended up signing him to a recording contract with EMI Records in 1993. 

6. He dropped out of school

At the age of 18, Michael dropped out of Huguenot Highschool and moved to New York City to pursue his music career that he was destined for. He had already started building his background in music by forming a music band which won at the Amateur night at the Harlem Apollo Theatre in 1991 before he quit school. His dropping out of school did not stop his passion for music because he continued to gain recognition through his successful albums such as “Voodoo” and “Brown Sugar” which won several Grammy awards. He was also signed in records such as the EMI records and up to today he has continued to restore music to its former glory.

7. His song was placed on Jason’s Lyric movie Soundtrack

His first success came in the form of the hit single “U Will Know” which was released in 1994. His brother Luther Archer the Midnight Songs LLC writer, wrote the lyrics to the song while D’Angelo composed and co-produced the song. The song was number 5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. Michael was featured as the group’s choir director in the music video for “U Will Know.” Later on, the song was placed on Jason’s Lyric movie soundtrack.

8. He dated Angie Stone

A picture of Angie Stone by Bengt Nyman-Wikimedia

After Cooper and Garry signed Michael under EMI records, Cooper introduced Michael to other musicians such as Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Raphael Saadiq and Angie Stone whom they later dated during the 1990s and had a son together named Michael D’Angelo Archer II, born in 1997. Angie Stone collaborated with D’Angelo as songwriter and D’Angelo also helped her produce her famous debut album “Black Diamond” which was released in 1999 by Arista Records. The album was named after her daughter, Diamond who was born in 1984 and she’s from her previous Marriage. Michael has two other children: Imani Archer and Morocco Prince Archer.

9. He produced “U will know” for the all-male R&B supergroup Black Men United

Black Men United was a collaboration of many African-American male R&B, neo-soul and soul music artists. D’Angelo co-wrote and co-produced the song “U Will Know” for the all-male R&B super group the Black Men United. The song featured several R&B singers such as R. Kelly, Brian McKnight, Boyz II Men, Usher, Gerald Levert and Raphael Saadiq. The song became number 5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-hop Singles & Tracks and number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100.

10. He was a member of Soulquarians

Soulquarians were a neo-soul and jazz fusion group, a rotating collective of experimental Black music artists, active during the late 1990s and early 2000s. They aimed to bring the organic flavour of classic R&B back to the hip-hop age. D’Angelo’s solo success was linked to his role in the Soulquarians. The group members kept on changing from time to time but the main members included D’Angelo, J Dilla, James Poyser and Questlove. His close connection to these artists led to his genuine music which much of it were released in his second debut album “Voodoo.”