D'Angelo's Final Performance Included A Cover Of Sly Stone

The music world is reeling in the sting of the devastating news on Tuesday that the mysterious, crooning soul and R&B legend D’Angelo died at age 51.

The juggernaut soul singer had only released three albums in the span of his 30-year career— 1995’s Brown Sugar, 2000’s Voodoo and 2014’s Black Messiah. But, on the rare occasions he would release a single, songs on a soundtrack or perform live, he was extraordinary.

Though his tours had been very infrequent, he last toured in 2015 in conjunction with his album Black Messiah and played a mixture of festivals. He also performed in 2016 for a few international dates.

Music fans reveled when the singer reemerged from hiding for a Verzuz in February 2021. Unlike the competitive concert, D’Angelo instead performed his own hits alongside guest musicians like H.E.R., Method Man and Redman, instead of a head-to-head battle traditionally seen.

He last took the stage on April 20, 2022, at the Netflix Is A Joke comedy event headlined by Dave Chappelle in LA. Fans had to keep their phones in pouches during the live performance and recording was strictly prohibited. However, some fans were able to capture some of the final live performance moments of the profound legend.

During the clip, a brave fan in the audience managed to capture D’Angelo, backed by an outstanding band of Questlove on drums, Raphael Saadiq, Jesse Johnson and Norris Jones on guitar, performing “Babies Making Music,” a 1973 song by Sly Stone. Though from the video it is hard to tell if it is indeed the soul singer on stage, but those distinctive croons scream none other than D’Angelo.

In May of this year, the musician was expected to perform at the Roots Picnic in Philadelphia, due to an “unforeseen medical delay.” In learning the sudden death of D’Angelo, fans soon learned that he had been fighting a prolonged battle with cancer.

In a statement, D’Angelo’s family said, “The shining star of our family has dimmed his light for us in this life. After a prolonged and courageous battle with cancer, we are heartbroken to announce that Michael D’Angelo Archer, known to his fans around the world as D’Angelo, has been called home.”

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of D’Angelo. He was a peerless visionary who effortlessly blended the classic sounds of soul, funk, gospel, R&B and jazz with a hip-hop sensibility,” RCA Records said in a statement. “D’Angelo’s songwriting, musicianship and unmistakable vocal styling has endured and will continue to inspire generations of artists to come.”

D’Angelo’s Final Performance Included A Cover Of Sly Stone  was originally published on foxync.com