NEED TO KNOW
D’Angelo is being remembered by fellow music titans.
D’Angelo (born Michael Eugene Archer) died at 51 on Tuesday, Oct. 14, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Following the news, musicians honored the “Lady” singer with heartfelt messages about his work and influence on the music industry.
Beyoncé posted a tribute to her website, writing, “Rest in peace, Michael Eugene Archer, known to the world of music as the inimitable D’Angelo. We thank you for your beautiful music, your voice, your proficiency on the piano, your artistry.”
“You were the pioneer of neo-soul and that changed and transformed rhythm & blues forever,” Beyoncé continued. “We will never forget you.”
Her former Destiny’s Child bandmate, Kelly Rowland, posted to X, “This one hurts, DEEP! The way this man, poured himself in the music! The stories I’ve heard of his brilliant process…….im just speechless……”
“He TRULY IS 1 of 1. Simply gutted by this loss!” Rowland added. “May God Bless D’Angelo’s family and loved Ones. We lost a GIANT.🕊️💔.”
“God put you here for a reason and we were all lucky enough to see what God had made,” Jamie Foxx wrote in part in a lengthy Instagram tribute. “That’s why today real tears run down my face … to hear the news that God has taken one of his special creations home… I know God doesn’t make mistakes… But this one hurts like hell… rest up my friend… you will be missed forever… But your music and your impression will be felt for generations to come…. REST IN POWER AND BEAUTIFUL MUSIC….. You are one of one….”
Noam Galai/WireImage
Missy Elliott expressed her condolences for singer’s son, Michael Archer II, whose mother, Angie Stone, died in a car crash seven months before D’Angelo.
“Rest Peacefully D’Angelo🙏🏾🕊️ ,” the “Take Away” singer wrote on X. “No parent want to see their children go but it’s painful for children to see their parents go to so send prayers up for his son who also lost his mom this year for strength 🙏🏾.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea wrote that D’Angelo was one of his “all time favorite” musicians, whose records he visited “again and again.”
“No one did anything funkier over the last 30 years. I never knew him but humbled myself before his music. What a rare and beautiful voice and an inimitable approach to songwriting. What a musician!!!” Flea wrote on Instagram. “He changed the course of popular music.”
“Fly free with the angels D’angelo,” he wrote. “We will listen to you forever and always be moved. I drop to my knees and pray.”
Frank Micelotta/Getty
Doja Cat said he was “A true voice of soul and inspiration to many brilliant artists of our generation and generations to come.”
“This really hurts ! We lost a true original today,” Jennifer Hudson wrote on X. “It just doesn’t seem real!! It can’t be . D’Angelo, your voice will live on forever. Rest well, King !!!!”
Lauryn Hill began her Instagram tribute by saying that she regrets “not having more time” with D’Angelo.
“Your undeniable beauty and talent were not of this world, and a presence not of this world needs protection in a world that covets light and the anointing of God,” she wrote, in part. “You sir, moved us, stirred us, inspired and even intimidated others to action with your genius.”
Hill, who called D’Angelo a “beacon of light to a generation and beyond who had no remembrance of the legacy that preceded us,” later ended her post, “I Love you and I miss you. May God grant peace and shelter to your family, true friends and genuine appreciators, Brother, King.”
Shahar Azran/Getty
Jill Scott shared on X that she learned of the musician’s illness days ago, and she sent him “love” yesterday. “I didn’t know he was leaving us TODAY. Oooooooh my condolences to his family, his musical fam and fans. I am a fan and I mourn. D. Keaton & now D’Angelo. Hurts”
“I never met D’Angelo but I love him, respect him, admire his gift,” Scott wrote in a separate X post. “This loss HURTS!! Love to my family that are family to him. I’m so sorry. R.I.P. GENIUS. 💔 💔.”
R&B singer Monica posted an Instagram Story expressing her condolences to his family. “May God Comfort the hearts of your Family & Friends… Truly a Musical Gift.”
Nile Rodgers recalled meeting D’Angelo when his friend Gary Harris brought the musician to his N.Y.C. apartment, saying he remembers the meeting “as if it were yesterday.”
“He was trying to figure out what to do with the music he’d brought with him. I listened to every cut…not just out of respect but because it was smoking. At the end of the encounter he asked me, ‘What should I do with it?’ ”
“I said, ‘Put it out. It’s perfect!’ Being the #artist he is, I guess he had to explore some ways to make it better,” Rodgers wrote in his Instagram caption, adding that he heard one of the songs on the radio a year later. “It was #genius and it was exactly what he had played for me. I know…I still have the original cassette.”
Tim Mosenfelder/Getty
Michael Bearden, who was the music director for D’Angelo’s debut album, said that he was “gutted” by the news.
In his Instagram post, Bearden highlighted how he immediately had “a feeling” that D’Angelo was “an absolute industry disrupter” and going “will change the game.”
“D’s talent was so pure and natural he moved energy in a way that only geniuses could. I’d been blessed to work with a few, so I saw the same thing in D immediately,” Bearden wrote.
“D’Angelo was one of one,” he added. “He created an entire genre of music just by being himself.”
