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D’Angelo didn’t consider himself a sex symbol despite his iconic album cover.
A source tells PEOPLE that the soul legend, who died on Oct. 14 at 51 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, was “never” comfortable with being considered a “sex symbol.”
Fans felt otherwise with his 2000 album cover for Voodoo, but the “chiseled machismo man that people fell in love with, that wasn’t his natural aesthetic. He was naturally a bigger guy,” the source says.
“He never was comfortable being a sex symbol, but also he didn’t like people seeing him on his heavier side, so he was always really conflicted. He was a heavy smoker and a drinker.”
Virgin Records
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The singer, whose real name is Michael Eugene Archer, posed shirtless on the cover for his sophomore album, Voodoo, baring his abs in the black-and-white photo. Fans considered him a sex symbol, especially after the release of the music video for “Untitled (How Does It Feel).”
“It’s pure sexuality. D’Angelo, muscularly cut and glistening, is shot from the hips up, naked, with just enough shown to prompt a slow burning desire in most any woman who sees it,” Billboard wrote when it was released in January 2000. “The video alone could make the song one of the biggest of the coming year.”
Voodoo won Best R&B Album at the 2001 Grammy Awards. That year, D’Angelo also won Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for the song “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” from Voodoo while also receiving a nod for Best R&B Song.
The 2000 album peaked at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Top R&B Albums chart along with the U.S. Billboard 200 chart.
PEOPLE confirmed D’Angelo’s death on Tuesday, Oct. 14. “He was in hospice for two weeks but had been in the hospital for months,” the source told PEOPLE about the late neo-soul legend.
“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, departing this life today, October 14th, 2025,” his family told Variety in a statement.
“We are saddened that he can only leave dear memories with his family, but we are eternally grateful for the legacy of extraordinarily moving music he leaves behind.”
“We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time but invite you all join us in mourning his passing while also celebrating the gift of song that he has left for the world.”
Kyle Gustafson / For The Washington Post via Getty
Along with “Untitled (How Does It Feel),” D’angelo was known for “Brown Sugar,” “Lady” and “Devil’s Pie.”
Throughout his career, the musician won four Grammy Awards out of 14 nominations. D’Angelo’s collaborators include Questlove, Common, Q-Tip, J Dilla, Lauryn Hill, Raphael Saadiq and Angie Stone.
