D'Angelo

Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo, is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer.

He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" for R&B supergroup Black Men United.

After the formation of his native-Richmond, Virginia musical group, Michael Archer and Precise found success performing in the Amateur Night competition at Harlem, New York's Apollo Theater in 1991.

The 18-year-old dropped out of school and moved to New York City as an attempt to develop his music career.

The group previously enjoyed some notice in Richmond, evenly dividing their repertoire between soul covers and originals while D'Angelo accumulated compositions of his own and developed his songwriting skills.

The group's turnout on Amateur Night resulted in three consecutive wins and cash prize, and upon returning home to Richmond, D'Angelo was inspired to produce an album and began composing material.

This took place after a brief tenure as a member of the hip hop group I.D.U. (Intelligent, Deadly but Unique).

At the age of 17, D'Angelo met Afropunk Festival partner Jocelyn Cooper, who signed him to Midnight Songs LLC, her joint venture publishing company administered by Universal Music Publishing Group after hearing a demo of the hip hop group I.D.U. (Intelligent, Deadly but Unique), which D'Angelo produced and rapped in.

After signing, Cooper introduced D'Angelo to musicians Raphael Saadiq, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Angie Stone to collaborate as songwriters.

Cooper then introduced D'Angelo to Fred Davis, Head of A&R and Gary Harris at EMI Music.

After an impressive audition D'Angelo was signed to a recording contract in 1993.

Cooper also introduced D'Angelo to attorney Kedar Massenburg who helped negotiate his contract.

Massenburg later became D'Angelo's manager.

In 1994, his first significant success came in the form of the hit single "U Will Know".

D'Angelo co-wrote and co-produced the song for the all-male R&B supergroup Black Men United, which featured R&B singers such as Brian McKnight, Usher, R. Kelly, Boyz II Men, Raphael Saadiq, and Gerald Levert.

D'Angelo composed the music for "U Will Know", while his brother, Luther Archer, Midnight Songs LLC writer, wrote the lyrics.

Originally featured on the soundtrack to the film Jason's Lyric (1994), the single peaked at number 5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The music video for "U Will Know" featured D'Angelo as the group's choir director; he reprised the role for the live performance of the song at the Soul Train Music Awards.

That same year, he wrote and produced the song "Overjoyed" for the Boys Choir of Harlem, which appeared on their studio album The Sound of Hope (1994).

The success of "U Will Know" helped build the buzz surrounding D'Angelo, which was followed by a number of highly promoted showcases, and added to the buzz among music industry insiders.

His debut studio album, Brown Sugar (1995), was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and received widespread acclaim from music critics, who have credited the album for ushering in the neo soul movement.

Its third single "Lady", reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100.

He would then collaborate with artists such as Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and then girlfriend Angie Stone.

Brown Sugar was released in July 1995.

Although sales were sluggish at first, the album was eventually a hit.

The album debuted at number six on the US Billboard Top R&B Albums chart in the week of July 22, 1995.

It ultimately peaked at number four in the week of February 24, 1996, and spent a total of 54 weeks on the chart.

Brown Sugar also spent 65 weeks on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 22 on the chart.

His next album, Voodoo (2000), debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 and continued to receive critical acclaim.

The album's lead single "Untitled (How Does It Feel)", earned him the Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance; likewise, Voodoo won Best R&B Album.

Following this period, D'Angelo became increasingly uncomfortable with his growing status as a sex symbol.

This was followed by numerous personal struggles, including alcoholism, which resulted in limited musical output for several years.

D'Angelo released his third studio album, Black Messiah, in 2014.

The album was met with critical acclaim and peaked at number five on the US Billboard 200.

The same year, D'Angelo was hailed as the next Marvin Gaye by GQ.

D'Angelo also contributed to the soundtrack for the 2018 video game Red Dead Redemption 2, performing the song "Unshaken".

D'Angelo was born Michael Eugene Archer in South Richmond, Virginia.

His father was a Pentecostal preacher and D'Angelo was raised in an entirely Pentecostal family.

Archer's musical talents were discovered very early as a child.

He was 3 when he was spotted by his 10-year-old brother Luther, playing the house piano.