D'Angelo
Date of Birth : Feb 11, 1974
Michael Eugene Archer, better known by his stage name D'Angelo, is an American R&B and neo soul singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. Born in Richmond, Virginia, the son of a Pentecostal minister. He began teaching himself piano as a very young child, and at age 18 he won the amateur talent competition at Harlem's Apollo Theater three weeks in a row. After briefly being a member of a hip-hop group called I.D.U., his first major success came in 1994 as the co-writer and co-producer of "U Will Know".
His debut solo album, Brown Sugar, released in July 1995, received rave reviews and sold over two million copies. Along with artists like Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, Maxwell, and collaborator Angie Stone, D'Angelo became part of the neo-soul movement. Following this D'Angelo went on a hiatus before releasing Voodoo in January 2000 which debuted at number one, its lead single "Untitled," was a smash on the R&B charts and won a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal; likewise, Voodoo won for Best R&B Album.
Following the release of Untitled and its controversial music video, D'Angelo became more conscious of and uncomfortable with his status of being a sex symbol.