Across three unforgettable studio albums, D’Angelo found the perfect words to sing with unmatched smoothness and soul. Now, the artists who were influenced, inspired, and shaped by his music are searching for their own words to honor and remember the visionary musician, who passed away on Oct. 14 at the age of 51.

Beyoncé paid tribute to D’Angelo on her website, writing, “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. We will never forget you.”

“My friend Gary Harris brought this musician named D’Angelo over to my NYC apt,” Nile Rodgers shared on Instagram, recalling their early connection. Rodgers and D’Angelo later collaborated on a 2002 cover of Fela Kuti’s “Water Get No Enemy.” “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 remember this as if it were yesterday. 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 remembered hearing one of those songs on the radio a year later. “It was genius and it was exactly what he had played for me,” he said. “I know…I still have the original cassette.”

Red Hot Chili Peppers’ bassist Flea remembered D’Angelo for his “inimitable approach” to songwriting and his voice. “One of my all-time favorites whose records I went to again and again. No one did anything funkier over the last 30 years. I never knew him but humbled myself before his music,” he wrote on Instagram. “What a rare and beautiful voice and an inimitable approach to songwriting. What a musician!!! He changed the course of popular music. Fly free with the angels D’angelo, we will listen to you forever and always be moved. I drop to my knees and pray.”

“Rest Peacefully D’Angelo,” Missy Elliott wrote on X. “No parent want to see their children go but it’s painful for children to see their parents go so send prayers up for his son who also lost his mom this year for strength.” D’Angelo is survived by his son, Michael Archer, whom he welcomed with neo-soul singer Angie Stone in 1998. Stone passed away in March 2025.

The Roots’ Black Thought, who was closely linked to D’Angelo through the Soulquarians collective, shared on Instagram, “We came up together—young, gifted, Black, and full of fire. Today I lost a brother, a kindred spirit, a genius whose light changed music and changed me. Rest in power, D. This world will never sound the same.”

On X, rapper Aminé reflected on his first encounter with D’Angelo’s music as a teen. “I was 15 when my older cousin took me on a road trip to the Bay and played me all of Brown Sugar and Voodoo for the very first time,” he wrote. “My life changed that day and I was obsessed. Rest in paradise D’angelo. U really meant so much to me and my family.”

Tyler, the Creator was flooded with memories, including one from his ninth birthday, which he recalled on Instagram. “March 6, 2000, I landed at Sam Goody at the South Bay Galleria. I had $20 in birthday money and my eyes set on leaving with one thing. VOODOO by D’Angelo,” he wrote. “Citas World had ‘Left & Right’ on loop; Brown Sugar became a staple at home and ‘Nothing Even Matters’ by Ms. Hill was on repeat, so I had no doubt that Voodoo would deliver. I had no idea that would help shape my musical DNA.”

He listed his favorite tracks, describing how he wrote raps to “Booty,” mirrored D’Angelo on “Send It On,” and lost himself in “One Mo’Gin.” “ONE MO’GIN still puts me in the same trance as it did when I first heard it. That dragging sway of tempo that sounds like a porch sitting rocking chair. That grumpy but loose bassline,” he shared, explaining that it inspired “Ring Ring Ring” from his latest album. “I couldn’t understand how someone could write something so simple but personal but broad but genius. That’s how special he was. A savant. A true alien. We are so lucky to have been alive to enjoy his art. My musical DNA was helped shaped by this man. Forever grateful. Safe travels.”

Brown Sugar debuted in 1995 and immediately established D’Angelo as a major musical force. Before his solo success, he was already a member of the Soulquarians — a loose collective that included Questlove, Erykah Badu, J Dilla, Q-Tip, and others — and had written for other artists, including Black Men United’s “U Will Know” from the 1994 film Jason’s Lyric.

“Rest in peace D’angelo,” Doja Cat wrote on X. “My thoughts, love and prayers go out to his family and friends. A true voice of soul and inspiration to many brilliant artists of our generation and generations to come.”

D’Angelo’s impact extended far beyond any single genre, though his influence on R&B and neo-soul was especially profound. “Totally speechless,” R&B artist Kehlani wrote in an Instagram Story with a photo of D’Angelo. “Thank you for all you gave us. I don’t even know what to say.”

Many other artists expressed similar grief. Destin Conrad and Flavor Flav posted photos with short, emotional captions, including “Nah I’m so fucking sad” and “R.I.P. ICON.” 6LACK praised D’Angelo’s work, writing, “Brown Sugar, Voodoo, and Black Messiah forever & ever.” Maxwell, another key figure in neo-soul, shared on Instagram, “Because u were, we are all because.”

Voodoo arrived in 2000, five years after Brown Sugar and 14 years before Black Messiah. The record expanded musical boundaries, blending the sounds of Prince, Lauryn Hill, Marvin Gaye, Erykah Badu, Pink Floyd, and Stevie Wonder — all filtered through D’Angelo’s own soul and vision.

Producers Alchemist, Kenny Beats, and DJ Premier also shared tributes on social media. “Such a sad loss to the passing of D’angelo,” Premier wrote on X. “We have so many great times. Gonna miss you so much. Sleep Peacefully D’. Love You KING.”

Jill Scott reacted to his death on X shortly after posting a message that began with “I love you D’Angelo.” “I told you a long time ago – You ain’t gon understand everything & everything ain’t meant 4 U, nor I, to understand,” she wrote. “I never met D’Angelo but I love him, respect him, admire his gift. This loss HURTS!! Love to my family that are family to him. I’m so sorry. R.I.P. GENIUS.”

“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!!!”

“There was no one like him,” said James Poyser in a statement to Rolling Stone. Poyser, who contributed to Voodoo in 2000 and was part of the Soulquarians, shared, “I mean there’s a lot of people inspired and influenced by him, but he was the original, one of one. I’m blessed that I was on this planet at the same time as him…blessed to call him a friend, no: a brother…blessed to have created with him, jammed in the studio and on stage with him…blessed to have learned so much from him and be inspired by him also.”

Lauryn Hill, who met D’Angelo while recording “Nothing Even Matters” for The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, wrote a letter to the musician. “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. “You sir, moved us, stirred us, inspired and even intimidated others to action with your genius.”

Justin Timberlake reflected on how D’Angelo’s work shaped his own musical journey and helped him find his voice. “I’ll never forget hearing Brown Sugar for the first time. It changed me. You changed me,” Timberlake shared on social media, calling the album the “most pivotal moment in establishing confidence in my own voice.”

Amaarae opened up about her long-standing connection to D’Angelo’s music. “For the last 2 decades of my life I listen to a song from Voodoo everyday,” she wrote on X. She shared that as a child, she used to sneak her uncle’s Voodoo CD, not understanding the lyrics but knowing she loved the sound.

“Then I turned 19 and some of the lyrics about love & pain started to make sense & every year since then the more I go through life, the more the lessons behind the poems on Voodoo reveal themselves,” she continued. “RIP to one of the greatest to ever do it! D’Angelo!!!!!! Your music changed my life and help me get through it all at the same time! A lot of what I loved about music and wanted to emulate started with you!!!! Your absence will be felt but the legacy you left behind will continue to reign SUPREME!”