Music and culture icons are publicly grieving the loss of R&B and soul artist Angie Stone.
On Monday (March 4), Stone’s management shared an official statement on her Instagram page, featuring her 2001 song “Brotha” playing in the background.
“It is with heavy hearts that the children of the R&B singer Angie Stone along with her extended family want to thank you all for your love and well wishes during what is an extremely difficult time,” the caption began.
“It is with heavy hearts that the children of the R&B singer Angie Stone along with her extended family want to thank you all for your love and well wishes during what is an extremely difficult time,” the caption began.
The vocalist passed away at age 63 on Saturday morning, March 1, after being involved in a reported car accident. Stone, whose birth name was Angela Laverne Brown, had just finished performing in Montgomery, Alabama, shortly before the crash. According to Page Six, her daughter Diamond Stone, 41, confirmed her mother’s death on Facebook. Diamond is Stone’s child with ex-husband Rodney Stone. The singer also has a son, Michael Archer, 27, with D’Angelo.
Mourning the death of this musical icon included Lenny Kravitz, Freddie Gibbs, Durand Bernarr, Marc Lamont Hill, and others.
Kravitz, who had Stone as a backing vocalist and saxophonist throughout the 1990s, shared a touching tribute via Instagram on Monday. His photo carousel included performances with Stone, who was also pictured backstage with the musician’s ex-wife Lisa Bonet, and their daughter Zoë Kravitz as a baby.
“She had a phrase that I loved, “Lenny, I am overly confident,”” Kravitz wrote in his caption. “She believed it and so did I. She went on to become Angie Stone and changed the face of music as a solo artist, becoming known as the queen of neo soul. She already had an illustrious past but this was now HER time.”
Tyler Perry, Viola Davis, Jennifer Hudson, and others also posted their memories of Stone.
Stone started her music journey as a founding member of hip-hop group The Sequence, who were signed to Sugarhill Records from 1979 until the early 1980s. Before launching her own career with ten albums, she worked as a backing vocalist and songwriter, especially for D’Angelo. Her biggest hits included “Brotha” and “Wish I Didn’t Miss You,” and she also performed the theme song for the popular 2000s sitcom Girlfriends.
