Atlanta-based singer Angie Stone died in a car accident early Saturday. She was 63.
Her publicist, Yvonne Forbes, confirmed the news to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The legendary singer, songwriter was in a van, which included her crew and backup singers, after a concert when the vehicle crashed on Interstate 65. Forbes said Stone was on her way to a show in Baltimore Saturday night, where she was scheduled to perform at the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament.
“She will be missed,” Forbes said. “I know she was looking forward to all the things we had planned this year.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Stone, whose real name is Angela Laverne Brown, was born in Columbia, S.C. The Grammy-nominated artist started her career in the 1970s as one-third of the groundbreaking crew The Sequence, the first female rap group to release a record. They were also the first female rap group to sign with a major label (Sugarhill Records). “Funk You Up,” which dropped in 1979, was one of the trio’s biggest hits.
She later found success as a soloist in the early aughts, becoming a notable vocalist in the neo-soul scene. She dropped her debut album “Black Diamond” in 1999.
In 2001, she dropped her sophomore album “Mahogany Soul,” which garnered her first Grammy nomination. She’s collaborated with artists like D’Angelo, Lenny Kravitz, Prince and Alicia Keys. She also sang the theme song for the popular UPN show “Girlfriends.”
Alongside Beyoncé and Cuba Gooding, Jr., Stone had a starring role in the 2003 comedy “The Fighting Temptations.” In an interview with music industry executive Shawn Prez last year that is available on YouTube, she said though she was known for her music, “my first love is acting.”
The longtime Atlanta resident starred in “R&B Divas: Atlanta” for Seasons 2 and 3. She was offered to join the show, which debuted on TV One in 2012, for the first season, but she declined.
“I wanted to smooth things out by telling my story, which spans three decades,” she told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at the time about joining the show. “I set a standard in my career, in my life. I will always think, act and be a first-class woman. I will never degrade myself with all the cursing and screaming and hollering. I have a brand. People look up to Angie Stone. I’m in control of how and what levels I will go to.”
Nicci Gilbert, an R&B singer who was part of “R&B Divas” with Stone season two, told the AJC that she was “one of the most genuine loving women I know. Every time I needed her friendship and sisterhood, she showed up. There was never a time she did not. We shared so many beautiful moments together as women and friends since the day I met her 30 years ago... I am heartbroken and still processing the shock of this devastating loss.”
In her interview with Shawn Prez last year, Stone said she worked hard to get to where she was: “I made it through motherhood. I made it through life. Now it’s time for me to have fun. I don’t care what people think or say about me... I have paid my dues.”
Stone is survived by her daughter Diamond Stone and son Michael Archer, Jr., whom she shared with fellow R&B star D’Angelo.
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