D'Angelo

D'Angelo是上世紀90年代中期至90年代末期新靈魂樂革新運動的主要歌手之一。這場革新運動的宗旨，是要把R＆B的經(jīng)典特色重新回歸到嘻哈音樂時代。D'Angelo常常以馬文·蓋伊(Marvin Gaye)、史蒂夫·旺達(Stevie Wonder)、王子等音樂人為楷模，他對流行音樂的影響不光表現(xiàn)在歌唱風(fēng)格上，他自己也寫歌，而且經(jīng)常自己參與制作，幫助復(fù)興R＆B的本來概念。
D'Angelo原名邁克爾·德安吉洛·阿徹，1974年2月11日出生于弗吉尼亞州的里士滿，父親是五旬節(jié)教會的牧師。還是個小孩子的時候，D'Angelo就開始自學(xué)彈奏鋼琴；18歲那年，他參加了在紐約市哈萊姆區(qū)阿波羅劇院(Apollo Theater)舉行的業(yè)余歌手大獎賽，經(jīng)過為期三周的激烈角逐，最終奪得大賽冠軍。后來，D'Angelo加入Hip-Hop樂隊I.D.U.，沒過多長時間，他退出該樂隊，并于1991年簽約百代唱片公司。1994 年，D'Angelo為影片《杰森戀曲》(Jason's Lyric)作詞并制作了主題曲《你會知道》(U Will Know)，取得音樂事業(yè)上的第一次重大成功。1995年，D'Angelo乘勝追擊，發(fā)行了首張個人專輯《Brown Sugar》。借助于該專輯的主打單曲《女士》(Lady)，《Brown Sugar》慢慢為R＆B樂迷所接受，成為當代都市hip-hop音樂中的一位靈魂人物。后來，他和艾莉卡·芭朵(Erykah Badu)、勞倫·希爾(Lauryn Hill)和Maxwell等藝人一道，加入傾向于懷舊的新靈魂樂革新運動中來?！禕rown Sugar》后來受到了評論界無盡的贊譽，銷售量超過200萬張。在接下來的兩年里，D'Angelo四處巡演，不遺余力地為這張專輯做宣傳推廣。接下來的一段時間，D'Angelo在樂壇上沉寂了一陣，沒有什么新作問世。暫時放松的那段時間，他和百代唱片公司鬧得非常不愉快，但最后還是百代公司作出了讓步。但他并沒有完全停下音樂追求的腳步，時不時配唱一些電影歌曲。他還和勞倫·希爾合作，共同演唱《實在沒什么大不了的》(Nothing Really Matters)。這時候，歌迷們?nèi)云诖掳布迥軌蛟俳釉賲枺瞥龅诙垖］嫛?br />2000年初，在不安與焦躁的等待中，D'Angelo的樂迷們終于盼來了他第二張專輯《Voodoo》的問世。一經(jīng)發(fā)行，這張姍姍來遲的專輯就榮登排行榜冠軍寶座，可見他的歌迷基礎(chǔ)有多深厚。專輯的主打單曲《Untitled (How Does It Feel)》有些王子音樂的風(fēng)格，在R＆B金曲排行榜上所向披靡，最終為D'Angelo贏得第43屆格萊美獎最佳R＆B男歌手獎；《Voodoo》同時獲得最佳R＆B專輯獎。雖然也有個別音樂評論人士不喜歡它過于松散、令人有些壓抑的感覺，但《Voodoo》得到更多的評價仍然是正面的、積極的。
 
DAngelo was one of the founding fathers and leading lights of the neo-soul movement of the mid- to late 90s, which aimed to bring the organic flavor of classic R&B back to the hip-hop age. Modeling himself on the likes of Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Curtis Mayfield, and Al Green, DAngelos influences didnt just come across in his vocal style — like most of those artists, he wrote his own material (and frequently produced it as well), helping to revive the concept of the R&B auteur. His debut album, Brown Sugar, gradually earned him an audience so devoted that the follow-up, Voodoo, debuted at number one despite a five-year wait in between.
 
Michael DAngelo Archer was born February 11, 1974, in Richmond, VA, 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 Harlems Apollo Theater three weeks in a row. He was briefly a member of a hip-hop group called I.D.U. and signed a publishing deal with EMI in 1991. His first major success came in 1994 as a writer/producer, helming the single U Will Know on the Jasons Lyric soundtrack; it featured a one-time, all-star R&B aggregate dubbed Black Men United. That helped lead to his debut solo album, 1995s Brown Sugar. Helped by the title track and Lady, Brown Sugar slowly caught on with R&B fans looking for an alternative to the hip-hop soul dominating the urban contemporary landscape; along with artists like Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and Maxwell, DAngelo became part of a retro-leaning, neo-soul revivalist movement. Brown Sugar received enormously complimentary reviews and sold over two million copies, and DAngelo supported it with extensive touring over the next two years.
 
And then — not much of anything happened. DAngelo took some time off to rest and split acrimoniously with his management; meanwhile, EMI went under, leaving his 1998 stopgap release Live at the Jazz Cafe out of print. On occasion, DAngelo contributed a cover tune to a movie soundtrack, including Eddie Kendricks Girl You Need a Change of Mind (Get on the Bus), the Ohio Players Heaven Must Be Like This (Down in the Delta), and Princes Shes Always in My Hair (Scream 2). He also duetted with Lauryn Hill on Nothing Really Matters, a cut from her Grammy-winning blockbuster The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Still, fans awaiting a proper follow-up to Brown Sugar remained frustrated — at first by no news at all, and then by frequent delays in the recording process and the scheduled release date. Finally, the special-guest-laden Voodoo was released in early 2000 and debuted at number one, an indication of just how large — and devoted — DAngelos fan base was. The extremely Prince-like lead single, Untitled (How Does It Feel), 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. Reviews of Voodoo were once again highly positive, although a few critics objected to the looser, more atmospheric, more jam-oriented feel of the record, preferring the tighter songcraft of Brown Sugar.