D’Angelo Makes A Return With “Sugah Daddy”: Listen

Christina Lee | December 14, 2014 7:15 am

D’Angelo waited five years to follow up his 1995 debut Brown Sugar with the ambitious Voodoo, an album that traced R&B’s roots to music from African voodoo rituals. Eight years passed before he released a new song, “I Found My Smile.” Then in 2012, amid promises of a third album, D’Angelo began performing another new song, a funk epic titled “Sugah Daddy.” When he isn’t recording and performing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon with his band the Roots, poor Questlove has acted as the singer’s unofficial spokesman. For years, time and time again, he promised that D’Angelo’s album was near completion.

On December 12, he released a trailer for an album with his new band, the Vanguard. A day later, the elusive soul artist provided solid proof that yes, Black Messiah is about to arrive — the studio version of “Sugah Daddy.” And it’s all that fans could have hoped for, too. While spending the majority of his musical career in hiding, D’Angelo has shown in songs that he has dedicated years toward studying and metabolizing what seems like every piece of soul music in existence. “Sugah Daddy” is no different, as it feels fresh yet familiar.

D’Angelo will host a Black Messiah listening party later today (December 14) in New York City. For now, or if you’re not in New York, hear “Sugah Daddy” and see the Black Messiah album trailer below.

Get an eyeful of even more pop music coverage, from artist interviews to exclusive performances, on Idolator’s YouTube channel.

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