The term prophet is a word that has now been overused. According to the Oxford Dictionary, a “prophet” is defined as a person who advocates or speaks in a visionary way about a new belief, cause, or theory. The word has huge implications. If someone is labeled a prophet, the individual in question has done something so striking and revolutionary that their peers, left in awe, are forced to acknowledge the immense passion and quality that the “prophet” has emanated.
When faced with the death of an idol, people often respond with exaggerated praise. It is rare that someone who was a true master of their craft and legend in their respected field passes away and is shown a rightful amount of praise and acclaim. It is just as rare for someone to be universally praised and recognized as a genius in their line of work both dead and alive. However, one person has defied both of these in the dawn of their recent passing.
D’Angelo is someone I have looked up to for years now. I first caught a glimpse of his genius when I was in eighth grade, with my first listen of his final album, Black Messiah. I was instantly intrigued by his uniqueness, interesting production style, and of course, his soulful vocals. The Virginia R&B icon is known for his otherworldly vocals, compelling instrumental arrangements, and his profoundly emotional lyrics. Of all of the artists that I actively listen to, D’Angelo may just be the most deserving of the ‘prophet’ title.
Before his death Oct. 14, 2025, D’Angelo was already seen as a transcendent individual in the R&B genre. However, in the week since his tragic passing, he has already been elevated to this mythical figure in not just his genre of choice, but music as a whole. He, along with Ms. Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, The Roots, and many others helped usher in a more mature, reflective era of R&B in the early 2000s as opposed to the idealistic and sappy love songs seen in the genre prior to them.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about D’Angelo is his lack of released music. Across four decades of making music, he would only release three albums: 1995’s Brown Sugar, 2000’s Voodoo, and my personal favorite and the subject of this piece, 2014’s Black Messiah. While D’Angelo would scrap several potential albums between and after these releases, his small yet excellent body of work proves how much he cared about the quality and consistency of his releases.
Reasons for his thirteen year long break included struggles with mental health, addiction, and a desire to get away from the public after he had been turned into a sex symbol due to the release of Voodoo.
Before I begin diving into Black Messiah, I must say that while this album is my favorite, it does not take anything away from his first two albums. Both are stellar, with amazing performances and ideas packing both like sardines. The song Untitled (How Does It Feel) remains my favorite D’Angelo song, but that is far from the only highlight on the two projects. If you are trying to get into D’Angelo’s music or R&B as a whole, his first two albums are equally as essential and arguably easier to approach than Black Messiah.
Black Messiah, while matching the quality of his previous two LPs, is a very different album. While Voodoo is possibly the richest sounding album ever, D’Angelo’s concluding album is a dense, sonically rich, and above all politically charged album that features blends of neo-soul, jazz, and blues to create an incredible atmosphere that only he could scheme.
The album was actually supposed to release in 2015, but D’Angelo decided to release it early in December of 2014 following the murder of an unarmed Michael Brown by a Missouri police officer. D’Angelo had an intense vision for the album, shown by the album title and cover. He would later state that Black Messiah was not about one single person, but the collective need for all people regardless of skin color to create change.
Black Messiah is easily his most political album, but that is not the only thing that positively makes it stand out from other works. I am in love with the off the wall and unorthodox instrumentation found all throughout the album. Whether it is the intricate bass playing on the intro track Ain’t That Easy to the gorgeous psychedelic soul cut Another Life, the album brandishes a clean yet very experimental take on neo-soul.
Not only did D’Angelo transform the sound of his instrumentals, but he switched up his vocal style too. As opposed to his soft and high pitched vocals seen on his earlier works, he almost howls his way through this album. His vocals on Black Messiah are even higher pitched, and he roars his way through several of the tracks. Due to the heavy subjects that D’Angelo covers on this album compared to his last two, his now tumultuous vocals feel like a necessary substitution.
Tracks like Really Love, 1000 Deaths, The Charade, and Betray My Heart show D’Angelo’s expert blend of unique sounding vocals, introspective lyrics, and his ear for amazing instrumentals. There truly is no album that blends these better than Black Messiah. Due to the political and activist nature of the album combined with D’Angelo’s technical expertise, this album, to me, granted him a musical prophet.
Black Messiah is a legendary album, and I am positive it will gain even more of a cult following after its creator’s death. I would not disagree with anyone who says this album is the best album of the decade or even century. I love this album, and it has done lots for me both emotionally and spiritually.
My rating of Black Messiah by D’Angelo: 9.7/10
