One For The Road

D’Angelo Introduces a “Sugah Daddy”

For a decade and a half, rumors and anticipation built about a long-awaited new record from D'Angelo. Last Sunday, with little advance announcement, it finally appeared online at midnight. The neo-soul crooner — along with his band of collaborators, The Vanguard, which includes pop-luminaries in their own rights Q-Tip, Questlove, and P-Funk alumnae Kendra Foster — return to the scene triumphantly with "Black Messiah," and have sent critics instantly scrambling to shake up their end-of-the-year lists. While the work is undeniably sultry, it is also complicated, layered, and at times overtly political — as befits the legacy of classic soul — and yet with a firmly modern sound.

Christopher Polk / Getty
Christopher Polk / Getty