And now, her daughter, Diamond, as well as Angie’s representative, Deborah R. Champagne, have confirmed this gut-wrenching news.

In a social media post, Diamond expressed her immense grief with the statement, “My mommy is gone,” followed by many crying face emojis.

In a statement to TMZ, Deborah confirmed the heartbreaking news, stating that friends and family are devastated by her sudden passing. ​

Born Angela Laverne Brown on December 18, 1961, in Columbia, South Carolina, Angie Stone’s illustrious career spanned over four decades. She first gained prominence in the late 1970s as a member of The Sequence, one of the pioneering all-female hip-hop trios. The group was best known for their hit single “Funk You Up,” which has been sampled by numerous artists over the years. ​

Transitioning to a solo career in the late 1990s, Stone released her debut album “Black Diamond” in 1999, which achieved Gold certification. Her 2001 album, “Mahogany Soul,” featured the standout track “Wish I Didn’t Miss You,” solidifying her status in the neo-soul movement alongside artists like Erykah Badu and Maxwell. ​

Stone’s personal life was as dynamic as her professional one. She had two children: a daughter, Diamond, from her marriage to Rodney Stone of the hip-hop group Funky Four Plus One, and a son, Michael D’Angelo Archer II, born in 1998 during her relationship with R&B singer D’Angelo.
​

In a poignant twist of fate, Stone’s passing occurred just a day after her son Michael, known in the music industry as Swayvo Twain, celebrated his birthday. On February 28, 2025, Swayvo shared several celebratory videos and photos from his night of b-day celebration, not knowing that just a few hours later his beloved mother’s life would sadly come to an end. He was extremely close to his mom, oftentimes posting photos of them together online.

And as we’d previously reported, Angie was beyond proud to witness Swayvo Twain following in his parents’ musical footsteps, as well as how he’d been carving out his own path in the industry.

Stone’s influence extended beyond music; she ventured into acting with roles in films like “The Hot Chick” and “The Fighting Temptations.” Her contributions to the entertainment industry have left an indelible mark, inspiring
countless artists and fans alike.

As the news of her passing spread, tributes poured in from fans, fellow musicians, and industry colleagues, all honoring her legacy and the profound impact she had on the world of music. Her soulful voice and heartfelt lyrics resonated with audiences worldwide, making her a beloved figure in R&B and soul music.​

Angie Stone’s sudden departure is a significant loss to the music community. Her legacy, however, will continue to live on through her timeless music and the artists she inspired. As we reflect on her life and career, we remember a woman whose talent and passion touched the hearts of many. May our beloved Angie Stone rest in eternal peace. 👑🙏🏽

The post R.I.P. Angie Stone Dies Suddenly, Day After Her (& D’Angelo’s) Son’s B-day, Daughter Confirms appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

The post D’Angelo’s & Angie Stone’s Son Tells Why He Hates Being A “Celebrity Kid” & Is Following Their Paths appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

For those of us who may not be up on the relationship history of D’Angelo and Angie Stone, let us first catch you up to speed: They dated for four years, while Angie was at the height of her career and D’Angelo was just starting to make us bob our heads to “Brown Sugar” in the mid-’90s. Angie is 13 years older than her “How Does It Feel” ex…but for them, age wasn’t nothin’ but a number. D’Angelo was legal and that’s all that matters.

They were seriously in love, but due to ignorant music industry politics, most of the public was not aware that Angie and D’Angelo were an item, let alone were a madly in love couple who had just had a baby boy together in 1998.

Why is that you ask? Well because whomever was calling the shots at D’Angelo’s label, or in his camp at that time, wouldn’t allow him to have his woman on his arm in public, for fear that it would ruin his sex symbol image. And we also can’t overlook the elephant in the room — that our girl, Angie, is a very beautiful woman, but she didn’t fit the ‘trophy girlfriend’ stereotype that these stereotypical industry execs expect to see on their star singer’s arm, and that’s really foul.

Meet Michael Archer Jr., Son Of D’Angelo & Angie Stone

******

Okay, now that we’ve given that quick history on D’Angelo and Angie, y’all have GOTS to check out their son now. He’s named after his father and his name is Michael Archer Jr. He is now a 24-year-old rap artist, who goes by the stage name, Swayvo Twain.

Watch Son Spit Bars With Angie Stone

It also looks like Jr. is taller than both of his parents now. Watch the video clip below to check out Angie Stone rapping a few bars with her son and her former Sequence group member…this is CLASSIC…

Angie Stone Gives More Details About Relationship With D’Angelo

As far as Angie’s and D’Angelo’s relationship, Angie said that D’Angelo’s self esteem wasn’t very high when they were together, but she says she helped him with that. See what other details Angie revealed about their relationship…

This is what Angie revealed, to Essence Magazine, about why she and D’Angelo’s relationship didn’t withstand the ups and downs:

“When I was dating him [D’Angelo], he wore glasses, had short hair, and his pants were hanging down to his butt. He was just a 19-year-old kid with big shorts and nobody cared and no one saw his beauty but me. And I told him, you are beautiful. I promise you when your record drops your lips are gonna become famous, your eyes – everything will become famous. She then went on to say: He couldn’t see it because his self-esteem wasn’t where it is today. He didn’t even have an image and his hair was really short so I braided his hair with thread for his first album cover. It wasn’t until Brown Sugar came out that people actually took a good look at him and said, ‘You know what? He’s fine.’ Then all of a sudden, he’s so fine he shouldn’t be with me.”

Angie also said that they were so in sync with each other that they began to act alike:

“When you’re with someone you become them, we started to become each other and pick up each other’s musical habits. So where he was in his life as an individual had a lot to do with how he expressed those songs. Angie had nothing bad to say about D’™Angelo, in closing she says, To set the record straight, D’Angelo is a genius and he doesn’t need Angie or anybody to make him who he is. What people need to know is that we were in love with each other so my presence, my spirit, my gift, all of that flowed into our relationship.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Angie Stone (@angiebstone)

The post Son Of Angie Stone And D’Angelo Is A Grown Man Now, Following In Their Musical Footsteps appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

A lot of Idris Elba’s female fans will either be hating, or congratulating Angie Stone after this one. As most of you already know, Angie Stone was once in a long term relationship with the father of her child, singer D’Angelo. Well, it turns out that there was another sex symbol celeb’ who was after Angie. In recent years, Angie dropped what most would consider to be a bombshell.

“I Wasn’t Really Checkin’ For Idris Like That”

In an interview with Madame Noire, the “Black Brother” songstress revealed that Idris –whom many women are crushin’ on– was actually crushin’ on her big time back in the day. Here is what Angie said about what she felt, or rather, didn’t feel about Idris:

When Idris and I wrote that song [“I Wanna Thank You”], Idris was actually crushing on me and uh…the sad part of it is I wasn’t really checkin’ for Idris like that. He was like…you know, we’re very good friends, we had the same accountant, same manager and for a very long time, he made it very public that he was in love with Angie Stone. I had already been with D’Angelo and I don’t know whether it was these good looking guys just diggin’ Angie Stone, but we became very close, but not in that way.

Idris Was Attracted To Her, Says Angie

Embed from Getty Images

On when she found out Idris was attracted to her:

So Idris actually did a treatment for a video for me and there was a song called “I Can’t Take It” that I did on one of my albums and…[he] was going to shoot the video – very beautiful, sensual treatment. And it was after that, that I found out how he was going on with about 20 of his homeboys about how “She doesn’t wanna, ya know…kick it with me.” And he’s a virgo and I’ve never been with a virgo, but the beauty of it is we’re very good friends and he did “I Wanna Thank You.”

Angie said that while they were shooting her “I Wanna Thank You” video, she almost caved in to Idris’ flirtations:

Uh, there is one weak moment that I have because I have a thing for beautiful teeth and uh…he came to the door and I opened the door and he was twirling this toothpick around in his teeth…and I fell on the side of the door like ‘Okay, what’s happening to me?!! LOL.’ And at that point I think I was diggin’ Idris, but I had already gone out there on a lem like ‘I would NEVER date Idris because he’s like my brother!’…so I had to stick to my guns. Do I regret it? Absolutely, LOL…cause he is FINE, but I don’t wanna seem like a chickenhead that’s hustlin,’ because it’s not that serious, but the one thing about it is I have the luxury of knowing is that he was diggin’ me.

Angie: ‘Men Don’t Always Want Beyoncé Look-A-Likes’

Angie explains why she thinks men, like Idris, are attracted to her instead the “Beyonce types”:

I would say that you know…most real guys are looking for someone that’s a good friend first. I think I’m everybody’s big sister and after they’re around me long enough, that sagittarius thing takes over and they get to know the inside of the person and they start to look at “She’s a beautiful sister” and I think that most of them are in love with the idea of…”She’s good people.” So I think that most of the handsome guys that should be running after the ‘Beyonce’s’ of the world, a lot of them just don’t wanna…you know…those are side chicks for guys, when you’re absolutely drop dead gorgeous.

I had Spoony G tell me one time ‘I don’t want no girl that’s too fine, because my head would be hurting all the time, I’d be stressed out, because these are the chicks that you know that everybody’s after. So you would get no peace.’ Now you get a normal, sexy chick like me that’s smart…that’s just average in the appearance, but above average in every other level. So I just feel like….not tootin’ my own horn, because there are more of me out there (meaning more people that look like me than not)…I think that these guys fall in love with a friend and it’s very easy to wanna kiss.

Why She’s Glad She Rejected Idris

Angie Stone said she thinks Id’ is a handsome cat, but she’s grateful that she didn’t take him up on his offer, here’s why:

“I should have [kissed Idris], but I didn’t and I’m glad I didn’t because I’ve had my stint with one sex symbol of the world [D’Angelo] and it was not the greatest of situations.

Having been with mister [D’Angelo] and then having that fall apart…having to rebuild from the ground up because people seem to live in the shadow of that. I didn’t wanna know the headache like that- Idris is fine, Idris is a great actor, he’s rich and he’s famous, and for me that was a bit much.

Idris also said in another interview, that he likes “regular” women, not the Hollywood, glamm’d up type. So Angie obviously was correct with her characterization of some of the dudes in the entertainment industry. Angie is a beautiful woman and it would have been refreshing to see her and Idris as the ‘it’ couple back then (of course in his pre-married days, mind you), but everything worked out the way it as meant to be.

By the way, Idris has never publicly denied Angie’s account of what happened, so she’s probably telling the whole truth and nothing but.

The post Angie Stone Recalled How Idris Elba Reportedly Wanted To Get With Her & How She Reacted appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Singer, Angie Stone, 59, wants to make one thing very clear: when it comes to attracting younger ‘sex-symbol’ kinda brothas, she has no problems. As you already know, Angie Stone was once in a long-term relationship with the father of her child, singer D’Angelo, 47. There was another sex-symbol celeb’ whom Angie says was after her back in the day – Idris Elba, 48. Since then, she’s had a very public relationship with her younger now-ex fiance’, Ashanti [age unknown]. In a prior interview, Angie revealed why she thinks those type of fellas attract to her.

Angie: ‘Men Don’t Always Want Beyoncé Look-A-Likes’

In an interview with Madame Noire, the “Black Brother” songstress explained why she thinks men, like Idris and D’Angelo, are attracted to her instead of the “Beyonce types”:

Angie Stone- I would say that you know…most real guys are looking for someone that’s a good friend first. I think I’m everybody’s big sister and after they’re around me long enough, that sagittarius thing takes over and they get to know the inside of the person and they start to look at “She’s a beautiful sister” and I think that most of them are in love with the idea of…”She’s good people.” So I think that most of the handsome guys that should be running after the ‘Beyonce’s’ of the world, a lot of them just don’t wanna…you know…those are side chicks for guys, when you’re absolutely drop dead gorgeous.

I had Spoony G tell me one time ‘I don’t want no girl that’s too fine, because my head would be hurting all the time, I’d be stressed out, because these are the chicks that you know that everybody’s after. So you would get no peace.’ Now you get a normal, sexy chick like me that’s smart…that’s just average in the appearance, but above average in every other level. So I just feel like….not tootin’ my own horn, because there are more of me out there (meaning more people that look like me than not)…I think that these guys fall in love with a friend and it’s very easy to wanna kiss.

“I Wasn’t Really Checkin’ For Idris Like That”

And in case you missed our prior article, Angie says Idris Elba, was crushin’ on her big time back in the day. Here is what Angie said about what she felt…or rather, didn’t feel about Idris:

When Idris and I wrote that song [“I Wanna Thank You”], Idris was actually crushing on me and uh…the sad part of it is I wasn’t really checkin’ for Idris like that. He was like…you know, we’re very good friends, we had the same accountant, same manager and for a very long time, he made it very public that he was in love with Angie Stone. I had already been with D’Angelo and I don’t know whether it was these good looking guys just diggin’ Angie Stone, but we became very close, but not in that way.

Idris Was Attracted To Her, Says Angie

Embed from Getty Images

On when she found out Idris was attracted to her:

So Idris actually did a treatment for a video for me and there was a song called “I Can’t Take It” that I did on one of my albums and…[he] was going to shoot the video – very beautiful, sensual treatment. And it was after that, that I found out how he was going on with about 20 of his homeboys about how “She doesn’t wanna, ya know…kick it with me.” And he’s a virgo and I’ve never been with a virgo, but the beauty of it is we’re very good friends and he did “I Wanna Thank You.”

Angie said that while they were shooting her “I Wanna Thank You” video, she almost caved in to Idris’ flirtations:

Uh, there is one weak moment that I have because I have a thing for beautiful teeth and uh…he came to the door and I opened the door and he was twirling this toothpick around in his teeth…and I fell on the side of the door like ‘Okay, what’s happening to me?!! LOL.’ And at that point I think I was diggin’ Idris, but I had already gone out there on a lem like ‘I would NEVER date Idris because he’s like my brother!’…so I had to stick to my guns. Do I regret it? Absolutely, LOL…cause he is FINE, but I don’t wanna seem like a chickenhead that’s hustlin,’ because it’s not that serious, but the one thing about it is I have the luxury of knowing is that he was diggin’ me.

Why She’s Glad She Rejected Idris

Angie Stone said she thinks Id’ is a handsome cat, but she’s grateful that she didn’t take him up on his offer, here’s why:

“I should have [kissed Idris], but I didn’t and I’m glad I didn’t because I’ve had my stint with one sex symbol of the world [D’Angelo] and it was not the greatest of situations.

Having been with mister [D’Angelo] and then having that fall apart…having to rebuild from the ground up because people seem to live in the shadow of that. I didn’t wanna know the headache like that- Idris is fine, Idris is a great actor, he’s rich and he’s famous, and for me that was a bit much.

Idris also said in another interview, that he likes “regular” women, not the Hollywood, glamm’d up type. So Angie obviously was correct with her characterization of some of the dudes in the entertainment industry. Angie is a beautiful woman and it would have been refreshing to see her and Idris as the ‘it’ couple back then (of course in his pre-married days, mind you), but everything worked out the way it as meant to be.

By the way, Idris has never publicly denied Angie’s account of what happened, so she’s probably telling the whole truth and nothing but.

The post Angie Stone Reveals Her Secret To Snagging Younger Attractive Men…Like Her Exes appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

For those of us who may not be up on the relationship history of D’Angelo and Angie Stone, let us first catch you up to speed: They dated for four years, while Angie was at the height of her career and D’Angelo was just starting to make us bob our heads to “Brown Sugar” in the mid-’90s. Angie is 13 years older than her “How Does It Feel” ex…but for them, age wasn’t nothin’ but a number. D’Angelo was legal and that’s all that matters.

They were seriously in love, but due to ignorant music industry politics, most of the public was not aware that Angie and D’Angelo were an item, let alone were a madly in love couple who had just had a baby boy together in 1998.

Why is that you ask? Well because whomever was calling the shots at D’Angelo’s label, or in his camp at that time, wouldn’t allow him to have his woman on his arm in public, for fear that it would ruin his sex symbol image. And we also can’t overlook the elephant in the room- that our girl, Angie, is a very beautiful woman, but she didn’t fit the ‘trophy girlfriend’ stereotype that these stereotypical industry execs expect to see on their star singer’s arm, and that’s really foul.

Meet Michael Archer Jr., Son Of D’Angelo & Angie Stone

******

Okay, now that we’ve given that quick history on D’Angelo and Angie, y’all have GOTS to check out their son now. He’s named after his father and his name is Michael Archer Jr. He is now a 23 year old rap artist, who goes by the stage name, Swayvo Twain.

Watch Son Spit Bars With Angie Stone

It also looks like Jr. is taller than both of his parents now. Watch the video clip below to check out Angie Stone rapping a few bars with her son and her former Sequence group member…this is CLASSIC…

Angie Stone Gives More Details About Relationship With D’Angelo

As far as Angie’s and D’Angelo’s relationship, Angie said that D’Angelo’s self esteem wasn’t very high when they were together, but she says she helped him with that. See what other details Angie revealed about their relationship…

This is what Angie revealed, to Essence Magazine, about why she and D’Angelo’s relationship didn’t withstand the ups and downs:

“When I was dating him [D’Angelo], he wore glasses, had short hair, and his pants were hanging down to his butt. He was just a 19-year-old kid with big shorts and nobody cared and no one saw his beauty but me. And I told him, you are beautiful. I promise you when your record drops your lips are gonna become famous, your eyes – everything will become famous. She then went on to say: He couldn’t see it because his self-esteem wasn’™t where it is today. He didn’t even have an image and his hair was really short so I braided his hair with thread for his first album cover. It wasn’t until Brown Sugar came out that people actually took a good look at him and said, ‘You know what? He’s fine.’ Then all of a sudden, he’s so fine he shouldn’t be with me.”

Angie also said that they were so in sync with each other that they began to act alike:

“When you’re with someone you become them, we started to become each other and pick up each other’s musical habits. So where he was in his life as an individual had a lot to do with how he expressed those songs. Angie had nothing bad to say about D’™Angelo, in closing she says, To set the record straight, D’Angelo is a genius and he doesn’t need Angie or anybody to make him who he is. What people need to know is that we were in love with each other so my presence, my spirit, my gift, all of that flowed into our relationship.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bebl91dlaTT/

The good thing is that Angie and D’Angelo are still cool as ever. Years later, they even performed together, as seen in the above shot of them on stage in Australia, holding hands. Gotta love successful co-parenting!

The post Son Of Angie Stone And D’Angelo Is A Grown Man Now, Following In Their Paths appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

A lot of Idris Elba’s female fans will either be hating, or congratulating Angie Stone after this one. As most of you already know, Angie Stone was once in a long term relationship with the father of her child, singer D’Angelo. Well, it turns out that there was another sex symbol celeb’ who was after Angie. In recent years, Angie dropped what most would consider to be a bombshell.

“I Wasn’t Really Checkin’ For Idris Like That”

In an interview with Madame Noire, the “Black Brother” songstress revealed that Idris –whom many women are crushin’ on– was actually crushin’ on her big time back in the day. Here is what Angie said about what she felt, or rather, didn’t feel about Idris:

When Idris and I wrote that song [“I Wanna Thank You”], Idris was actually crushing on me and uh…the sad part of it is I wasn’t really checkin’ for Idris like that. He was like…you know, we’re very good friends, we had the same accountant, same manager and for a very long time, he made it very public that he was in love with Angie Stone. I had already been with D’Angelo and I don’t know whether it was these good looking guys just diggin’ Angie Stone, but we became very close, but not in that way.

Idris Was Attracted To Her, Says Angie

Embed from Getty Images

On when she found out Idris was attracted to her:

So Idris actually did a treatment for a video for me and there was a song called “I Can’t Take It” that I did on one of my albums and…[he] was going to shoot the video – very beautiful, sensual treatment. And it was after that, that I found out how he was going on with about 20 of his homeboys about how “She doesn’t wanna, ya know…kick it with me.” And he’s a virgo and I’ve never been with a virgo, but the beauty of it is we’re very good friends and he did “I Wanna Thank You.”

Angie said that while they were shooting her “I Wanna Thank You” video, she almost caved in to Idris’ flirtations:

Uh, there is one weak moment that I have because I have a thing for beautiful teeth and uh…he came to the door and I opened the door and he was twirling this toothpick around in his teeth…and I fell on the side of the door like ‘Okay, what’s happening to me?!! LOL.’ And at that point I think I was diggin’ Idris, but I had already gone out there on a lem like ‘I would NEVER date Idris because he’s like my brother!’…so I had to stick to my guns. Do I regret it? Absolutely, LOL…cause he is FINE, but I don’t wanna seem like a chickenhead that’s hustlin,’ because it’s not that serious, but the one thing about it is I have the luxury of knowing is that he was diggin’ me.

Angie: ‘Men Don’t Always Want Beyoncé Look-A-Likes’

Angie explains why she thinks men, like Idris, are attracted to her instead the “Beyonce types”:

I would say that you know…most real guys are looking for someone that’s a good friend first. I think I’m everybody’s big sister and after they’re around me long enough, that sagittarius thing takes over and they get to know the inside of the person and they start to look at “She’s a beautiful sister” and I think that most of them are in love with the idea of…”She’s good people.” So I think that most of the handsome guys that should be running after the ‘Beyonce’s’ of the world, a lot of them just don’t wanna…you know…those are side chicks for guys, when you’re absolutely drop dead gorgeous.

I had Spoony G tell me one time ‘I don’t want no girl that’s too fine, because my head would be hurting all the time, I’d be stressed out, because these are the chicks that you know that everybody’s after. So you would get no peace.’ Now you get a normal, sexy chick like me that’s smart…that’s just average in the appearance, but above average in every other level. So I just feel like….not tootin’ my own horn, because there are more of me out there (meaning more people that look like me than not)…I think that these guys fall in love with a friend and it’s very easy to wanna kiss.

Why She’s Glad She Rejected Idris

Angie Stone said she thinks Id’ is a handsome cat, but she’s grateful that she didn’t take him up on his offer, here’s why:

“I should have [kissed Idris], but I didn’t and I’m glad I didn’t because I’ve had my stint with one sex symbol of the world [D’Angelo] and it was not the greatest of situations.

Having been with mister [D’Angelo] and then having that fall apart…having to rebuild from the ground up because people seem to live in the shadow of that. I didn’t wanna know the headache like that- Idris is fine, Idris is a great actor, he’s rich and he’s famous, and for me that was a bit much.

Idris also said in another interview, that he likes “regular” women, not the Hollywood, glamm’d up type. So Angie obviously was correct with her characterization of some of the dudes in the entertainment industry. Angie is a beautiful woman and it would have been refreshing to see her and Idris as the ‘it’ couple back then (of course in his pre-married days, mind you), but everything worked out the way it as meant to be.

By the way, Idris has never publicly denied Angie’s account of what happened, so she’s probably telling the whole truth and nothing but.

The post Angie Stone Detailed How Idris Elba Seriously Wanted To Get With Her & How She Reacted appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Embed from Getty Images

Standing w/Bruno:

On Friday, March 16, Stevie Wonder was seen leaving Mr. Chow in Beverly Hills, CA. On his way out, TMZ caught up with him and asked his opinion of the drama surrounding Bruno Mars. Stevie made his opinion very clear. He personally believes Bruno is a success in his own right and all of the drama surrounding “Uptown Funk” is nothin’ more than B.S. The legendary singer/musician also offered his take on the sole purpose of making music: It’s for the world. Check out what Stevie had to say:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wejocoawFmc

The Problem People Have w/Bruno:

Stevie Wonder’s defense of Bruno Mars comes after the all the accusations, which stem from the 2018 Grammys. For those who missed the prestigious event, Bruno won an impressive six Grammys including Album of the Year for his latest album, “24K Magic.” Many fans argued that Bruno has won so many awards for his soul-inspired music simply because he isn’t black. Seren Sensei, a writer and activist with the popular web series “The Grapevine,” has put things into perspective with a viral tweet breaking down the reason behind all the drama and many social media users have agreed with her.

“Bruno Mars 100% is a cultural appropriator. He is not black, at all, and he plays up his racial ambiguity to cross genres,” Sensei said. “What Bruno Mars does, is he takes pre-existing work and he just completely, word-for-word recreates it, extrapolates it,” she added. “He does not create it, he does not improve upon it, he does not make it better. He’s a karaoke singer, he’s a wedding singer, he’s the person you hire to do Michael Jackson and Prince covers. Yet Bruno Mars has an Album of the Year Grammy and Prince never won an Album of the Year Grammy.”

Bruno’s Opinion:

Despite all the backlash, Bruno has gone on record crediting African-Americans for the majority of the artistic elements that inspired him to make music. Back in February of 2017, Bruno sat down for an interview with Latina magazine where he actually offered his opinion on a similar issue.

“When you say ‘black music,’ understand that you are talking about rock, jazz, R&B, reggae, funk, doo-wop, hip-hop and Motown,” he told the publication.”Black people created it all. Being Puerto Rican, even salsa music stems back to the Motherland [Africa]. So, in my world, black music means everything. It’s what gives America its swag.”

He continued, “I’m a child raised in the ’90s,” he continued. Pop music was heavily rooted in R&B from Whitney, Diddy, Dr. Dre, Boyz II Men, Aaliyah, TLC, Babyface, New Edition, Michael, and so much more … I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for these artists who inspired me.”

While there are lots of people giving Bruno a hard time, many celebs and musicians have agreed that people should just let Bruno be great. ILOSM family, what’chall think about Stevie Wonder’s opinion of Bruno Mars?

The post (Video) After Angie Stone Criticizes ‘Uptown Funk,’ Stevie Wonder Calls BS In Support Of Bruno Mars appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Keepin’ It Real?:

When TMZ caught up with soul singer, Angie Stone, she was asked about Bruno Mars and she wasted no time sharing her opinion of the situation. While she admitted she has love for Bruno, she believes the biggest issue is a matter of respect. “We love Bruno Mars. This is not about Bruno Mars for us,” Stone told the publication. “However, when it comes to the history of hip-hop and our contributions….pay. You can’t just take people stuff and walk with it.” She went on to discuss Mark Ronson’s hit single, “Uptown Funk,” which features Bruno Mars.

Check out Angie’s statement:

Of course, the “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” singer even pointed out the fiaso surrounding The Sequence, the soul trio she recorded “Funk You Up” with. She also reiterated how Bruno admitted he was inspired by The Sequence but since “Funk You Up” wasn’t exactly a sample, the group wasn’t compensated for Bruno’s “Uptown Funk.” Stone explained, “Bruno acknowledged The Sequence in a tweet very long ago saying ‘this was influenced by The Sequence.” She added, “Do your homework because you are a brilliant artist but you need to respect the game.”

Listen to The Sequence – “Funk You Up”:

Now, check out Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk”

Of course, Bruno’s style has garnered mixed opinions but most fans still insist they’ll keep bobbin’ to the beat.

Karaoke Or Nah?:

Angie Stone’s statement follows Meshell Ndegeocello’s statements about Bruno’s new hit single “Finesse.” The track may not be funk-inspired, but Ndegeocello argues that the “Finesse” sound comes from somewhere. She insists Bruno only duplicated Bel Biv DeVoe’s New Jack Swing sound so the track isn’t exactly “original.” She said, “What he’s doing is karaoke, basically. With “Finesse,” in particular, I think he was simply copying Bell Biv DeVoe. I think he was copying Babyface. And definitely, there were some elements of Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis back when they worked with Human League. I feel like there’s just all these threads running through there but not in a genuine way.”

She went on to explain the thin line between original musicianship and karaoke. “It’s really a matter of musicality and being able to manipulate the tropes in a way that makes it feel personal. It can’t just be a pastiche, where you’re copying or mimicking an old sound or just doing karaoke. There has to be a form of sincerity.”

Those comments sparked all kinds of debates online. While many die-hard fans have defended Bruno, there are others who admitted they actually agree with the likes of Meshell Ndegeochello and Angie Stone. “Bruno’s music sounds scientifically manufactured to get hits and be played on the radio – without soul. He does it very well but it leaves me flat,” one person wrote. Another person also offered a different perspective of Ndegeochello’s statements which suggests her words were a lot like Angie Stone’s. “She isn’t a hater. Just speaking her mind on the state of music. She never said he wasn’t talented. Just not innovating the music he is inspired by. I love Bruno and I can agree with this assessment of his work. Its art and art is meant to be critiqued.”

Should Bruno be more creative or should people just let the man live? Share your thoughts.

The post Angie Stone Slams Bruno Mars, Claims He Needs To Pay Homage To Those Who ‘Inspired Funk’ appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Little did those rap divas know back then, that 35 years later (in 2014) a new generation of artists- Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson- would release a mega, multi-platinum hit, titled “Uptown Funk,” and make millions from it. That’s far more than The Sequence ever made from their ’79 Sugar Hill Records hit. See where we’re going with this?

In the 2014 song that has helped further catapult Bruno and Ronson’s career into the next stratosphere, Bruno is heard repeatedly chanting the lyrics, “Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up, Uptown Funk you up,” among other “funk” references.

Now, a few years after the song’s release, Angie and her crew believe that Bruno and Mark need to pay up for using their song’s reference:

In court docs, obtained by TMZ, the group claims Mars’ hit has “significant and substantially similar compositional elements” of “Funk You Up.” […] The Sequence is asking for a jury trial and unspecified amount of money from Mars — and songwriter Ronson — who penned the track.

So far, Bruno Mars, nor Mark Ronson have commented publicly on this matter.

ILOSM family, do you think they owe The Sequence rap group money for their song?

The post Angie Stone & Her 1970’s Rap Group Members Suing Bruno Mars For Major $$$ appeared first on I Love Old School Music.