Two decades ago, D’Angelo’s ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)‘ captivated the world with its raw intimacy and became an instant R&B classic. However, the accompanying music video, which transformed the artist into an unexpected sex symbol, sparked a profound internal conflict that ultimately led to a 14-year hiatus, reshaping his career and leaving an indelible mark on music history.
Released on January 25, 2000, D’Angelo’s sophomore album Voodoo quickly redefined the landscape of R&B. While initially hailed as a high point of the neo-soul era, the album was, in many ways, a stealth throwback, meticulously crafted to evoke the raw, organic sounds of the 60s and 70s. This distinction, as engineer Russell Elevado explained, set it apart from its contemporaries who were blending R&B with modern hip-hop production.
After touring extensively for his debut album Brown Sugar, D’Angelo experienced writer’s block. Inspiration reignited following the birth of his son, Michael, in 1998, coinciding with his induction into the Soulquarians. This collective, featuring luminaries like Questlove, J Dilla, and Erykah Badu, favored artistic integrity and unconventional approaches. They spent countless hours at Greenwich Village’s Electric Lady Studios, where vintage equipment helped them channel the spirits of musical giants like Stevie Wonder, Jimi Hendrix, and Prince.
Questlove famously described Voodoo as an “audition tape for Prince,” a testament to the purple one’s profound influence on the album’s sound. The album integrated jazz, soul, and funk with rock elements, drawing inspiration from Led Zeppelin and The Beatles, artists D’Angelo explored thanks to Elevado’s introductions. The result was a sound that felt both deeply rooted in the past and strikingly new, moving beyond the conventional “neo-soul” label.
A Sonic Throwback: Crafting Voodoo’s Timeless Feel
The distinctive, vintage grit of Voodoo was no accident. Russell Elevado, who had previously worked on D’Angelo’s Brown Sugar, employed specific techniques to achieve an “oldish” sound. He used vintage analog equipment, experimented with different microphones, processed sounds through guitar amps, and even overloaded line amps on the console. The album was entirely recorded and mixed to tape, a practice that lends a warmer, more natural sound compared to digital recording methods.
One notable example of this raw approach can be heard in the abrupt ending of ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)‘. As Elevado recounts, the song cuts off suddenly because the tape simply ran out, a spontaneous moment he insisted on keeping, inspired by The Beatles’ ‘I Want You (She’s So Heavy)’. This commitment to organic musicianship and analog recording imbues Voodoo with a timeless quality, allowing listeners to continuously discover new layers in its intricate soundscape, even decades later.
Listeners often comment on D’Angelo’s unique vocal delivery, affectionately dubbed “D’bonics,” where his pleas can be almost indecipherable. This was a deliberate artistic choice, prioritizing inflection and intonation over clear articulation, a musical approach rather than a linguistic one. His vocals were intentionally mixed lower, enveloping him within the track rather than placing him on top of it, further enhancing the album’s immersive and intimate feel.
The Unveiling: ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)’ and its Groundbreaking Video
Among Voodoo’s tracks, ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)‘ stands out as its most significant hit. Produced by Questlove, the song itself was an explicit tribute to Prince’s early work, reminiscent of ballads like ‘Do Me, Baby’ and ‘Scandalous’. D’Angelo’s masterful falsetto, shifting between mumbled vulnerability and confident triumph, served as the most direct homage to Prince’s androgynous croon. The instrumentation, featuring Raphael Saadiq on bass and guitar and Chalmers Edward “Spanky” Alford on guitar, created a sensual, blues-funk-soul landscape.
The song’s equally salacious music video, directed by Paul Hunter and Dominique Trenier, proved to be a pivotal moment. Designed as an intimate, one-on-one experience, the video almost exclusively focuses on D’Angelo’s upper body. He appears nude, with the camera panning his glistening, chiseled chest and V-cut abs, stopping just shy of revealing anything explicit. This voyeuristic display was distinct from the hypermasculinity of contemporary hip-hop videos or the teenage fantasies of pop. It offered a subversive portrayal of Black masculinity that was affectionate, vulnerable, and confident all at once.
A Double-Edged Sword: Commercial Success and Personal Struggle
The impact of the ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)‘ music video was undeniable. It provided the “burst of energy” the album needed, propelling the track to number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks charts. Voodoo itself debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling 320,000 copies in its first week. The song earned D’Angelo a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 2001, with the album also winning Best R&B Album.
However, this mainstream success came at a significant personal cost. D’Angelo, an introverted artist from a Pentecostal church background, struggled immensely with his sudden transformation into a sex symbol. His then-manager, Dominique Trenier, noted in a SPIN Magazine interview that D’Angelo’s discomfort stemmed from a deep-seated conflict, feeling he had “sold his soul” by playing “the devil’s music” instead of gospel. Fans attending the Voodoo tour were often more interested in his physique than his music, screaming for him to take off his clothes. This pressure, as D’Angelo himself confessed, made him “uncomfortable” and felt like a betrayal of his artistry.
The mounting pressure contributed to a downward spiral of drug and alcohol abuse. He faced arrests in 2005 for cocaine and marijuana possession and driving while intoxicated, followed by a severe car accident. The image of the sex icon had eclipsed the artist, leading to a profound personal crisis and a lengthy withdrawal from the public eye.
The Hiatus and the Resurgent ‘Black Messiah’
Following the tumultuous Voodoo tour, D’Angelo retreated from the spotlight, entering a 14-year hiatus before releasing his highly anticipated third studio album, Black Messiah, in 2014. During this period, rumors of injury and personal struggles persisted. His return was met with immense critical acclaim, with Black Messiah peaking at No. 1 on Billboard’s U.S. Indie Store Album Sales and U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. The album, now considered a modern neo-soul masterpiece, also won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album.
Despite his reclusive nature, D’Angelo maintained collaborations with notable artists throughout his career, including Questlove, Common, Q-Tip, J Dilla, Lauryn Hill, Raphael Saadiq, and Angie Stone. In 2024, he collaborated with Jay-Z on the track ‘I Want You Forever’ for The Book of Clarence soundtrack. Furthermore, Raphael Saadiq confirmed in a Rolling Stone’s Music Now podcast that D’Angelo was actively working on new music, signaling a continued creative output.
The Enduring Legacy: An Artist Beyond Stereotypes
D’Angelo’s journey with ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)‘ and Voodoo highlights the complex relationship between artistic vision and public perception. While the song and its video brought him unprecedented fame, they also forced him to confront the commercial pressures and sexualization that threatened to overshadow his musical genius. His refusal to be stereotyped or pigeonholed, as he once articulated, resonates deeply within his fan community: “Just because you’re Black doesn’t mean you have to look or sound a certain way, or whatever the f***ing gatekeepers have us doing because they think that that’s the formula to make money.”
His capacity to merge raw emotion with intricate musicality, challenging conventions of race and sexuality, solidifies his place as a visionary. Even with the recent news of his passing at 51 from pancreatic cancer, as confirmed by People, fans continue to reflect on how his work, particularly ‘Untitled‘, changed his career and challenged perceptions, leaving behind a timeless body of work.
The enduring power of his lyrics, such as “I wish you’d open up ’cause I wanna take the walls down with you,” speaks to the profound vulnerability and desire for connection that underpin his artistry. D’Angelo’s legacy is not just one of musical innovation, but of an artist who fought to remain true to himself amidst the overwhelming expectations of fame, inspiring generations to come.
