Last night, D’Angelo brought the vibes to the Apollo theater for the first solo edition of Verzuz. The legendary soul singer presented a virtual concert called “D’Angelo & Friends” that brought us back to the ’90s era of funk-filled love songs.
The singer closed out Black History Month by highlighting Black businesses, honoring Black musicians, and celebrating a Black institution. Here are nine moments we loved from his Verzuz last night.
01
The Full Circle Moment
During his soulful set, D’Angelo paused to reveal the musical celebration was taking place at the venue where he experienced a career milestone: winning Apollo amateur night three nights in a row in 1991 at just 16 years old.
02
DJ Scratch Setting the Mood
Verzuz gave us plenty of time to get our incense going and create our CBD concoctions by giving DJ scratch a full set before the show. The DJ set the mood by mixing tracks from the Ying Yang Twins, the City Girls and more.
03
The Coat
When D’Angelo stepped in front of the camera in a shin-length fur coat, that told us everything we needed to know about how the night was going to go.
04
The Instrumental Moment
D’Angelo gave musician Keyon Harrold a moment to shine to the delight of songwriter Brian Micheal Cox who celebrated in the stream’s comments. The choice was a nod to the history of the Verzuz series which began as a way to highlight those behind the scenes of the music industry.
05
Method Man and Redman Popping Up
The lyricists surprised fans with a high energy rendition of “Left & Right” that made us long for risk-free day parties.
06
The Baby-Making Set
We might see a whole new set of quarantine babies after D’Angelo performed “Feel Like Making Love,” “Jonz in My Bonz,” “Really Love” and “Another Life.”
07
H.E.R.
H.E.R., born Gabi Wilson, was awarded with the Songwriters’ Award for “Better Than I Imagined” by her and Robert Glasper.
08
The Love for Black Women
D’Angelo never missed an opportunity to show love to Black women during last night’s performance. We love to see it.
09
The Reappearance of the Coat
D’Angelo removed it briefly but someone from the production team reappeared to put it back on his shoulders in a motion that would have made James Brown proud. It’s the showmanship for us.
