Singer, instrumentalist, and songwriter Angie Stone first rose to prominence as a member of The Sequence, a hip-hop trio who burst on to the scene in 1979 with the unsurprisingly funky number “Funk You Up”. As the first rap single by an all-female group and the second release on Sugar Hill Records, it was a pioneering record that set a towering precedent for the rest of Stone’s career, which would encompass Gold-certified releases, chart-topping singles and three Grammy nominations.
After collaborative efforts with Lenny Kravitz and Vertical Hold, Angie Stone embarked on her solo career at the turn of the millennium, issuing 1999’s Black Diamond on Arista. Immediately blasting into the Top Ten R&B chart, the album earned gold certification from the RIAA and two Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards. After this incredible debut, Stone released Mahogany Soul in 2001, picking up her first Grammy nomination for the Calvin Richardson duet “More Than a Woman”. Stone Love, recorded in 2004, further raised her profile internationally while drawing critical acclaim and commercial success. Its 2007 follow-up, The Art of Love & War, flew to the top of the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and featured two of her most popular singles, “Sometimes” and the phenomenal Betty Wright collaboration “Baby”, the latter of which made her a three-time Grammy nominee.
Angie Stone has remained active since, continuing to place highly in the charts with albums jam-packed full of soulful sounds and a vocal tone that’s truly inimitable. Her latest release, the 2019 LP Full Circle, once again drew ardent praise from critics and fans while confirming her status as one of the world’s foremost soul musicians.