Soul singer, Angie Stone, who rose to fame as a member of pioneering female Hip-Hop trio, The Sequence, and later forged a solo R&B career, has died at the age of 63.
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Stone died in a car crash on her way from Montgomery, Alabama to Atlanta early Saturday morning. A rep for the singer confirmed to Variety that she was coming from a show with her band members when her Sprinter was struck by an 18-wheeler and flipped three times. Stone was the only person who died in the accident.
“Never in a million years did we ever expect to get this horrible news,” said Stone’s children, Diamond Stone and Michael Archer, in a joint statement. “Our mom is and will always be our everything. We are still trying to process and are completely heartbroken.”
Born Angela Laverne Brown, in Columbia, South Carolina, Stone began her music career as one-third of The Sequence, the first female Hip-Hop trio signed to Sugar Hill Records. The trio, which also included her high school friends Cheryl Cook, known as "Cheryl the Pearl" and Gwendolyn Chisolm, known as "Blondy" released several albums but were most notably known for “Funk You Up,” the 1979 single that has gone on to be regularly sampled. Standouts include Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” and Erykah Badu’s “Love of My Life Worldwide.”
By the 1990s, Stone made the switch to R&B, first performing as a part of the group, Vertical Hold, before going solo. In 1999, she released her debut solo record Black Diamond, which featured the hit "No More Rain (In This Cloud)." In 2001, she released Mahogany Soul, which featured the hit "Wish I Didn't Miss You.”
Stone also was known as a successful songwriter, collaborating with stars including Alicia Keys, Lenny Kravitz, and D’Angelo. And just last year, she was inducted into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Stone also dabbled in film and TV, appearing on reality shows including VH1's Celebrity Fit Club and R&B Divas: Atlanta. She also had acting roles in movies like The Hot Chick and The Fighting Temptations, and made her Broadway debut in 2003 in the musical Chicago.
Take a look at some of the tributes to Stone below.