Key Takeaways
- Ari Lennox, RAYE, George Clinton, Durand Bernarr, and BJ the Chicago Kid shared the stage during the awards show to honor D’Angelo’s legacy.
- The medley included songs such as “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” and “Devil’s Pie,” drawing from multiple eras of his career.
- The broadcast also reflected on his three studio albums and Grammy-winning career following his death in 2025.
The 2026 BET Awards made room for a tribute to D’Angelo, one of R&B’s most influential and quietly towering figures. During Sunday night’s (June 28) ceremony, Ari Lennox, RAYE, George Clinton, Durand Bernarr, and BJ the Chicago Kid came together to honor the late singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist with a performance rooted in the depth of his catalog.
Rather than leaning on one signature record, the tribute moved through different sides of D’Angelo’s artistry. The medley nodded to the groove-heavy brilliance of “Chicken Grease,” the raw storytelling of “S**t, D**n, Motherf**ker,” the darker social and spiritual weight of “Devil’s Pie,” and the unmistakable pull of “Untitled (How Does It Feel).” Together, the selections captured the range that made D’Angelo difficult to place in one lane. He could be tender, wounded, political, sensual, churchy, funky, and deeply experimental, often inside the same body of work.
The lineup also reflected the wide reach of his influence. Before the performance began, D’Angelo’s children appeared to introduce the tribute, adding a personal layer to the moment. Lennox, Bernarr, and BJ each represent different corners of modern soul, while RAYE’s jazz fusion-leaning approach brought another element to the tribute. Clinton’s presence also connected the performance to the funk traditions that helped shape D’Angelo’s own musical language.
D’Angelo, born Michael Eugene Archer, died in October 2025 at 51 after a battle with cancer. Across a career defined by long gaps between albums and an unusually high standard of musicianship, he released three studio projects: 1995’s “Brown Sugar,” 2000’s “Voodoo” and 2014’s “Black Messiah.” Each one arrived in a different era, yet all three helped shift the direction of contemporary R&B.
A catalog built to outlive the moment
“Brown Sugar” introduced D’Angelo as one of the defining voices of the 1990s neo-soul movement, earning platinum status and multiple Grammy nominations while producing singles like “Brown Sugar,” “Lady,” and “Cruisin’.” Years later, Voodoo expanded that foundation into something looser, deeper, and harder to imitate. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and earned Grammy wins for Best R&B Album and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for “Untitled,” a record that became one of the most recognizable moments of his career.
His impact continued well beyond his early commercial peak. D’Angelo later returned with “Black Messiah,” a politically charged and musically dense album that won Best R&B Album at the 2016 Grammy Awards, while “Really Love” won Best R&B Song and was nominated for Record of the Year. Across a wealth of nominations and wins, his career showed how a small but carefully built body of work could leave an outsized mark on R&B, soul, funk, and Hip Hop.