The Brown Sugar RAP Party

What might eloquent voices from contemporary poetry and spoken word movements have to say about our present realities? What could be the soundtrack to our day-to-day lives? Come chill and find out at Inua Ellams' Rhythm And Poetry Party, a nostalgic, no-clutter, no-fuss, night of live literature and moving music. To mark the first anniversary of D'Angelo?s passing on October 14th, 2026, The RAP Party invites you to Brown Sugar, at The Young Vic. This special R.A.P Party gathers 10 incredible contemporary poets to create and share new verse in response to D?Angelo?s first album, Brown Sugar. Join us for fresh perspectives on the timeless journeys, questions and reflections raised by D?Angelo, plus music from DJ Sid Mercutio.?"A truly fluid literary event not just mingling poetry and music together seamlessly, but also bringing different tribes of poets: ages, races, gender, styles together. You will be moved in your heart and in your head."?Roger Robinson?AN INTRODUCTION TO ?D?ANGELOBorn Michael Eugene Archer on 11 February 1974, to a lineage of pentecostal ministers, D?Angelo grew up in a deeply religious household, and the church was his first musical environment. He was a child prodigy, teaching himself piano by ear, and winning a local talent competition three years in a row as a child.?He moved to New York, immersed himself in its vibrant music scene, won the Apollo Theatre?s amateur night before releasing Brown Sugar in 1995 at young age of 21.?The album instantly established him as one of the most gifted artists of his generation. Produced largely by D'Angelo alongside Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest and Bob Power, the album is widely credited as one of the founding texts of the neo-soul movement, and one of the most important R&B records of the 1990s. D?Angelo filtered inspiration from Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Prince through a 90s sensibility, with live instrumentation, warm analogue textures, and a raw, intimate feel.?In the following years, he released two more critically acclaimed albums: Voodoo and the Black Messiah, before succumbing to pancreatic cancer on October 14th, 2025, at the age of 51.