D’Angelo’s Voodoo

25 years forward

last month, i spotlighted D’Angelo’s third album Black Messiah on its tenth anniversary. for this month’s collectible, we are stepping even further into the past to discuss Voodoo in the wake of the album’s 25th anniversary this past weekend (1/25).

during the winter of 2000, i would have been a mere five years old. so i definitely have not had this CD since then. however, i did have access to MTV as a child, and i eventually became aware of the infamous video for “Untitled (How Does It Feel?)”. for a mind that young, i was mainly curious as to: 1) why was he belting so passionately? 2) why didn’t he have any clothes on?

as i got older, i watched enough “best songs” countdowns to learn more about the story behind the video and why the song was evoked with such emotion. this made me more curious about D’Angelo’s music and eventually turned me into a fan. so while i can’t recall exactly when i got this CD, i know it was by means of great happenstance and fortune.¹ it was something i received with gratitude.

with my album revisits, i’m typically prone to doing play-by-plays of the music. but there’s already a collective understanding that Voodoo is sonically outstanding and impactful; otherwise, so many of us wouldn’t be talking about it all these years later! therefore, my focus is primarily on the album’s cover art, themes, and imagery.

the artwork for Voodoo highlights an active ritual — where drums, chickens, crisp white clothing, and D’Angelo’s shirtless form take center stage. as someone who participates in African Diasporic Traditions, i do not seek to decode what’s meant to be sacred. instead, i will map this spiritual representation onto our current mundane reality.

in the liner notes for D’Angelo’s Voodoo album, the multi-hyphenate artist Saul Williams makes salient and prescient reflections as he calls out the affluent aspirations of hip-hop: “my peers seem to idolize Donald Trump more than Sly Stone.” it seems like a prophecy, considering that the former was just elected and inaugurated into American presidency for a second term², while the latter is the subject of a soon-to-be released documentary by Questlove (a major collaborator on the album in question). but if you’ve kept up with Saul Williams in any capacity, you might know that he tends to be on the right side of history — of what’s current, soulful, and humane.

these liner notes, co-written with D’Angelo himself, reference the singer’s religious upbringing and leverage that with elements of broader social and spiritual references: there’s mentions of the conjure man, pouring libations, the Aquarian age, and the matriarchal succeeding the patriarchal. Williams’ critique of hip-hop also continues as he calls the genre out for being a misogynistic boys’ club. how much of the past 25 years have been either a denial or affirmation of these existing frameworks? of things that exist beyond the stars? to believe that spiritual warfare has not been at play would be an even further denial of reality.

i mention this all to say: the more things change, the more they stay the same. i think that Voodoo has remained so beloved because it’s appropriately situated in the past, present, and future. yes, the album came out a quarter of a century ago, but it speaks to this current time just as easily. the invocation of D’Angelo’s influences is apparent and within reach. there’s also a reminder of how much history repeats when there’s no heeding of certain warnings.

the art direction of Voodoo reflects something in process and progress — with various markings and directional text overlaying the vibrant photography. my favorite pages in the album booklet (the ones for “Chicken Grease”) display rusty staples, yet i appreciate that aspect even more as it shows the album’s age. the booklet remains perfectly intact, despite this minor flaw. but there’s nothing flawed about the music itself in my opinion: Voodoo is irrefutably a masterpiece. as is written in the liner notes: “These songs are incantations, testaments of artistry, confessions of an Aquarius as he steps into his own.”

i hope you take this as a sign to revisit Voodoo if you haven’t already.

my favorite songs: “Devil’s Pie,” “Send It On,” “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” “Untitled (How Does It Feel)”

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with D’Angelo being one of my favorite Aquarians, here’s a flashback to my “Black Aquarians” playlist.

(“Black Aquarians” on Apple Music)

1. it was most likely a hand-me-down from a Gen X’er who no longer had the need to keep CDs. this late millennial revels in such opportunities.

2. *deep heavy Negro sigh*