D'Angelo performs on stage at O2 Academy Birmingham on February 17, 2015 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Ollie Millington | Redferns | Getty Images R&B and soul singer D'Angelo died on Tuesday, leaving behind a "legacy of extraordinarily moving music" following a "prolonged and courageous battle with cancer," his family said. The influential music star, born Michael D'Angelo Archer, was 51. "The shining star of our family has dimmed his light for us in this life," according to a family statement.