Singer Angie Stone, best known for her hit song “Wish I Didn’t Miss You,” has passed away at the age of 63.
A representative for Stone confirmed to Variety that the singer lost her life in a car accident in Montgomery, Alabama. Reports indicate she was returning home from a performance when the crash occurred. She was the sole fatality in the accident.
Her daughter, Diamond Stone, shared the heartbreaking news online, writing: “My mommy is gone.”
Stone first gained recognition in the late 1970s as a founding member of the pioneering female hip-hop trio The Sequence. At just 16, she and her group achieved success with their track “Funk You Up,” a song later sampled by Dr. Dre for “Keep Their Heads Ringin'” and by Bruno Mars in “Uptown Funk.”
“I think that being the first female rap group to actually come out and have an authentic original rap record is an accomplishment that no one else has been able to top,” she reflected in 2023.
Following The Sequence’s disbandment in the mid-80s, Stone continued her musical journey as a vocalist with Vertical Hold and Devox. She later contributed as a songwriter for D’Angelo’s first two studio albums and toured as a backing vocalist for him. Her talents also extended to collaborations with Lenny Kravitz, providing vocals for his 1998 album “5.”
In 1999, Stone launched her solo career with the album “Black Diamond,” which featured hits like “No More Rain (In This Cloud)” and “Life Story.” She gained further recognition when she recorded the theme song for the popular sitcom “Girlfriends” in 2000. The following year, she released “Mahogany Soul,” which included her biggest international hit, “Wish I Didn’t Miss You.”
Her third album, “Stone Love,” featured the track “I Wanna Thank Ya” with Snoop Dogg, a song that found significant success in Europe. The music video notably included a young Idris Elba.
Stone went on to record a further seven albums, the most recent being 2023’s “Love Language,” which featured collaborations with Musiq Soulchild and her son, Swayvo Twain.
