Artist: D’Angelo · Year: 2000 · Label: Virgin Records · Rolling Stone Rank: 28 / 500
Voodoo feels like a record recorded outside of linear time. It looks back to Sly Stone, J Dilla, Prince, Marvin Gaye and Fela Kuti while sounding unlike anything before it. D’Angelo and his Soulquarians circle—Questlove, Pino Palladino, Roy Hargrove, James Poyser—created a neo-soul milestone where rhythm is loose, harmony is rich, and everything feels slightly behind the beat in the most intoxicating way.
It’s not just an album; it’s a living, breathing groove ecosystem.
Context: Soulquarians, J Dilla and the Electric Lady Sessions
After Brown Sugar, D’Angelo stepped away from the spotlight, reemerging years later in New York’s Electric Lady Studios alongside a rotating cast of geniuses. The Soulquarians collective—also responsible for landmark records by The Roots, Erykah Badu and Common—embraced analog recording, live jams, and a refusal to chase radio trends.
The vibe was almost monastic: endless sessions, deep listening, obsession with feel over flash. Voodoo grew out of these experiments like a slowly developing photograph.
Sound, Songs and Rhythmic Witchcraft
“Playa Playa” opens with a swampy, swaggering groove that instantly defines the album’s physicality. “Devil’s Pie” (co-written with DJ Premier) strips things down to bass, drums and attitude—an anti-materialist sermon delivered like a street corner chant.
“Untitled (How Does It Feel)” is the famous one: a Prince-worthy slow jam that became a cultural event thanks to its video, but musically it’s all about tension and release—guitars simmering, drums whispering, D’Angelo’s voice climbing from murmur to plea.
Underneath everything is Questlove’s drumming, heavily inspired by J Dilla’s off-grid MPC programming—snare hits slightly late, kick drums nudging against the metronome. Pino Palladino’s fretless bass slides through the spaces, turning harmonic movement into liquid. Horns and keys appear like ghosts, never overstaying their welcome.
Impact and Legacy
Voodoo didn’t just define neo-soul; it reshaped how musicians think about time feel. Its behind-the-beat micro-timing has been studied and imitated by countless drummers and producers. Artists from Maxwell to Anderson .Paak, from Erykah Badu to Frank Ocean, draw from its sensual, swampy atmosphere.
It also reasserted the idea that R&B albums could be dense, conceptually unified works of art—not just collections of singles.
How to Listen Today
Listen with your body first, brain later. Focus on how the drums and bass sit slightly behind the beat; feel how that creates a sense of drunken intimacy. Then pay attention to the vocal layering: D’Angelo often stacks harmonies into a choir of himself.
For SlaveToMusic: Voodoo is essential if you care about groove, pocket and the fine line between looseness and precision.