Singer D'Angelo seriously injured in car crash

NEW YORK - Vocalist D'Angelo (real name: Michael Archer) is in a Richmond, Va., hospital being treated for serious injuries suffered during a September 19 car accident.

According to a statement from the Virginia State Police, the SUV in which D'Angelo was traveling swerved off a road and into fence before flipping over.

The artist was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the car. According to police, it is not yet known if D'Angelo was driving; another person in the vehicle, Lynne Sellers, was also injured in the accident but the status of her condition was unknown.

News of the crash began to spread late last week after the Roots' ?uestlove posted early details on the group's website (http://www.okayplayer.com), but the message was quickly removed.

Just prior to the accident, D'Angelo was given a three-year suspended sentence after pleading no contest to felony cocaine possession in Chesterfield Circuit Court. As previously reported, he was arrested near Richmond in January after police found marijuana and cocaine in his car during a traffic stop.

D'Angelo received a 100-day suspended sentence in April stemming from the marijuana and driving under the influence charges.

Sony BMG's J Records recently acquired D'Angelo's contract from Virgin, which released his two studio albums. The artist has been largely inactive since his 2000 effort "Voodoo," which debuted at No. 1 on The Billboard 200.

- REUTERS