Coco Gauff mourns D'Angelo as Grammy-winning singer dies at 51 after cancer battle 

American star, Coco Gauff, recently shared a heartfelt message, mourning hip-hop and R&B singer Michael Eugene Archer, better known by his stage name, D'Angelo, who passed away due to pancreatic cancer at the age of 51. The neo-soul and progressive soul singer won four Grammy awards and was considered one of the top-notch musicians.

The World No. 3 recently clinched her career's 11th WTA Tour singles title by defeating fellow American Jessica Pegula at the 2025 Wuhan Open. Along with her singles titles, Coco Gauff has won ten doubles titles, including the 2024 French Open with ten-time women's doubles major champion, Katerina Siniakova, and the 2025 Canadian Open title with McCartney Kessler.

Through her recent Instagram story, the Atlanta, Georgia, native expressed sadness and grief at the passing away of D'Angelo, whose debut album, 'Brown Sugar', got certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. She added:

"🕊️🙏🏾"

In her second Instagram story, Gauff shared a video of the late musician with David Sanborn & Friends, singing a version of Bill Withers' 'Use Me'. She mentioned:

"🕊️ :("

Screenshot of Coco Gauff's stories | Source - via @cocogauff on Instagram

D'Angelo won Grammy Awards for best R&B album, 'Voodoo', best male R&B vocal performance, best R&B album for 'Black Messiah', and the best R&B song, 'Really Love'.

He is survived by two sons and a daughter, and was working towards releasing his fourth album with Raphael Saadiq, which will be posthumously released.

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Coco Gauff reflects on her Asian Swing performances, mindset, and her contentment with her team

Coco Gauff recently talked about her mindset entering the final stages of the season, her performances, and her satisfaction with her team. Gauff's Asian Swing run has been more than decent, as she made a semifinal appearance at the China Open, where she was bested by Amanda Anisimova, before beating compatriot Jessica Pegula to clinch the Wuhan Open title. Interestingly, she has had a dominant run in her matches in China and has an enviable win-loss record of 22-3.

"I think it’s a combination of the timing of the season, knowing that you’re so close to the season being over that you’re just like, ‘Whatever happens, happens. And also the conditions here I feel like favor my game. The courts in Beijing were a little bit quicker and then here a little bit slower. In Wuhan the conditions were similar to what I train in in Florida so I felt really comfortable on the court," she shared (via WTA Tennis).

She continued:

"I feel like I’m constantly trying to evolve and get better. It’s not anything against the coaches I worked with -- I can still be at the top and want to get better. Sometimes, a new perspective helps... I’m definitely happy with my team. I don’t want to make changes anymore. I’m really proud of how I’ve managed to turn this part of the season around."

Along with other elite players, Gauff will be seen in action at the WTA Finals, held from November 1 to 8, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Edited by Riddhiman Sarkar