Although Dwele has had somewhat of a short career as a commercially avaliable artist, he has a vast catalogue of material currently unreleased that die-hard fans revere as some of his best work, considerably superior to his material released as a signed artist that showcases the true depth of his artistic and diverse talent, displayed without constraint.
Gardner was raised on the west side of Detroit in a musical family. He played piano from the age of six, later taking up trumpet, bass and guitar. He was deeply affected by the fatal shooting of his father outside his home when he was age ten, later stating "I learned to put my emotions into music; it was my therapy."
He cites Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Roy Ayers, Miles Davis, and Freddie Hubbard as favorite artists, and took inspiration from hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, becoming an MC, and working with Slum Village. Gardner recorded a demo in his bedroom, called, The Rize, and sold it out of the trunk of his car. He had about 100 copies, which sold out within a week. He caught the ears of local heroes Slum Village and more specifically their world-renowned producer J Dilla. Slum Village invited Dwele to sing the hook of the song "Tainted" for their album Trinity (Past, Present and Future). It became an instant classic and led to more high profile work with female rapper Bahamadia, the all-star group Lucy Pearl and London's New Sector Movement. Dwele signed to Virgin Records in 2003, who released his debut album, Subject, which mixed neo soul and hip hop. In a 2005 review in The Independent, his style was summed up: "Dwele's rooted in vintage soul but isn't stuck in the past, overly reverential or an exercise in pastiche - there's a major hip-hop edge which betrays his original incarnation as a rapper." A second album, Some Kinda..., followed in 2005. He then later signed with RT Music Group and KOCH records in March, 2008. He is coming out with his fourth album titled, W.W.W. (W.ants. W.orld. W.omen) coming out June 29, 2010. Dwele was recently featured on the first single off of Kanye West's fifth studio album, Good Ass Job. The song was entitled "Power" and was leaked on May 28, 2010.
A.N.G.E.L.
Dwele Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just to wake me with the sun.
I only do this for my lover (oh, oh, oh.)
Early as hell
Just to sing you a song.
Don't you eva' second guess the fact that I love you (oh no,no.)
'Cause it's cool
No matter the time.
Like old lovas do.
And like old
friends too.
The lyrics to Dwele's song A.N.G.E.L. are a declaration of love to his significant other. In the first two lines, Dwele requests his lover to wake him up in the morning by calling him, even if it is early. He then professes that he only does this for his lover as a way of showing his affection. Dwele's commitment to his lover is further expressed in the following lines, where he wakes up early to sing a song to his lover. He assures his lover not to doubt his love for them under any circumstances.
The chorus of the song then emphasizes the depth of Dwele's love for his lover, asserting that his lover is his angel. He compares their relationship to that of old lovers and old friends, which implies that the relationship has grown deeper over time. The song generally exudes a sense of tenderness, love and commitment from the singer towards his lover.
Line by Line Meaning
Call me in the morning,
Request me to be contacted in the morning for the purpose of waking up early.
Just to wake me with the sun.
Call me early in the morning, at sunrise, to ensure I am awake at that time.
I only do this for my lover (oh, oh, oh.)
This action is reserved only for the one I love.
Early as hell
Very early in the morning.
Just to sing you a song.
The purpose of waking up so early is to serenade my lover with a song.
Don't you eva' second guess the fact that I love you (oh no,no.)
Do not doubt the depth of my love for you.
'Cause it's cool
It is not a problem or inconvenience to wake up early for my lover.
No matter the time.
Regardless of the hour, I will be there for my lover.
'Cause you're my angel, yeah.
My lover is like an angel to me, a special and cherished being.
Like old lovas do.
This is a classic display of devotion and romance, as old lovers have done before.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: R.L. III ALTMAN, ANDWELE GARDNER, TITUS PRINTICE GLOVER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Katika Thomas
the rhodes AND that bass...straight killing it! i wish this song was longer...i can put this on repeat and NEVER get tired of it...
VonG063
Thank you I love this too
Pickyheaded Honey
this is his best song, i swear his best songs are interludes
Prez Larry Rogers
Absolutely no doubt about it!!
B Fly B
YEZZZZZZ!!!!
Uneven Earz
I used to have a cassette tape with the original version of this song back in 1998. My first love gave it to meI LOVE THIS DAMN SONG!
HokuToke
Honestly Dwele is probably my favorite artist ever, D'angelo is defintley top 3 for me R&B wise, but i swear man i have never head such smooth tracks from a artist before.
Yah is the way
Even though it's a short song, it's one of my favorite songs of his.
VonG063
I can listen to this all day
JB
One of my favorite interludes.