The R&B artist Angela Winbush was born in 1955 in St. Louis, Missouri. Angela rose to fame in the early 1980’s as part of the duo known as Rene & Angela, but long before that time, as a child she learned to sing in her local family church. Initially with aspirations to become an architect, Winbush enrolled at Howard University, but he love of music and her desire to sing deterred her focus and she switched her major to music.
Eventually, Angela began working as a vocalist for Stevie Wonder, as part of his backup group, and the experience greatly expanded her understanding of music, especially in writing and arranging. The opportunity also resulted in her chance encounter with Rene Moore, which whom she established Rene & Angela in 1980. As part of the duo, Angela Winbush released the highly successful dbut album Rene & Angela, followed by the albums Wall to Wall (1982) and Rise (1983.) In the early 80’s, Winbush also wrote hits for a number of notable artists, including Janet Jackson and Stephanie Mills.
By the late 1980’s, Angela was ready to launch her career as a solo artist, and she released the album Sharp in 1987. The album rose to the number seven spot on the R&B charts, performing well both commercially and critically, as did the follow-up albums The Real Thing (1989) and Angela Winbush (1994.) The albums spawned the top twenty R&B singles “Angel,” “Run to Me,” “It’s the Real Thing,” “No More Tears,” “Lay Your Troubles Down,” “Treat U Rite,” and “Floatin’ on Your Love,” recorded with the Isley Brothers.
Although Angela Winbush has not released any new material in the few decades, she continues to make occasional appearances and perform. In 2010, Winbush performed on the Mo’Nique Show, and she was also featured in the documentary Unsung (2010.)
