AUSTELL, Ga. (AP) 鈥� Musical artists and loved ones on Friday mourned Grammy-nominated R&B singer Angie Stone, who was earlier this month.
Mourners filed into the massive Word of Faith Cathedral west of Atlanta, taking their seats around a silver and gold casket surrounded by a sea of red roses.
鈥淚n her song No More Rain (In This Cloud),'鈥� she says my sunshine is coming, and I鈥檓 all cried out,鈥� filmmaker and entertainment executive Tyler Perry said at Friday's service.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no more rain in this cloud," he said. 鈥淭he beauty of what she was talking about is when a cloud has no more tears, it dissipates, it鈥檚 gone.鈥�
The song, like so many of Stone's hits, found great success. It reached No. 1 for 10 weeks on Billboard鈥檚 Adult R&B airplay chart.
The cargo van she was riding in flipped over and was then hit by a truck on March 1 near Montgomery, Alabama, music producer and Stone鈥檚 longtime manager Walter Millsap III has said. Everyone else in the van survived except Stone, who was 63. Online tributes from fans and fellow artists .
鈥淕od is good even when life is not, and so we celebrate the life of our sister that has been well-lived,鈥� said Bishop Dale Bronner, the church鈥檚 senior pastor.
Many acclaimed musical artists performed at the service, including Keke Wyatt, Anthony Hamilton and Kirk Franklin.
Before Wyatt sang Friday, she recalled how Stone would call her in the middle of the night to pray with her or give her encouragement.
鈥淪he was so beautiful,鈥� Wyatt said. 鈥淟ike seriously, I love her music and I love her voice and all that. But her as a person trumps all of that.鈥�
The church-grown singer was born in Columbia, where music was always in her life since she was a child, Stone told The Associated Press in a 1999 interview. Her mother would sing around the house, and her father sang gospel and blues at establishments around Columbia.
Another service is planned on Saturday in Columbia, at First Nazareth Baptist Church.
Stone was a member of the all-female hip-hop trio The Sequence and known for the hit song 鈥淲ish I Didn鈥檛 Miss You.鈥� She helped form The Sequence, the first all-female group on the hip-hop trailblazing imprint Sugar Hill Records, becoming one of the first female groups to record a rap song.
The group recorded 鈥淔unk You Up,鈥� which has been sampled by numerous artists, including Dr. Dre.
After finding success in the early 1980s, Stone later joined the trio Vertical Hold before launching her solo career.
Stone created hits like 鈥淏aby鈥� with legendary soul singer Betty Wright, another No. 1 hit; and 鈥淲ish I Didn鈥檛 Miss You鈥� and 鈥淏rotha.鈥�
She found a sweet spot in the early 2000s as neo-soul begin to dominate the R&B landscape with the emergence of singers like Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Maxwell and D鈥橝ngelo.
Her 2001 album 鈥淢ahogany Soul鈥� reached No. 22 on the Billboard 200, while 2007鈥檚 鈥淭he Art Of Love & War鈥� peaked at No. 11.
A Soul Train Lady of Soul winner, Stone went on to showcase her acting chops with film roles in 鈥淭he Hot Chick鈥� starring Rob Schneider, 鈥淭he Fighting Temptations,鈥� which starred Cuba Gooding Jr. and Beyonc茅, and 鈥淩ide Along鈥� led by Ice Cube and Kevin Hart.
She also hit the Broadway stage as Big Mama Morton in 鈥淐hicago,鈥� and she showcased her vulnerability on the reality TV shows 鈥淐elebrity Fit Club鈥� and 鈥淩&B Divas: Atlanta.鈥�
But her qualities as a person and her lasting imprint on people around her were qualities that kept coming up from speaker after speaker at Friday's service.
鈥淭his woman sewed good things to people, she sewed kindness to people, she sewed joy to people, she sewed love and her voice to people,鈥� Perry said.
Jeff Martin, The Associated Press
