Peabo Bryson, whose remarkable vocals graced the top of the charts and earned two Grammys for Disney film classics with “Beauty and the Beast” and “A Whole New World,” has died at the age of 75.
His family confirmed the news to Rolling Stone, stating the veteran singer died following a stroke and “transitioned peacefully at 5:00 p.m. ET on the evening of Tuesday, June 2, 2026, surrounded by the love of his family and those closest to him.”
“We are tremendously moved by the outpouring of love, prayers and support from fans, friends, and colleagues around the world,” the family said in a statement. “While our hearts are broken, we find comfort in knowing how deeply Peabo was loved and how many lives were touched by his voice and his generous spirit. His legacy and music will live on for generations to come.”
Born on April 13, 1951, in Greenville, South Carolina, Bryson began his professional music career following high school. After touring with Moses Dillard in the late 1960s, he released his debut album, Peabo, in 1976, and signed with Capitol Records a year later. He would return to Capitol after a stint with Elektra Records, where he lent his vocals for the theme song for soap opera One Life to Live in 1985.
Throughout his prolific career, Bryson became known for his pristine tenor and remarkable reserves of technical ability, working with fellow illustrious R&B singers including Sam Cooke and Brian McKnight. Notably, he released an album of romantic duets with Roberta Flack in 1983 that included the hit track “Tonight I Celebrate My Love.”
Specializing in towering ballads — “I’m So Into You,” “Let the Feeling Flow,” “If It’s Really Love,” “Feel the Fire,” and “Through the Fire” — he released some 20 albums, scored 17 Top 20 R&B hits, and released three gold-certified albums. He reached new audiences after recording theme songs for Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin, creating iconic duets “Beauty and the Beast” with Céline Dion in 1993 and for “A Whole New World” with Regina Belle in 1994 for Aladdin.
“If I were to tell you the emotions I feel most every day: gratitude for one, humility for another, and validation. Not how you think, but validation in the faith that I’ve kept in myself and those around me, and the person that I’ve managed to maintain myself to be,” Bryson told Rolling Stone in 2018. “I’m really happy about that. I like me. And I like that I don’t feel the need to chronicle my accolades to anyone, shout them out to anybody. But, if someone were to stop and do the research, there’s nobody like me.”
