Peabo Bryson, Voice of Disney Duets, Dies at 75
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Peabo Bryson died Tuesday at age 75, days after suffering a stroke, his family announced; Bryson had also survived a heart attack in 2019, from which he made a full recovery.
- Bryson sang the Oscar-winning title duets for Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" (with Celine Dion) and "A Whole New World" from Aladdin (with Regina Belle), and won two Grammy Awards across his career.
- Celine Dion said she was "heartbroken" in a social-media statement, recalling that Bryson made her feel comfortable while she was still learning to sing in English during their 1991 recording of "Beauty and the Beast."
- Bryson built a five-decade R&B career beyond Disney, recording for Capitol, Elektra, and Columbia Records, and scoring No. 1 R&B hits with "Show & Tell" and "Can You Stop the Rain," plus the 1980s love-song staple "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love" with Roberta Flack.
- Bryson released his 21st studio album "Stand for Love" in 2018, produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and also appeared in stage productions including Raisin, The Wiz, and Porgy and Bess.
- Comedian Loni Love recounted spending hours talking with Bryson on a cruise-ship deck last year after finding him sitting alone, calling him generous and deeply devoted to his craft.
Why it matters: Bryson spent more than five decades as one of R&B's premier balladeers, with No. 1 R&B hits and a 21st studio album as recently as 2018, but his duets with Celine Dion and Regina Belle made him the voice of two Oscar-winning Disney songs that remain cultural touchstones a generation later. His death removes a rare vocalist who could move between adult R&B radio, Broadway-style stage work, and blockbuster animated film soundtracks.
