The two-time Grammy winner passed away Tuesday following complications from a stroke

Peabo Bryson, the silky-voiced R&B singer whose gift for romantic ballads and duets made him one of the defining voices of soul music across four decades, died on Tuesday, June 2, in Marietta, Georgia. He was 75. His family confirmed he passed peacefully at 5:00 p.m. ET at a hospital, surrounded by loved ones, from complications of a stroke.

“We are tremendously moved by the outpouring of love, prayers and support from fans, friends, and colleagues around the world,” his 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 Robert Peapo Bryson on April 13, 1951, in Greenville, South Carolina, he was raised by his mother and maternal grandparents on a farm in nearby Mauldin. He began performing professionally as a teenager, singing backup with local groups before touring the country with mentor Moses Dillard and the Tex-Town Display. It was Dillard who gave him his nickname, having had trouble pronouncing his middle name.

He released his self-titled debut album with Bang Records in 1976 before signing with Capitol Records the following year. Through the late 1970s and 1980s he became one of the most dependable presences on the R&B and adult contemporary charts, accumulating nine R&B Top 10s, releasing 20 studio albums and earning five gold records. He developed a particular reputation as a duet partner, recording with Roberta Flack, Natalie Cole, Regina Belle and Kenny G among others.

It was two Disney theme songs in the early 1990s that brought Bryson his widest audience. “Beauty and the Beast,” recorded with Celine Dion for the 1991 animated film, won both singers a Grammy for best pop performance by a duo or group with vocals. A year later, “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, recorded with Belle, reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, knocking Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” from the top spot after a 14-week run. It was the first song from an animated film to top the chart, a distinction it held until “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from Encanto in 2022. Both songs also won Golden Globe and Academy Awards for best original song, though those honors went to the songs’ writers.

Throughout his career Bryson resisted pressure to pivot toward more contemporary sounds, remaining committed to the soul and R&B tradition that defined him. He released his final studio album, Stand for Love, in 2018 and suffered a serious heart attack in 2019 from which he fully recovered.

He is survived by his wife, Tanya Boniface Bryson; their son Robert, known as Kit; a daughter from a previous relationship, Linda Bryson; and three grandchildren.