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D’Angel entered the dancehall scene in the early 2000s and has not looked back since. Dubbed the first lady of dancehall, the artiste has made her mark in the industry with several hit singles over the years.

Born Michelle Downer, the entertainer from childhood knew that she was destined to be on stage because, at an early age, her friends and family would often serve as her audience as she practised her vocals while entertaining them.

D’ Angel sang throughout all of high school as she was a member of the St Catherine High choir.

Upon entering the working world, the artiste did not immediately choose music. Instead she moved to Kingston to pursuit her modelling career with the popular Miguel Models.

She drifted from her musical pursuits and entered the world of glitz, glamour and couture when she landed a modelling job in the early 90s. Strutting runways and landing alluring photo shoots for brands such as Rocawear had become her norm.

Despite this dazzling lifestyle, she returned to Jamaica in 2002 and immediately capitalised on her entrepreneurial skills by opening her unisex fashion boutique ‘Angel’s’.

The entertainer, who is celebrating almost 20 years in the music industry, made her solo debut in 2005 with the catchy song Living Uptown (Downtown Girl). The charismatic artiste has maintained a constant presence on the dancehall scene over the past few years.

Here are five things you might not have known about the first lady of dancehall.

D’ group member

While in her modelling heyday, the aspiring artiste auditioned for a group called LOY, which was managed by Horatio Hamilton, music and events promoter for the Sashi series.

The group was in search of a female artiste and D’Angel made the cut. LOY later broke up and that’s when the artiste started her solo career as a dancehall entertainer.

D’ Scholar

The artiste loves business and is a businesswoman at heart. Her passion has led her to obtain an associate degree in accounting and management.

D’ Angel was also granted a business management scholarship from the Caribbean Institute of Business.

D’ Only Fans saga!

In 2020, D’Angel became the talk of the town when she announced that she had joined subscription-based service, OnlyFans.

The announcement was made on her Instagram page. She posted the caption: “Have you signed up for my Only Fans yet? Oh yes, it’s serious! Come see a more provocative side of D’Angel. Link in Bio!”

D’Ban

In 2013, D’Angel was banned for five years from performing at popular stage show Sting by the event’s promoter, Isaiah Laing.

The reason for the ban was due to her impromptu performance of a “lyrical battle” with Ninja Man at Sting 30 that Laing considered raunchy.

The artiste was also criticised for her choice of clothing at the event by Billboard, which described her outfit as provocative and revealing.

D’Sunshine girl?

Thanks to her height, the artiste had a few career options as she could have been a netball player had she stuck to it. D’Angel was a member of Jamaica’s national under-21 netball team back in the day.