Peabo Bryson, the Grammy Winning Singer Behind Beauty and the Beast and a Whole New World, Dies at 75 After Stroke Treatment
WASHINGTON, DC — Peabo Bryson, the Grammy-winning singer whose voice helped define “Beauty and the Beast” and “A Whole New World,” has died at 75, his family said.
The family said he died peacefully on Tuesday evening, June 2, 2026, surrounded by relatives and close friends. Days earlier, a representative confirmed to ABC News that Bryson had suffered a stroke and was receiving medical care.
A career built on soul ballads and Disney duets
Bryson spent more than five decades recording romantic R&B and pop songs that stayed in heavy rotation with fans. Among his best-known singles were “Feel the Fire,” “I’m So Into You,” “Can You Stop the Rain,” “If Ever You’re in My Arms Again” and “Reaching for the Sky.”
His biggest pop-culture moments came through collaborations. He sang with Roberta Flack on “Tonight, I Celebrate My Love,” later joined Celine Dion on the title song from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, and teamed with Regina Belle for “A Whole New World (Aladdin’s Theme).”
From Greenville to gold records and Grammy wins
Born Robert Peapo Bryson on April 13, 1951, in Greenville, South Carolina, he said his love of music began with his mother, Marie Bryson, who took him to hear major performers when he was young. He was singing along with them by the time he was five or six, he told The Philadelphia Tribune in 2022.
He was backing a local band by age 14, later toured the Southern chitlin’ circuit, and got signed after a recording session at Atlanta’s Bullet/Bang Records. His self-titled debut arrived in 1976, and Reaching for the Sky went gold two years later.
A legacy that stretched from records to Broadway
Bryson released 20 studio albums over his career and won two Grammy Awards, one for “Beauty and the Beast” and another for “A Whole New World.” He also recovered from a heart attack in 2019.
In a 2019 performance, he and Belle sang “A Whole New World” at the finale of Broadway’s Aladdin, a reminder of how long his Disney work continued to resonate. He is survived by his wife, Tanya Boniface, their son Robert and his daughter Linda.
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