Tyler Perry Pays for Angie Stone’s Funeral: The Crash, Royalties Fight & Mo'Nique’s Ignored Truth

On March 14, 2025, Tyler Perry, the acclaimed actor and filmmaker behind Madea, attended the memorial for legendary soul singer Angie Stone at the Word of Faith Cathedral in Austell, Georgia. Stone, 63, tragically died in a fatal car crash after her sprinter van was overturned and then struck by a semi-trailer on I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama. She had been traveling to Baltimore from a performance in Mobile when the incident occurred. The investigation into her death is still ongoing.

Weeks before the accident, Angie Stone had called out her former record label, Universal Music Group (UMG), accusing them of stealing her royalties. She also named several artists, including Mary J. Blige and former manager Kurt Woodley, for allegedly using her music without permission—specifically, her song “Everyday”. Stone and her former rap trio, The Sequence, even sued Bruno Mars for allegedly sampling parts of their 1970 hit “Funk You Up” in his Grammy-winning song “Uptown Funk”. This legal battle highlighted her struggle for fair compensation, with “Uptown Funk” going Diamond status, signaling over 10 million copies sold.

During the emotional funeral service, which was recorded and broadcast live, Tyler Perry gave a passionate speech, admitting that while he wasn’t close to Angie Stone personally, he strongly resonated with her music and supported her during her lifetime. Perry expressed anger at how Angie Stone had been treated throughout her career, particularly her struggles with unpaid royalties. “All of those years, all of those songs, all of that money that was owed to her…where is it?” Perry questioned, with the crowd loudly agreeing.

Days later, at the New York premiere of his film “Duplicity,” Perry revealed that he had personally paid for Angie Stone’s funeral. In a heartfelt statement to the Associated Press, Perry expressed his frustration: “I shouldn’t be having to pay for funerals for someone who’s got 40 years in the business, who is owed royalties.” This admission was shared widely across social media, especially on Instagram, where Perry's gesture received mixed reactions.

However, Mo'Nique, the renowned comedian and Oscar-winning actress, took to Instagram to call out Tyler Perry’s hypocrisy. Mo'Nique shared four key grievances against Perry, highlighting the double standard of him speaking out about Angie Stone’s royalties while his own alleged mistreatment of her remains ignored. Mo'Nique also claimed in an interview with Shannon Sharpe on his podcast ‘Club Shay Shay’ that Perry labeled her as “difficult to work with” after she refused to promote the movie Precious for free. This decision, Mo'Nique said, led to her being blackballed, which negatively impacted her reputation and career, costing her hundreds of millions of dollars. Mo'Nique’s stance sparked further debate, particularly about the lack of attention given to her own struggles within the entertainment industry, even as Perry positions himself as a champion for artists like Angie Stone.