The band consists of Adu alongside bassist Paul Denman, saxophonist and guitarist Stuart Matthewman, and keyboardist Andrew Hale.

The band's music features elements of soul, quiet storm, smooth jazz and sophisti-pop.

[10] The album was also a hit internationally, reaching number one in several countries and the top ten in the United States, where it has sold four million copies to date.

[16][17] The musical group Sade was formed in London in 1982, by members of the Latin soul band Pride.

They named the band after lead singer Sade Adu, and made its debut performance in December 1982 at Ronnie Scott's Club in London in support of Pride.

[18] Sade received more attention from the media and record companies than Pride had, and eventually separated from that group altogether.

A second single, "When Am I Going to Make a Living" barely made the Top 40, but the band's debut album, Diamond Life, was released in July 1984 and peaked at No. 2.

[20] The band embarked on its first major UK tour, augmented by Dave Early (drums), Martin Ditcham (percussion), Terry Bailey (trumpet) and Gordon Matthewman (trombone).

[5] On 28 June 1986, after touring for the album, the band performed at the Artists Against Apartheid Concert in the Freedom Festival on Clapham Common in London.

Joining the band were Leroy Osbourne (vocals), Gordon Hunte (guitar), Trevor Murrell (drums), Karl Vanden Bossche (percussion), and Rick Braun (trumpet).

The 1994 Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group was awarded to Sade for "No Ordinary Love", featured in the 1993 film Indecent Proposal.

[24] In 1996 Hale, Denman, and Matthewman formed its own band as a side project, Sweetback, and released a self-titled album.

This date was posted on an official-looking website (sade2009.com) before Sony Music released any news or marketing for an upcoming album.

Die-hard Sade fans got together on the official Sade website forums to investigate this new website and release date, what they uncovered was the registered owner of the site's name was Thomas Roman, a web developer, freelance digital marketing and SEO specialist.

Roman, a seasoned web developer, utilized the buzz he generated with the release date and got traffic to his site where he cashed in on pay per click advertisements.

In September 2010 the group announced the first dates of its global tour, Sade Live, to begin in April 2011.

[29] In 2011, Sade received its fourth Grammy Award (Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals) for Soldier of Love, and released a second greatest hits album, The Ultimate Collection, which made the UK Top Ten.

[40] AllMusic's Alex Henderson writes that, "Many of the British artists who emerged during that period had a neo-soul outlook and were able to blend influences from different eras".

[40] Following the coining of the term "quiet storm" by Smokey Robinson, Sade was credited for helping give the genre a worldwide audience.

& Rakim stated he grew up listening to Sade's music and was influenced by the singer's voice and style.

[42] Hip hop group Souls of Mischief stated they grew up listening to Sade's music.

[42] Frontman Chino Moreno of the alternative metal band Deftones has cited Love Deluxe as one of his top 13 favorite albums.

"[42] In reaction to the newly released album Soldier of Love, rapper Kanye West wrote, "This is why i still have a blog.