I think he was referring to the album cover, not a cover song. See article below...link at end of post.


" The singer, ever the perfectionist, was involved at every step. D’Angelo had hoped to commission art for the album from Emory Douglas, once the minister of culture for the Black Panthers and art director for the group’s newspaper, but Matthew Morgan, an Afropunk co-founder, said there wasn’t time to wait for original illustrations.

Instead, the cover shows a black-and-white still from a 16-millimeter film shot at Afropunk’s annual concert, which D’Angelo headlined last summer.

“That image was captured during the festival when we were asking the audience to put their hands up in protest,” Mr. Morgan said. “But it was also symbolic of praise in church,” he added, saying that D’Angelo, a Pentecostal preacher’s son, “loved it immediately.” "


http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/17/arts/music/dangelos-black-messiah-was-released-in-a-rush.html?_r=1