Erykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971),[3] known professionally as Erykah Badu (/ˈɛrɪkə bɑːˈduː/), is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by R&B, soul, and hip hop,[3] Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut album Baduizm (1997), placed her at the forefront of the neo soul movement, earning her the nickname "Queen of Neo Soul" by music critics.
Erykah Badu
DJ Lo Down Loretta Brown, Annie, Sara Bella, Medulla Oblongata, Analog girl in the Digital World, Manuela Maria Mexico
- Singer
- songwriter
- rapper
- record producer
- DJ
- actress
1994–present
- André 3000 (1996–1999)
- Common (2000–2002)
- The D.O.C. (2003–2004)
- Jay Electronica (2004–2009)
- Carl Jones (2013–2018)
3
Vocals
Badu's career began after she opened a show for D'Angelo in 1994 in Fort Worth, leading to record label executive Kedar Massenburg signing her to Kedar Entertainment.[3] Her first album, Baduizm, was released in February 1997.[4] It spawned four singles: "On & On", "Appletree", "Next Lifetime" and "Otherside of the Game". The album was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[5] Her first live album, Live, was released in November 1997 and was certified double platinum by the RIAA.[5]
Her second studio album, Mama's Gun, was released in 2000.[6] It spawned three singles: "Bag Lady", which became her first top 10 single on the Billboard Hot 100 peaking at #6, "Didn't Cha Know?" and "Cleva". The album was certified platinum by the RIAA.[5] Badu's third album, Worldwide Underground, was released in 2003.[7] It generated three singles: "Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop)", "Danger" and "Back in the Day (Puff)", with the first becoming her second song to reach the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #9. The album was certified gold by the RIAA.[5] Badu's fourth album, New Amerykah Part One, was released in 2008.[8] It spawned two singles: "Honey" and "Soldier". New Amerykah Part Two was released in 2010 and fared well both critically and commercially. It contained the album's lead single "Window Seat", which led to controversy.
Badu's voice has been compared to jazz singer Billie Holiday.[9][10][11] Early in her career, Badu was recognizable for her eccentric style, which often included wearing very large and colorful headwraps. She was a core member of the Soulquarians. As an actress, she has played a number of supporting roles in movies including Blues Brothers 2000, The Cider House Rules and House of D. She also has appeared in the documentaries Before the Music Dies and The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975.
Early life[edit]
Badu was born Erica Abi Wright in Dallas. Her mother raised her, her brother Eevin, and her sister alone after separating from their father, William Wright Jr. The children's maternal and paternal grandmothers often helped look after them. Badu had her first taste of show business at the age of four, singing and dancing at the Dallas Theater Center and The Black Academy of Arts and Letters (TBAAL) under the guidance of her godmother, Gwen Hargrove, and uncle TBAAL founder Curtis King.
By the age of 14, Badu was freestyling for a local radio station alongside such talent as Roy Hargrove. In her youth, she had decided to change the spelling of her first name from Erica to Erykah, as she believed her original name was a "slave name". The term "kah" signifies the inner self. She adopted the surname "Badu" because it is her favorite jazz scat sound; also, among the Akan people in Ghana, it is the term for the 10th-born child.[12]
After graduating from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Badu went on to study theater at Grambling State University, a historically black university. She left the university in 1993 before graduating, to focus more fully on music. During this time, Badu took several minimum-wage jobs to support herself. She taught drama and dance to children at the South Dallas Cultural Center. Working and touring with her cousin, Robert "Free" Bradford, she recorded a 19-song demo, Country Cousins, which attracted the attention of Kedar Massenburg. He set Badu up to record a duet with D'Angelo, "Your Precious Love", and eventually signed her to a record deal with Universal Records.[12]
Career[edit]
1997–1999: Baduizm and Live[edit]
Baduizm, Badu's debut album, was released in early 1997. The album met with critical and commercial success, debuting at number two on the Billboard charts and number one on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[13][14] Baduizm's commercial and critical success helped establish Badu as one of the emerging neo soul genre's leading artists.[15] Her particular style of singing drew many comparisons to Billie Holiday.[16]
Baduizm was certified three times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, Gold by the British Phonographic Industry and the Canadian Recording Industry Association.[5][17][18]
The album produced four singles; the lead single "On & On" was released in December 1996,[19] and reached number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 charts and the UK Singles Charts, as well as making an appearance on the New Zealand charts.[20] The album and lead single also gave Badu her first nomination and win at the Grammy Awards, where "On & On" won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and the album won Best R&B Album.[21][22]
Badu recorded her first live album, Live, while pregnant with Seven, and the release of the recording coincided with his birth.[23] The album was released on November 18, 1997 and reached number four on the US Billboard 200[24]
and number one on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[25][26] The album was certified two times platinum by RIAA for shipments of over two million copies.[5] The album's lead single, "Tyrone", was released in October 1997 and became another R&B hit single. "Tyrone", lyrically, is a song chiding a selfish, cheap, and inattentive boyfriend.[27]
Badu also collaborated with the Roots (who had previously handled production duties on a number of tracks on Baduizm) on their breakthrough 1999 release Things Fall Apart. She was featured on the song "You Got Me", by The Roots and American women rapper Eve. Co-written by Jill Scott, the song peaked at 39 in the US and 31 in the UK. The song went on to win The Roots and Badu a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 1999.[28]
Personal life[edit]
Badu became a vegan in 2006: "Vegan food is soul food in its truest form. Soul food means to feed the soul. And to me, your soul is your intent. If your intent is pure, you are pure."[175] Badu splits her time between her hometown and Fort Greene, New York.[176]
In 1996, Badu became involved with rapper André 3000 of OutKast, with whom she had her first child, a son named Seven Sirius Benjamin, on November 18, 1997.[177] Their relationship ended in 1999. In late 2000, OutKast released the song "Ms. Jackson", which was inspired by André 3000's then relationship with Badu and her mother. The song reached number one on Billboard Hot 100 and would go on to win a Grammy Award.
On July 5, 2004, Badu gave birth to a daughter, Puma Sabti Curry; Puma's father is Texas-based rapper The D.O.C. On February 1, 2009, Badu gave birth to her third child, a girl named Mars Merkaba Thedford, with her boyfriend of five years, rapper Jay Electronica.[178]
For the 2014 Okayplayer platform and web television OkayAfrica TV, Badu had her DNA tested, and genealogists researched her family ancestry. It was revealed that Badu's mitochondrial DNA traced to the Bamileke people of Cameroon in Central Africa.[179][180]
Legal issues and controversies[edit]
On April 2, 2010, Badu was charged with disorderly conduct for appearing nude in Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas while filming the social-political, performance art, self-directed music video for her single "Window Seat". No witnesses called police at the time of the incident, but the Dallas Police Department actively sought witnesses after the release of the video.[181] Sgt. Warren Mitchell said the decision to cite Badu for a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500 came after witness Ida Espinosa, 32, of Vernon, offered a sworn statement to police Thursday, April 1. Espinosa declined to comment to The Associated Press.[182] On April 28, 2010, Badu pleaded not guilty rather than paying the fee by mail.[181][183] On August 13, she paid the $500 ticket and began a term of six months' probation.[184]
In February 2012, Badu's concert was cancelled in Malaysia because it was found that she had applied a temporary tattoo of the word Allah on a part of her body.[185]
In April 2014, Badu came under fire by the US-based Human Rights Foundation, for performing at the birthday celebration of King Mswati III, ruler and monarch of Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland). Mswati, credited as Africa's last absolute monarch, is considered to be a serial human-rights abuser, ruling in luxury in a country infamous for its poverty and spiraling HIV rates. Badu presented Mswati with a $100 bill, and a good-luck stone.[186]
In a January 2018 interview with Vulture, Badu was asked about accusations of antisemitism based on a 2008 Haaretz article which describes her telling a Tel Aviv crowd, "[Louis] Farrakhan is not an anti-Semite. He loves all people." She denied being antisemitic, but said, "I'm a humanist. I see good in everybody. I saw something good in Hitler." After being asked to clarify her comments, Badu praised Hitler's paintings.[187][188]
In the same interview with Vulture, Badu reacted differently than most other American celebrities about Bill Cosby's sexual predation, saying, "I love Bill Cosby, and I love what he's done for the world. But if he's sick, why would I be angry with him?"[189]
In a January 2019 concert, Badu elicited boos from fans after giving support to musician R. Kelly, saying "I dunno how everybody else feel about it but I'm putting up a prayer right now for R. ... I love you. Unconditionally". Badu has been criticized for her perceived support of R. Kelly following the release of Lifetime's Surviving R. Kelly.[190][191][192]
Studio albums
Live albums
Mixtape