Tag: Erykah Badu

Erykah Badu

Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), better known by her stage name Erykah Badu is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, record producer, activist and actress. Her work includes elements from R&B, hip hop and jazz. She is best known for her role in the rise of the neo soul sub-genre. She is known as the “First Lady of Neo-Soul” or the “Queen of Neo-Soul”.

Early in her career, Badu was recognizable for wearing very large and colorful headwraps. For her musical sensibilities, she has often been compared to jazz great Billie Holiday. She was a core member of the Soulquarians, and is also an actress having appeared in a number of films playing a range of supporting roles in movies such as Blues Brothers 2000, The Cider House Rules and House of D. She also speaks at length in the documentaries Before the Music Dies and “The Black Power Mixtapes.”

Erykah Badu was born Erica Abi Wright in Dallas, Texas on February 26, 1971. Her mother raised her, her brother (Jabbada), and her sister (Nayrok) alone after their father, William Wright Jr., deserted the family early in their lives. To provide for her family, the children’s grandmother often helped looking after them while Erykah’s mother, Kolleen Maria Gipson (Wright), performed as an actress in theatrical productions. Influenced by her mother, Erykah had her first taste of show business at the age of 4, singing and dancing with her mother at the Dallas Theatre Centre. Erykah Badu was the owner of Focal point in Dallas, Texas.

By the age of 14, Erykah was free styling for a local radio station alongside such talent as Roy Hargrove. In her early youth, she decided to change the spelling of her name from Erica to Erykah, as she firmly believed her original name to be her slave name. The term ‘kah’ signifies the inner self. Badu is her favorite jazz scat sound and is also an African name for the 10th born child used for the Akan people in Ghana.

Upon graduating from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Badu went on to study theater at the historically black college Grambling State University. Concentrating on music full-time, she left the university in 1993 before graduating and took on 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, who set Badu up to record a duet with D’Angelo, “Your Precious Love,” and eventually signed her to a record deal with Universal Imperial Records.

After 10 years as a vegetarian, 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.” Badu splits her time between Dallas, Texas and Fort Greene, New York.

In 1995, 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. Their relationship ended sometime in 1999. Their relationship inspired André 3000 to write the song “Ms. Jackson”.

In 2000, Badu was in a romantic relationship with fellow Soulquarian Common; their relationship ended in 2002. On July 5, 2004, Badu gave birth to a daughter, Puma Sabti Curry; Puma’s father is West Coast rapper The D.O.C., originally from Dallas. 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.

Written by Dianne Washington

Erykah Badu

Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), better known by her stage name Erykah Badu is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, record producer, activist and actress. Her work includes elements from R&B, hip hop and jazz. She is best known for her role in the rise of the neo soul sub-genre. She is known as the “First Lady of Neo-Soul” or the “Queen of Neo-Soul”.Early in her career, Badu was recognizable for wearing very large and colorful headwraps. For her musical sensibilities, she has often been compared to jazz great Billie Holiday. She was a core member of the Soulquarians, and is also an actress having appeared in a number of films playing a range of supporting roles in movies such as Blues Brothers 2000, The Cider House Rules and House of D. She also speaks at length in the documentaries Before the Music Dies and “The Black Power Mixtapes”Erykah Badu was born Erica Abi Wright in Dallas, Texas on February 26, 1971. Her mother raised her, her brother (Jabbada), and her sister (Nayrok) alone after their father, William Wright Jr., deserted the family early in their lives. To provide for her family, the children’s grandmother often helped looking after them while Erykah’s mother, Kolleen Maria Gipson (Wright), performed as an actress in theatrical productions. Influenced by her mother, Erykah had her first taste of show business at the age of 4, singing and dancing with her mother at the Dallas Theatre Centre. Erykah Badu was the owner of Focal point in Dallas, Texas.By the age of 14, Erykah was free-styling for a local radio station alongside such talent as Roy Hargrove. In her early youth, she decided to change the spelling of her name from Erica to Erykah, as she firmly believed her original name to be her slave name. The term ‘kah’ signifies the inner self. Badu is her favorite jazz scat sound and is also an African name for the 10th born child used for the Akan people in Ghana.Upon graduating from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Badu went on to study theater at the historically black college Grambling State University. Concentrating on music full-time, she left the university in 1993 before graduating and took on 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, who set Badu up to record a duet with D’Angelo, “Your Precious Love,” and eventually signed her to a record deal with Universal Imperial Records.After 10 years as a vegetarian, 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.” Badu splits her time between Dallas, Texas and Fort Greene, New York.In 1995, 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. Their relationship ended sometime in 1999. Their relationship inspired André 3000 to write the song “Ms. Jackson”.In 2000, Badu was in a romantic relationship with fellow Soulquarian Common; their relationship ended in 2002. On July 5, 2004, Badu gave birth to a daughter, Puma Sabti Curry; Puma’s father is West Coast rapper The D.O.C., originally from Dallas. 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.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.” Badu splits her time between Dallas, Texas and Fort Greene, New York.In 1995, 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. Their relationship ended in 1999.On July 5, 2004, Badu gave birth to a daughter, Puma Sabti Curry; Puma’s father is West Coast rapper The D.O.C., originally from Dallas. 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.For the 2014 Okayplayer platform and web television OkayAfrica TV, Badu had her DNA tested, and genealogists researched her family ancestry. Badu’s DNA revealed from her mother’s that she is partly of West and Central Africa descent, specifically the Bamileke people of Cameroon.

Written by Dianne Washington

Erykah Badu

Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), better known by her stage name Erykah Badu is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, record producer, activist and actress. Her work includes elements from R&B, hip hop and jazz. She is best known for her role in the rise of the neo soul sub-genre. She is known as the “First Lady of Neo-Soul” or the “Queen of Neo-Soul”.

Early in her career, Badu was recognizable for wearing very large and colorful headwraps. For her musical sensibilities, she has often been compared to jazz great Billie Holiday. She was a core member of the Soulquarians, and is also an actress having appeared in a number of films playing a range of supporting roles in movies such as Blues Brothers 2000, The Cider House Rules and House of D. She also speaks at length in the documentaries Before the Music Dies and “The Black Power Mixtapes”

Erykah Badu was born Erica Abi Wright in Dallas, Texas on February 26, 1971. Her mother raised her, her brother (Jabbada), and her sister (Nayrok) alone after their father, William Wright Jr., deserted the family early in their lives. To provide for her family, the children’s grandmother often helped looking after them while Erykah’s mother, Kolleen Maria Gipson (Wright), performed as an actress in theatrical productions. Influenced by her mother, Erykah had her first taste of show business at the age of 4, singing and dancing with her mother at the Dallas Theatre Centre. Erykah Badu was the owner of Focal point in Dallas, Texas.

By the age of 14, Erykah was free-styling for a local radio station alongside such talent as Roy Hargrove. In her early youth, she decided to change the spelling of her name from Erica to Erykah, as she firmly believed her original name to be her slave name. The term ‘kah’ signifies the inner self. Badu is her favorite jazz scat sound and is also an African name for the 10th born child used for the Akan people in Ghana.

Upon graduating from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Badu went on to study theater at the historically black college Grambling State University. Concentrating on music full-time, she left the university in 1993 before graduating and took on 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, who set Badu up to record a duet with D’Angelo, “Your Precious Love,” and eventually signed her to a record deal with Universal Imperial Records.

After 10 years as a vegetarian, 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.” Badu splits her time between Dallas, Texas and Fort Greene, New York.

In 1995, 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. Their relationship ended sometime in 1999. Their relationship inspired André 3000 to write the song “Ms. Jackson”.

In 2000, Badu was in a romantic relationship with fellow Soulquarian Common; their relationship ended in 2002. On July 5, 2004, Badu gave birth to a daughter, Puma Sabti Curry; Puma’s father is West Coast rapper The D.O.C., originally from Dallas. 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.

Written by Dianne Washington

Baduizm: The 20th Anniversary

Good music makes me happy but classic shit gets me excited, especially when the anniversary of that specific classic arrives. Sometimes I’m prepared and other times I’m reminded the day of and it catches me off guard like “Oh shit! That’s a CLASSIC!” 20 years ago on February 11th, 1997, hip hop and neo soul artist Erykah Badu burst onto the scene with her debut album “Baduizm.” I honestly don’t feel worthy enough to even write about this masterpiece of an album because Erykah is another level with her intellect and word play. It took me years to understand Erykah and other women who are just like her because I’m used to hood girls and there’s nothing wrong with a hood chick but Erykah is the intellectual black woman who represents a totally different type of creativity that’s rare in the hood. She’s the one who burns an incense and sips on tea with an ankh symbol around her neck, which represents life and completeness. Erykah explains fully what it means on her Live album that also came out 20 years ago. Erykah’s sound had a jazz vibe to it but she definitely is hip hop. It’s not that in your face, kinda rough stuff, it’s that soothing but knowledgeable stuff. It’s honest, it’s real, it’s unapologetic, it’s consciousness, it’s celebrating the beauty of being a black woman whose comfortable in her skin and not afraid of what the masses thinks. It’s inspirational and one of the first of it’s kind, along with D’Angelo’s “Brown Sugar” in 1995 and Maxwell’s “Urban Hang Suite” in 1996 with that neo soul sound. I consider Erykah the Queen of Neo Soul but I read that she doesn’t want to be called that. It keeps her in a box. To me, she’ll always be the Queen of neo soul. “Baduizm” means to be “high” off of her. “Izm” is slang for weed. Just add the “Badu” in front of it and we got this masterpiece which is called “Baduizm.” The album starts off with a joint that’s one of my favorites on the album. “Rimshot” has a catchy hook and a dope beat. “I wanna rimshot, heyyyy diggy diggy.” When I’m spinning and I put this album, this joint definitely stays on a loop. “On & On”, which is the first single from the album, is the next joint on the album. This is the first song that comes to my mind when I think of Erykah. It was this song when Erykah said “I was born underwater with 3 dollars and 6 dimes” and it went over a lot of people’s heads. She was basically saying she was born complete. Goes back to the ankh symbol that I mentioned earlier. Then it’s “Appletree.” Erykah says in the beginning of the song that she has some food but not the edible kind, she has some “food for thought.” As the song goes on she talks about picking her friends like she picks her fruit. Being smart and careful about who the people she keeps in her circle. It’s also something that can make a person “complete.” The company you keep can sometimes make you feel complete if they’re the right ones. The ones whose willing to be honest and real about who they are and something they’re not. “Otherside of the Game” is another favorite of mine on this album. Every time I hear the song, I can see the entire music video in my head with her and Andre 3000 in the studio apartment by themselves. Erykah at the time was pregnant with their son Seven. It’s a song and video that’s about being in a complicated relationship but she stays by his side anyways. The next joint is “Sometimes…” but it’s the #9 Mix. A shorter version. I’ll get back to this joint when the full version comes up. LOL! The next joint “Next Lifetime” is hands down, my all time favorite Erykah Badu joint. Everything about the song keeps going back to it every single time. The beat, that bass, the groove of it, it’s a smooth ass song for real. A song about Erykah being in a relationship already, currently, at the moment but low key wanting to be with another man by saying she guesses that she’ll see him in the “next lifetime.” “Afro (Freestyle Skit)”, a very organic and original freestyle about picking an afro and going to enjoy a Wu Tang concert. Definitely one of my favorite skits from any album in the 90’s. “Certainly” is a smooth but jazz influenced joint. When I listen to this joint, I picture myself in a poetry lounge with incense burning and a man on stage playing bass and of course Erykah standing on stage with her cup of tea on the side and she’s sharing knowledge and giving us a little bit of her sassy but funny and cool personality. “4 Leaf Clover”, for those who didn’t know that song is a remake. My mom played this joint to death. I mean all the time. It made me forget that it was from this album for a while. “No Love” to me is the most underrated song on the album. It’s a nice R&B joint with a vibe. Something to play on a beautiful Saturday morning. Ironically, it’s Saturday but it just hit noon as I’m writing this. “Drama” is the only song on the album to me that doesn’t leave an impression like the rest of the album does but it’s not a bad song. It’s actually really dope and I like the hook but it’s not the song I’ll remember first from the album. Now finally, we get to “Sometimes….” This joint was on constant replay and on a loop for hours the first time I heard it. That beat makes you nod and sway and sing along to the song. “Where did the love gooooooo?” Another favorite of mine on the album. Big time. Then Erykah has a “flipped” version of “Certainly.” I definitely prefer this version more. The hip hop in me automatically fell for this version more than the other one that’s earlier in the album and the album ends with a continuation of “Rimshot.” A nice applause for such an amazing album. Definitely one of the albums anniversary I was waiting for and I was reminded two days ago by a friend on Facebook. He was posting about Erykah and how long it took for him to understand her lyrics. He also posted her “Live” album, which will be 20 in November but Erykah is definitely one of music’s greatest of all time for her positive energy and spirit and her being so knowledgeable. I do wish to meet Erykah someday. Such a beautiful woman as well. She’s so different and definitely marches to the sound of her own drum without knocking others for what they do. Something that I recently learned and someone reminded me of that and going through masterpiece reminded me of how inspiring Erykah is in that way too.