Erica (slave name) + y+ kah (one’s inner self) + badu (jazz scat sound) = Erykah Badu
Erica Wright. Sara Bellum. Fat Belly Bella. Medulla Oblongata. Low Down Loretta Brown. Analogue Girl in a Digital World. Manuela Maria Mexico. Annie. She goes by many names, but the world knows her as Erykah Badu; the brown sista with a unique style and voice to match. Ms. Badu has contributed greatly to black culture and music, becoming a front-runner in Neo-Soul. However, to really appreciate her greatness, one has to go all the way back to the beginning, preferably February 11, 1997. On this date, she dropped her debut album Baduizm, delivering an album that is timeless and began a streak of great albums to follow. This year will mark twenty years since the album’s release and what better way to celebrate than to reminiscent on the greatness that is Baduizm.
Baduizm: Badu ({in Arabic {manifest truth and light}) + -izm {slang for weed} = designed to you get you high
As a youth, Erykah Badu was always involved in the arts and music. She attended arts schools and enveloped himself into the music scene in her hometown of Dallas, Texas. She freestyled and became a dj for a local radio station, dubbing herself DJ Apples. She also majored in theatre at Grambling State University and ultimately, music won out over her studies. She left college and her cousin, Robert Bradford, and she recorded a demo entitled Country Cousins. Eventually, her work garnered the attention of Kedar Massenburg. After a duet with D’Angelo, Erykah was able to acquire her own record deal with Universal Records. The makings of the album took place between three different states: New York, Philly, and Dallas. In an era of R&B music that was filled with themes of love and loss, Badu took a different approach. Pulling from one of her inspirations, Marvin Gaye, she created an album filled with themes of freedom, consciousness, blackness, and intellect, with a song here and there about love and heartbreak.
“Appletree” discusses the art of picking the right friends, ones that advance you spiritually and intellectually. She states that she “picks her friends like I pick my fruit / My Granny told me that when I was only a youth.” Fruits are at their best when they are ripe and Erykah advises having friends that are of the highest stature and that are good for her in all aspects of life. The song also seems to speak of growth and the building of a family, or a cipher in her words. In the song “Drama”, she reflects on the ways of the world. She cites race relations and unemployment as some of the issues we must conquer while encouraging educating the youth for a better tomorrow. Although “4 Leaf Clover” seems to denote luck, it also seems to discuss freedom and spirituality as Badu describes flying, having no fear, and taking chances. The production of the album reaches back to the jazz era as she utilizes drums, horns, and bass. The lyricism on the album is very reminiscent of hip hop in its narrative abilities and consciousness. This due in part to her love of the genre and possibly her collaborative efforts with The Roots while she was in Philly, which helped to produce songs like “Sometimes” and “Otherside of the Game”. The album is also exemplary of blackness and culture that trickles down into the music videos and her aesthetic. In “Otherside of the Game”, she showcases head wraps, black art, and most importantly, black love. In an era, where R&B seemed to function by a specific formula, Erykah Badu was breaking the mold.
Others seemed to have the same sentiments when it came to the album as it debuted at number two on the Billboard Charts and number one on the Hip Hop/R&B charts. It was certified three times platinum and won her a Grammy for Best R&B album and for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. She also received an NAACP award for New Artist and Outstanding Female Artist Performance. At the Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards, she won Favorite Solo Single for “On & On”, Favorite Female Solo Album, and Best R&B/Soul or Rap/Song of the Year for “On & On”.
“Baduizm are the things I’ve learned over time. Those things that motivate me, inspire me.”
Although subjective, Erykah Badu epitomizes soul, eccentricity, and authenticity. From her style to her vernacular, she has remained consistent and original since the birth of Baduizm. With the release of the album, followed a career with an immense amount of success and acclaim. She has not managed to disappoint fans yet and continues to add onto her list of accomplishments. Outside of being an artist, she has become a midwife, actress, activist, and mother. She has improvised a song live on stage and told audiences, “Now keep in mind that I’m an artist and I’m sensitive about my sh*t.” Erykah Badu has done it all off of the hard work and creativity put into a dream that has paid off for twenty years and counting. Here’s to Baduizm.
