After a ten-year break from her last studio record, Erykah Badu revealed in a Billboard interview that she is currently working on her next album. Major details are still unclear; there is neither an official title nor an estimated release date. She did announce, however, that The Alchemist will be the sole producer, according to Billboard.
The record has allegedly become the primary focus in Badu's life. Finding some inspiration from her children, who help her to "keep tabs" on the rap artists of today, she told Billboard the following about her recent activity:
“Rap is the people. Hip-hop is the people. It’s the folks. It’s the tribe. I have the luxury of experiencing having children who I watch grow up and love and encourage very much, and I cannot separate them when I see artists who are that age coming up. That’s how they feel. They are continuing the tradition.”
Badu's last big release was the But You Caint Use My Phone mixtape released in November 2015. The tape explored cellphone addiction and remixed samples of other popular songs about telephone usage (Drake's "Hotline Bling," Usher’s “U Don’t Have To Call,” and New Edition’s “Mr. Telephone Man,” to name a few). She recorded it in less than two weeks with producer Zach Witness after spontaneously posting the lead single "Cel U Lar Device" to SoundCloud. Her last full length studio record was 2010's New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh).
During her long hiatus, Badu mostly collaborated with other artists, including her recent feature on Rapsody's Grammy-winning single "3:AM."
When asked about her break from writing and recording, Badu said, "I tour eight months out of the year for the past 25 years...That’s what I do. I am a performance artist. I am not a recording artist. I come from the theater." She continued to say that she typically records music with a vision of its live rendition, and that some songs eventually released on albums will only be recorded as live versions.
Again, not much is known about the new record. Erykah Badu has seemingly been hard at work for months, however, as teasers posted on her Instagram suggest.
What do you think?
Show comments / Leave a comment