Erykah Badu Posing for her High School Senior Picture in 1989.
The Photo at the very bottom was also Taken in 1989.Erica Abi Wright (ššØš«š§ February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by R&B, soul, and hip hop, 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 āQueen of Neo Soulā by music critics.
Erykah Badu was ššØš«š§ in Dallas, Texas. 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 āslave nameā. The term ākahā signifies the inner self. She adopted the surname āBaduā because it is her favorite jazz scat sound; also, among the Akan people in Ghana, it is the term for the 10th-ššØš«š§ š¤š©šŖšš„.
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 š¤š©šŖšš„ren at the South Dallas Cultural Center. Working and touring with her cousin, Robert āFreeā 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 DāAngelo, āYour Precious Loveā, and eventually signed her to a record deal with Universal Records.
Baduās career began after she opened a show for DāAngelo in 1994 in Fort Worth, leading to record label executive Kedar Massenburg signing her to Kedar Entertainment. Her first album, Baduizm, was released in February 1997. It spawned four singles: āOn & Onā, āAppletreeā, āNext Lifetimeā and āOtherside of the Gameā. The album was certified triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Her first live album, Live, was released in November 1997 and was certified double Platinum by the RIAA.
Her second studio album, Mamaās Gun, was released in 2000. It spawned three singles: āBag Ladyā, which became her first top 10 single on the Billboard Hot 100 peaking at #6, āDidnāt Cha Know?ā and āClevaā. The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA. Baduās third album, Worldwide Underground, was released in 2003. It generated three singles: āLove of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop)ā, āDangerā and āBack in the Day (Puff)ā with āLoveā 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. Baduās fourth album, New Amerykah Part One, was released in 2008. It spawned two singles: āHoneyā and āSoldierā. New Amerykah Part Two was released in 2010 and fared well both critically and commercially. It contained the albumās lead single āWindow Seatā, which led to controversy.
Baduās voice has been compared to jazz singer Billie Holiday. 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.AWARDS & NOMINATIONS
In 1997, Badu received twenty nominations and won three, Favorite Female Solo Single for āOn & Onā, Favorite Female Solo Album for Baduizm and Best R&B/Soul or Rap Song of the Year for āOn & Onā at the Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards.
In 1998, Badu received fourteen nominations and won eight, including Favorite R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist at the American Music Awards; Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for āOn & Onā and Best R&B Album for Baduizm at the Grammy Awards; Outstanding New Artist and Outstanding Female Artist at the NAACP Image Awards; Favorite Female Soul/R&B Single for āOn & Onā, Favorite Female Soul/R&B Album for Baduizm and Favorite New R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist for āOn & Onā at the Soul Train Music Awards.
In 2000, Badu received two nominations and won one, Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the Grammy Awards.In 2003, Badu received twelve nominations and won two, including Video of the Year for āLove of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop)ā at the BET Awards and Best Urban/Alternative Performance for āLove of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop)ā at the Grammy Awards.
In 2008, Badu received eleven nominations and won two, including Best Director for āHoneyā at the BET Awards and Best Direction in a Video for āHoneyā at the MTV Video Music Awards. Overall, Badu has won 16 awards from 59 nominations. In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Badu at number 115 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time
