| NEWS &
UPDATES |
| March 21,
2010 |
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 Multiple Grammy
Award-winning singer, songwriter,
producer, and actress ERYKAH BADU
has revealed the cover artwork for her
upcoming fifth studio album, NEW
AMERYKAH PART TWO: RETURN OF THE ANKH,
which will be released by Universal
Motown Records on 3.30 2010 AD (((333))).
The cover art for NEW AMERYKAH PART
TWO is a collaboration between ERYKAH
BADU and famed artist and poster
designer EMEK, who also designed
the inspired packaging for 2008’s New
Amerykah Part One: 4th World War.
The new album cover depicts an underwater
image of BADU wearing a suit of
armor that symbolizes the tough exterior
she developed to protect herself from the
harsh realities of life. The armor is her
old shell and now she’s liberating
herself from it by climbing out of her
own head so that she can be reborn. Her
tuning fork is summoning the vibrations
of the universe and the purple-colored
tree of life and purple sky represent the
7th Chakra—the Crown Chakra right
above her third eye shield, which
represents peace, wisdom, and
spirituality. The numerical theme of
three is symbolized by three moons, three
hidden babies, three trees, and three
ankhs. Closer inspection reveals that BADU’s
shoulders are surrounded by many of the
same objects that filled her abstract
afro on the cover of New Amerykah
Part One, including handcuffs, a
foreclosed home, fast food, cigarettes,
broken chains, and a military tank. Here,
those items represent refuse and rubble
from which new life grows into a vibrant
garden of colorful flowers blossoming all
around her. Working with ERYKAH
always brings out the best in me,”
says EMEK. “I have worked
with hundreds of bands and I have to say
that she is pretty unique. The amount of
time and energy she spends on all aspects
of her life. She is very creative and
hands-on, but she also respects and
encourages the creativity in others.”
In keeping with the concept of the cover
art, NEW AMERYKAH PART TWO: RETURN
OF THE ANKH taps into BADU’s
emotional side by thematically focusing
on romance and relationships. “With Part
One, I was standing at an apex,
looking at what was going on around me
politically, socially, and economically,”
BADU explains. “With PART
TWO, I’m hovering over me,
looking at what’s going on inside of
me.” |
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| March 10,
2010 |
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| March 4,
2010 |
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Rolling Stone: At
noon yesterday, Erykah Badu strolled into
the cramped, freezing Studio 6B at New
York’s NBC Studios in Rockefeller
Center to rehearse “Window
Seat” for Late Night With Jimmy
Fallon. The singer, who’s
prepping for the release of New
Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh
on March 30th, arrived in a Slash-style
top hat (which she wore on-air) atop her
waist-long dreadlocks and walked straight
into the center of the action, where a
seven-piece band, including Roots drummer
?uestlove, had been warming up, running
through the tune’s silken groove
over and over again. Badu offered a few
musical directions regarding the bass and
her backup singers, and rehearsed the
song with her eyes closed, in deep focus.
If Badu was nervous when the show taped
several hours later, nobody could tell.
(...) Keep an eye out for Rolling
Stone’s
feature on the singer in an upcoming
issue. (...)
Furthermore, in our new issue’s
Spring Music Preview Badu reveals that
she recorded “Window Seat” in
her shower to achieve the track’s
moody vibe: “I wanted to sound like
I was in a tunnel. I got my laptop and
closed the door.”
You can download the video from the show
by clicking thumbs below. Click here
to see captures I've made. |
 
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| March 3,
2010 |
Multi-platinum-selling,
Grammy-winning singer-songwriter-actress
ERYKAH BADU will kick off a run of TV
appearances tonight, March 3,
on NBC’s Late
Night with Jimmy Fallon
with a performance of “Window Seat,”
the lead single from her forthcoming
album NEW AMERYKAH PART TWO: RETURN OF
THE ANKH, which will be released by
Universal Motown Records on March 30.
Badu has also announced upcoming
television appearances on:
- The Wendy
Williams Show (March 25),
- Good Day
New York (March 26),
- Jimmy
Kimmel Live (March 30),
- The
Wanda Sykes Show (April 3),
- Chelsea
Lately (April 5),
- The
Mo’Nique Show (TBA). |
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| Now available at iTunes
and Amazon.com, “Window
Seat” has already been heating
up airwaves. The single is the No. 1 most-added
track at Urban AC Mediabase and Urban AC
R&R, and the No. 1 Greatest Gainer on
the BDS Urban AC chart. “Window
Seat” was co-produced by Erykah Badu
and James Poyser on keys with Ahmir
“?uestlove” Thompson from The
Roots on drums. With lyrics like,
“Can I get a window seat? /
Don’t want nobody next to me / I
just wanna take it out of town / A look
around / And a safe touch down,” Okayplayer.com
hails it as a “mellowed out
anthem” for frequent flyers. Rolling
Stone magazine says it’s “a
smoothly schizophrenic quiet-stormer.”
And Vibe.com describes the
infectious single as “a throwback
soul groove that’s driven by a live
jazz bassline (a theme throughout NEW
AMERYKAH PART TWO) that could have
been plucked straight off [1997’s] Baduizm.”
NEW AMERYKAH PART TWO: RETURN OF THE ANKH
features contributions from some of the
most talented, groundbreaking,
underground producers and engineers in
the hip-hop game, including 9th
Wonder, Madlib, James Poyser, Sa-Ra’s
Shafiq Husayn, Ahmir “?uestlove”
Thompson, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Jah Born,
R.C. Williams, Ta’Raach, Karriem
Riggins, and the late J Dilla. “We
used a lot of analog instruments—harps,
strings, drums, piano, and even a
Theremin—to give the album that
sonic feel,” said Badu.
“There’s a strong undercurrent
of bottom, a rumbling to these songs that
feels good to me. It feels like a hug.” |
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| March 2,
2010 |
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From Erykah's
Official Street Team: "i
will be performing ‘window
seat’ on jimmy fallon Wednesday
night march 3rd. ?uesto & poyser from
the soul aquarians & the roots
will be joining me…. more to
come…peace and light".
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| February 25,
2010 |
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Check out this
beautiful outtake of Erykah by Cleo
Sullivan. Click thumb on the left to see
it. Thx to Roxana for it!
Erykah is
featured in the latest issue of the
Rolling Stone. Click here to see it. |
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| February 25,
2010 |
| Erykah is going
to perform at the Waterfront Theatre in
Miami, FL on Thursday, April 8th, 2010.
Check out the beautiful ad below. |
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| February 14,
2010 |
| Erykah Badu
performed the James Taylor's cover "You've
Got A Friend" after the Taco Bell
Skills Challenge on All-Star Saturday
Night, part of 2010 NBA All-Star Weekend
at American Airlines Center on February
13, 2010 in Dallas, Texas. Click thumbs
below to see photos from the performance
and backstage, 'play' to see the video
and here to see captures
I've made. |
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| February 10, 2010 |
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Through her Twitter Erykah
published the first single from Part
Two: Return Of The Ankh called Window
Seat. Click 'play' below to listen
to it. We are waiting for your comments! Here you can find the
lyrics for the song. Also, check out the
artwork for the first single by clicking
thumb below.
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Mars is turning 1
today! Happy Birthday from all fans and e-b.com!
Congratulations to Erykah and Jay for
raising a beautiful new human being and
for being wonderful parents. |
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