East/West unity is the best kind, maaaaaan~~
The legendary Erykah Badu graced Japan with her neo-soul presence, performing her hit single On & On from her debut 1997 album Baduizm. It’s always a beautiful thing when cultures unite and blend and transcend their differences, melting within good sound waves. This video is so important!
Also, peep the backup singer with the long braids reaching down to her feet! Sister is giving me so much LIFE!!
For this episode of Most Valid Reason, we had the opportunity to film the one and only Erykah Badu performing on stage, by mounting two comparatively small MVR cameras on their respective, enormous cranes in addition to some more cameras we placed in various spots on stage. This way we were able to capture Erykah from various angles as well as members of her band. The song we decided to feature was “On & On”, the hit single off her ’97 debut album. To most fans, this jam continues to live on as one of the first Neo-Soul classics (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CPCs…). In this video, she emerges on stage with the same-looking turban she wore back in ’97 when she first stepped on the scene. As she did back then, Erykah still embodies the Philadelphia sound, notably those including the works of Bob Power, The Roots, James Poyser, and others.
Erykah Badu grew up in Dallas, TX, where she began her career rapping by the name Erykah Lyte, while working as a waitress on the side. Later in 1994 she opened for D’Angelo, allowing herself to be discovered by music executive Kedar Massenburg who later orchestrated Erykah Badu’s debut into the Neo-Soul limelight. Before her debut however, she had already gained some attention via her duet with D’Angelo for the Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell cover of “Your Precious Love”.
(Source: VICE Japan)