Erykah Badu (alternatively known as Medulla Oblongata) is an inviting force. She is an equal parts ethereal and down-to-earth artist. Her music is notorious for her pro-Black views, spiritual imagery and quirky lyrical themes that range from window seats to ladies with too many bags. For all of her wordly wisdom and awesomeness, Erykah feels like that cool auntie you see every few months at the function who brings gifts for the kids to gasp over, as she laughingly recalls her global expeditions to foreign countries and exotic islands with a plate of food in her hand; in other words, Erykah is family. And you can see it in the way she interacts with fans online and, of course, onstage.
It felt like a giant family reunion at Erykah's King's theatre concert. Her gift to us eager kids was her eclectic musical talents. Erykah looked like she was straight off of a plane or bus ready to visit her mama and folks at a cookout, dressed averagely in a trenchcoat and top hat (she joked about her mother begging her not to wear "the Pharrell hat" even though, as she mischievously commented before cutting herself off, "I wore it first"). The audience gave her a warm and eager welcome after waiting excruciatingly long for the songstress to come onstage (multiple accounts give conflicting reasons for the delay, from technical difficulties in the theatre to Erykah fulfilling her doula responsibilities). But once the spotlight shone on her glowing face and Badu began singing her bubbly and angelic greeting "Hello hello, hey, hello hello", all was forgiven.
I can't tell you about all of what happened during the course of the performance. Erykah implored us, her relatives, to "put the phones away... What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. What happens at Erykah's show stays at Erykah's show." I can tell you, however, that the night was filled with great tunes, top notch stage lighting, and show goers dancing like nobody's business. I can tell you that I lost my voice the next day. I can tell you that by the time she began to sing Call Tyrone, the audience swarmed to the bottom of the stage at the encouragement of Erkyah herself. I can tell you that Erykah gave a stirring monologue at the close of the night imparting the universal message that no matter what you do and who you are, whether you're the protestor or the bigot, change will come.
Like any family reunion, there were bumps along the way. There was a certain undertone of improvisation throughout the concert. Badu free-styled body movements in a very naturalistic, playful way that was quirky but middling, and she often stretched her voice to ear-splitting degrees. Badu is not your polished, prettified musical performer with choreographed steps or perfectly timed tracklists, nor does she pretend to be. Some early technical difficulties lead the set off to a shaky start. However, these were not aided by the fact that it was Erykah's first time performing the music off her newest mixtape But You Caint Use My Phone. Naturally when they go to an iconic singer's show, audiences want to hear their favorite songs.
Critiquing the looseness of Erykah's show feels moot for it is exactly what makes her presence so relatable. You never feel like you're unworthy of her company. Someone as sincere and auntie-esque as Erykah Badu isn't going to always play by the rules. Her show isn't going to be the prim and practiced world tour display that a popstar's would be. She'll cuss in abundence. She'll joke about her wig. She'll freestyle in the middle of a song. She'll be irreverent. She'll be ornery. And you may find her unpalatable. But if you can appreciate her in all of her carefree glory, you'll also find her brilliant.
