Erykah Badu "Honey"
From the relaxed boho-soul grooves of her stellar debut Baduizm to the chaotic jam sessions of Worldwide Underground, Erykah Badu has never fashioned herself a radio-ready artist, yet one of the shining lights of the ’90′s neo-soul movement retains an impressive ability to keep fans crossing over to her every creative whim. Even when she opted for the more accessible choice of using a Dr. Dre beat for the single version of “Bag Lady”, Badu’s innate artiness transcended the obvious move, thanks to a timeless lyrical metaphor and the cheap-looking, self-directed music video that still achieved major airtime.
Her latest musical curveball is new single, “Honey”, a old-school-laced midtempo anchored in squelchy funk bits (it was produced by 9th Wonder) and a tale of one-sided romance. Like the greatest R&B records, “Honey” takes you on a pleasant ride, it’s warm, soulful groove providing the perfect pace for Badu to convey her cloudy-eyed frustrations.
Tagging the object of her affection a “bumblebee” for the sweetness he emits, Badu begs to know if he carries the same sort of feelings for her as well. “Everytime that I turn around/ Love for you but you can’t be found,” she hopelessly emotes, chasing him all around town to nab an “interview” so she can really see what’s up from his perspective. The song’s listless nature adds a sense of unattainable closure to her predicament but that isn’t a bad thing at all. Because she never gets an affirmed answer from her boo, the song’s precious, dreamy mood isn’t lost and the listener has the luxury of enjoying endless layers of ad-libbed longing from the singer’s brassy chops.
After her drowsy contribution to Wu Tang Clan’s much ballyhooed Beatles re-working “The Heart Gently Weeps”, it’s nice to hear Erykah sounding so alive here. Look for her new album, the very “Badu-ishly” titled The Kabah to hit stores in February.
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