New Amerykah, Erykah Badu’s first album release since 2003's Worldwide Underground, reflects not only the state of Badu, but the state of the country. New Amerykah Part I: The 4th World War, is an imaginative two-part studio project that Badu describes as "the war within…the war we fight with ourselves to become a better and stronger person." Though Badu's multifarious musical roots of soul, jazz, and Hip-Hop do collide to make sweet chaos, it is Badu's organic Hip-Hop sensibilities that pervade her new opus.

Often recognized as a pioneer of the Neo soul movement, Badu enchanted the world with her 5X platinum-selling debut album Baduizm (1997). Her turban-wearing, incense-burning mystique and coy crooning would earn her four Grammys, including Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "On and On." She rode the momentum and released Erykah Badu Live! later that year that showcased her dynamic live performance and gave birth to the feminist anthem "Tyrone."

The multifaceted singer, songwriter, and producer christened the millennium with Mama's Gun, an emotional yet groovy collection of songs represented well by the lead single "Bag Lady," and the teary three-part ballad "Green Eyes." The album went on to sell 2X platinum but marked the beginning of Badu's 3-year hiatus from recording. She broke the silence with the experimental EP, Worldwide Underground, a continuous jam session divided into ten tracks, as the soulful chanteuse reinvented herself once again and brought along her newly founded group Freakquency for production credits.

Musically she has been selling out live concerts and wooing fans worldwide. While it’s been 5 years since her last release, Badu has no problem responding to frequently asked questions about her absence. “Where have I been?” she says sarcastically. “I’m a touring artist and I’ve been touring. Touring is where I create a moment. Recording is where I capture it.”

The once self-described “analog girl in a digital world” now packs a powerful laptop on which she recorded most of her latest project. “Most of the beats on this album, I got from producer’s mix tapes,” Badu explains. “I’d listen to beats online and to others that had been given to me over time. I was on the hunt, putting things together very carefully. It was a great experience.”

Badu, who came into the digital world late, says, “I have Mercury in Aquarius in my chart and that makes it really easy for me to pick up on technology.” From digitally producing her music to managing her own MySpace page, Badu may have to trade in her old title for what one magazine dubs her: the “queen of the digital underground.”

Badu's reconciles the diverse genres that comprise her style. For New Amerykah, she conjures up her Hip-Hop roots that trace back to her days of freestyling on Dallas radio. The album's cover and interior art, a collaboration between Badu and graphic artist Emek, The Thinking Man's Poster Artist, uses symbols of American culture to reflect Badu's rich beat perspective on a myriad of issues – from music, religion, economic empowerment, global warming and “Big Brother” to our broken emergency response and healthcare systems. Badu’s abstract fro is filled with spray cans, dollar signs, power plants, handcuffs, broken chains, bar codes, drugs, guns and other emblems reflective of modern day society. At the same time, Badu sprinkles images of life, love, hope, faith, family, and music to deliver a powerful message of self-revolution. To drive the point home, Badu flashes her knuckles, which are donned with the ‘80s style gold New Amerykah nameplate.

For this first installment of New Amerykah, Badu enlisted some of the most revered Hip-Hop beatsmiths in the industry. Producers Mike “Chav” Chavaria, Sa-Ra, 9th Wonder, Madlib, Shafiq Husayn, Om’Mas Keith, Taz Arnold, Kariem Riggins, Amir ‘?uestlove’ Thompson of the Roots and James Poyser lend their wax expertise, molding New Amerykah Part One into a funky hybrid of Hip-Hop Soul.

The buzz factor for the 9th Wonder produced "Honey," New Amerykah's first single, harks back to the radio success of "On and On" produced by Jah Born. "We need cookout music, music that your auntie does the electric slide to while holding a B-B-Q rib with one pinky in the air," says 9th Wonder. Whereas "On and On" was calm, bluesy, and poetic, "Honey" is a retro, bouncy, percussive, hit about the deliciousness of requited love. “It’s so Hip-Hop and grimy. It was just undeniable from the beginning," shares Badu.

The video, written, and directed by Badu, sets Badu in a classic Hip-Hop scenario as she browses through vinyls at a local record shop. By the end of the jam, Badu finds her face super-imposed on the covers, the likes of Nas' Illmatic, De La Soul’s 3 Feet High and Rising, and Eric B. and Rakim’s Paid In Full. Shafiq and Taz Arnold, from the hit production team Sa-Ra, make cameo appearances. In another striking moment, “Honey” is interrupted by a video-in-a-video, as an excerpt of “Annie,” recorded by Badu’s super-group side project Edith Funkier, plays on the store’s video screen. "We wanted a video that spoke to Badu's eclecticism,” says Chris Robinson, the film’s co-director. “Those album covers represent all the influences that she embodies."

Badu's fans will be pleased at how she churns the musically emotional flavors brewing within her into an inventive sound. She recruited Jay Electronic (Control Freq Records) and Shafiq (Sa-Ra) as associate producers to provide creative input throughout the entire project. She also stayed loyal to the core that contributed to Worldwide Underground's success. Chris Bell and Tom Soars, who assisted on the EP, recorded and mixed, respectively, on New Amerykah while polishing Badu's signature boom-bap sound on the album.

Hip-Hop’s presence drenches almost every track on New Amerykah, especially "Telephone," Badu's artful tribute to the late J Dilla featuring James Poysner and Amir of The Roots. The words were inspired by a conversation between Dilla and his mother, “Ma Dukes” Yancey on the day Dilla transitioned. The moving vignette inspired Badu's lyrics, "fly away to heaven brother celebrate for me brother/ fly away to heaven brother put in a word for me." Badu stays true to her 4th World War concept as she battles with the lost of her friend and musical contemporary.

In "The Healer," produced by Madlib, Badu poetically advocates for Hip-Hop as the world's cure-all music genre. Instead of the lyrically involved ballads that characterized her previous releases, she employs more pithy yet philosophic refrains that echo throughout the song. In this Hip-Hop anthem, she chants, "humdililah, Allah, Jehovah, Yahweh, Dios, Maat, Jah , Ras Stafari, fire, dance, sex, music, Hip-Hop.../ it's bigger than religion." Madlib's imperious drums and sharp bells add a haunting overtone to Badu's vocals, making her message all the more poignant.

New Amerykah revisits many song concepts from the ghost of Badu’s past, giving them a fresh new tinge. Whereas "Other Side of the Game" and "Danger" diagnosed the brother who worked the "complex occupation," "Soldier" finds a mother actively steering her son from the thrills and perils of drug dealing—another type of war that Part One addresses. Whereas "Green Eyes" broke down the addictive cycle of unrequited love, "Me" is more introspective, as Badu celebrates her shortcomings and embraces motherhood, femininity, and body image. “Amerykahan Promise,” which features the voice of Om’Mas Keith of SA-RA, is a rework of the Roy Ayers ‘70s tune.

Guest performers on the album include Bilal, Roy Hargrove, Omar Rodríguez-López (Mars Volta), Amen Khum Rah, and Georgia Ann Muldrow.

With its converging influences and the 5-year period it took Badu produce it, New Amerykah Part One: The 4th World War encourages its listeners to celebrate discord and embrace their own inner struggles. Badu obeyed her inner colors and peacefully allowed them to coalesce into a beautiful Hip-Hop Soul brainchild, “I don’t feel pressure putting out a new album," says Badu. “I’m not concerned with what other artists are doing. I’m always competing with my last album. Where was I last time? How do I move to the next level? That’s what I focus on.”

Track Listing
Amerykan Promise
The Healer
Me
My People
Soldier
The Cell
Twinkle
Master Teacher
That Hump
Telephone
Honey (Bonus track)

*Edith Funker members are: Erykah Badu, Doyle Bramhall II, Wendy & Lisa (of Prince’s band The Revolution) ?uestlove, James Poyser, Mike Elizondo, Susannah Melvoin, and occasional special guest DJ Jazzy Jeff. The song “Annie” does not appear on NEW AMERYKAH (PART I).