MTV Newsroom › Erykah-Badu

Lady Gaga Bares Her Butt For Born This Way, Adds To Legacy Of Pop Star Backsides

Posted 1/3/11 2:00 pm EST by in Music


Lady Gaga has always promised to put it all out there for her fans on her upcoming album Born This Way, and when she announced the release dates of the album and her new single, she certainly put her money where her mouth is. When she tweeted her hotly-anticipated news on New Year's Eve, she included a photo of her bare backside. It's not necessarily the first time Gaga has let the universe see her buttocks (she was recently spotted walking around Paris wearing very little below the belt), but it's perhaps the most direct shot yet delivered of Gaga's bare derriere.

Of course, she's merely the latest in a long line of pop stars who have flashed a little cheek in the name of stardom. Here are some of our favorites.

Nicki Minaj
Though she may be best known for her crazy wigs and envelope-pushing fashions, Minaj has quite a bit of junk in the trunk. Many of her stage costumes accentuate said feature, but this particular outfit left very little to the imagination.

Erykah Badu
For the headline-grabbing video for "Window Seat," Badu went guerrilla and shot a one-take video on the fly in Dallas. Why did it need to be so underground? Not only did it feature Badu running around non-cleared locations, but it also featured the singer stripping down to her birthday suit and flashing her butt (and everything else).

David Bowie
The Thin White Duke has always been comfortable with the natural human form, but he spent an extended period of time showing off his backside in the video for the huge hit "China Girl."

Alanis Morissette
Though her debut album Jagged Little Pill was a massive success, Alanis Morissette waited almost four years before dropping her second album Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie. What did she do to grab attention? Strip down to the bare essentials for the video for her first single "Thank U."
Read More...

Tags , , , , , ,

Kanye West's Tag-Team With Bon Iver Inspires A Crossover Fantasy List

Posted 8/16/10 2:30 pm EST by in Music


Thanks to Jay-Z and Beyoncé repping for Grizzly Bear and hanging out at Coachella to see some Pitchfork-approved acts, indie rock and hip-hop have been having a very public love affair lately. Sometimes it's a late night hook-up that is walk-of-shame worthy in the morning (paging Weezer and Lil Wayne) and other times it's so seamless you wonder why nobody thought of it before. Kid Cudi rolled out the carpe for Ratatat and MGMT on his studio debut, Ghostface Killah has admitted to loving Vampire Weekend and the Black Keys chopped it up with everyone from Mos Def to RZA and Raekwon on the Blakroc album.

In the most recent example, Bon Iver's Justin Vernon revealed that he spent a couple days earlier this year in Hawaii with Kanye West, laying down some of his patented hushed, pastoral vocals for 10 songs that might appear on West's upcoming CD. That got us thinking about other unlikely but potentially awesome rap/indie collabos that we'd love to see.

Thom Yorke and Erykah Badu
The Radiohead frontman has never come out one way or another on his feelings about hip-hop, but the thought of his mournful wail and morose lyrics intertwined with the boho queen's politically-charged verses and esoteric arrangements feels like a slam dunk.

(Click here for more of our fantasy hip-hop and indie crossovers, including Lil Wayne, Foxy Shazam, Nicki Minaj and Phoenix!)

Jim James and Clipse
What could be finer than the high and lonesome wail of the My Morning Jacket singer over the grinding coke raps of Pusha T and Malice? Nothing, that's what.

Waaves with Lil Wayne
Weezy keeps trying to get his rock game right, so maybe he can finally land the plane with unpredictable Beck 2.0 Nathan Williams. Since both tend to speak in riddles, it would be a perfect match.
Read More...

Tags , , , , , , , , , , , ,

March Madness, Erykah Badu And Didi Benami: This Week's Deep Cuts

Posted 4/2/10 6:00 pm EST by in Deep Cuts


The weather has improved, the outdoor seating is opening up at restaurants and baseball is about to get started, which means that we're getting dangerously close to summer weekends, full of casual walks, short sleeves and long days that unfold laconically. Of course, the NCAA basketball tournament will keep unfolding this weekend as well. But before you can enjoy that level of supreme leisure, you should make sure you check in with everything you might have missed this week in the MTV Newsroom, which featured more March Madness, a healthy dash of "American Idol" and a decent sampling of Justin Bieber.

» MTV News' Musical March Madness has entered the Final Four, which means that only My Chemical Romance, Muse, Tokio Hotel and Coheed and Cambria are left to fight for the championship trophy. Voting will be open until Sunday, April 4 at 10 p.m. EST. Get behind your favorites!

» The ninth season of "American Idol" continued, with Didi Benami getting the ax this week.

» We also went behind the scenes at this week's taping of "American Idol," where we learned a thing or two about customized T-shirts and Chris Rock's reactions.
Read More...

Tags , , , , , ,

Erykah Badu Knew Stripping Could Put Her In Jail: The MTV News Quote Of The Day

Posted 3/31/10 4:50 pm EST by in Music


"I think she really wanted to get arrested, even make a bigger message. There was definitely no fear as far as that was concerned, as far as she was [intent] on getting her message across, which I can respect. I feel like all people who have done great things in the past — when they set their mind to it there was already no going back. And they were already ready to deal with the ramifications of ... their actions. She was already prepared to deal with whatever consequences because she knew she believed in what she was doing."

-"Window Seat" director Chike, one half of the filmmaking duo Chike and Coodie, discussing Erykah Badu's willingness to flaunt the law for the sake of the new video. The clip, which features Badu running around downtown Dallas and slowly stripping off all of her clothing (only to get shot at the end), was filmed without permits, clearance or warning to anybody in the city. Had she been arrested, Badu could have faced up to a year in jail, but the directors were ready for anything. "Her contingency plan was get arrested," Chike said, noting that the production team had bail money ready in case anything went down. "She was big on doing it."

What do you think of Erykah Badu's very revealing "Window Seat" video? Let us know in the comments!

Tags ,

Erykah Badu's 'Window Seat' Video Joins The Ranks Of The 10 Best Single-Shot Clips

Posted 3/30/10 1:00 pm EST by in Music


Erykah Badu has spent the last few days turning heads with her new video for "Window Seat," which shows the singer walking down the street in downtown Dallas (in the same area where John F. Kennedy was shot) and gradually stripping down to total nudity. It's reminiscent of Matt and Kim's award-winning clip for "Lessons Learned," which saw the pair strip down in the middle of Times Square and which gets a shout-out at the top of Badu's clip.

Those two videos actually have more in common than just bare flesh, as they were both shot in a single take. The single-take video is always challenging but typically rewarding — especially when artists and directors get inventive with their concepts and presentation. Badu's clip immediately joins "Lessons Learned" and these other eight one-shot videos as the best ever made.

Weezer, "Undone (The Sweater Song)"
Spike Jonze has contributed a number of single-shot clips to his lengthy music video resumé (including Wax's "California"), but this clip remains one of the band's best because it's so unhinged. Also, where did those dogs come from?

Feist, "1234"
This clip became infamous because it became an iPod commercial (and was later parodied on "Sesame Street"), but it's an incredible accomplishment considering the choreography involved and how complicated the camera movements are.

Cibo Matto, "Sugar Water"
Directed by Michel Gondry, "Sugar Water" is especially impressive because it contains two single take shots running concurrently and also has some backwards tape effects thrown in for good measure.
Read More...

Tags , , , , , , , , ,

Miley Cyrus Supports 'The Last Song' In This Week's 'Late Night Lineup'

Posted 3/29/10 11:35 am EST by in Music


It's the final week of March, and though we have a fresh few days on our hands, the late night lineup is looking suspiciously like last week's. It's not surprising, as Miley Cyrus hits the shows hard in support of her new film "The Last Song" (which hits theaters this Wednesday, March 31) and Justin Bieber continues his publicity rounds for My World 2.0 (which is expected to top the Billboard album chart this week).

Bieber visits "The Tonight Show" on Thursday (April 1), wrapping up a music-heavy week for Jay Leno that includes Joss Stone on Monday (March 29) and OneRepublic on Wednesday (March 31). Meanwhile, Cyrus will take her act to "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" on Tuesday (March 30) on a show that will also feature a performance by Erykah Badu. (Miley will also drop in on "Ellen" on Wednesday.) Kimmel will also welcome Matisyahu on Wednesday and OK Go on Thursday.

David Letterman has an excellent music lineup this week as well, highlighted by She & Him on Friday (April 2), the Whigs on Wednesday and Usher (celebrating the release of his new album Raymond vs. Raymond) on Monday. But the best music lineup goes (as always) to "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," which will feature sets from Julian Casablancas (Monday), Drive-By Truckers (Wednesday) and Liquid Liquid (Friday).

Finally, Snoop Dogg makes another round of talk show appearances this week — he'll be on "Last Call With Carson Daly" on Tuesday and "Lopez Tonight" on Monday.

Whose appearance or performance are you most looking forward to this week? How much do you miss Conan O'Brien? Let us know in the comments!

Tags , , ,

Erykah Badu Takes To Twitter To Clear Paul McCartney Sample

Posted 2/25/10 12:00 pm EST by in Music


Most people think of Twitter as a way to keep in touch with their friends, track trends on the Internet and get a little bit closer to some of the biggest celebrities in the worlds of music, movies, television and beyond. Sometimes, it's even a handy business tool, as neo-soul singer Erykah Badu recently learned.

On Wednesday night (February 24), Badu needed to clear a sample for her new album. She decided to turn to Twitter to give her an assist, the ultimate goal being to get in touch with Paul McCartney or a suitable representative. She started by getting in touch with Lenny Kravitz. Not knowing how to reach him, she solicited responses from Zoe Kravitz and from @lennyFANS for his info.

"The deal is I'm trying to clear a Paul McCartney sample and I hear Lenny knows his daughter Stella and maybe I can connect with her," she wrote. "If I can talk to Paul McCartney, I can get the sample cleared. [I] have less than 24 hours or [the] song won't make [the] album."

Badu then reached out to Madonna manager and movie producer Guy Oseary. "Peace Guy. I'm Erykah Badu," she wrote. "I understand you are friends with Stella McCartney. Can you help us connect?" Badu then decided to go right to the source, and she tweeted Stella McCartney directly.

Finally, she got a response from Mathieu Bitton in Lenny Kravitz's camp, and managed to connect with him directly. "I am with Lenny," he wrote. "If it's really you, follow me then DM me. I'll connect you. Twitter is fresh." According to Bitton's Twitter, Kravitz then connected with Badu directly via telephone shortly thereafter.

Following a gap of a few hours, Badu announced the good news. "Paul McCartney approved the sample," she wrote. "Cleared!" So what began as something of a wild goose chase ended with Badu getting exactly what she wanted, and she managed to accomplish it in public for all of her 89,000 followers to see. So when you hear the McCartney sample on Badu's forthcoming album, you can thank Twitter for letting her get to the Beatle 140 characters at a time.

What do you think of Erykah Badu's use of Twitter? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

Tags , ,

Erykah Badu Gets The Blues

Posted 8/18/08 4:44 pm EST by in Erykah-Badu


Erykah Badu
By Kurt Loder

It seems a little odd to pick up a compilation of vintage blues tracks and find Erykah Badu's name snuggled in among the credits. The album, due out next Tuesday, is called A Brief History of the Blues — a collection of classic performances by such masters as Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Bessie Smith and Elmore James. Erykah crops up in a duet with guitarist and fellow Texan Doyle Bramhall II on an old Charley Patton song called "Oh Death," and it's a smoky, soulful take on the tune.

Why them? Well, for one thing, Badu and Bramhall have performed together in an ad-hoc band called Funk Sway (along with Prince vets Wendy and Lisa and Roots drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson). And Brief History co-producer Tonio K. says it made sense to render this song by "the Father of the Delta Blues" as a duet, because Patton had recorded it that way with his wife, Bertha Lee, at his last session in 1934. (The song had to be represented on this album by a cover version because of the dreadful audio quality of all of Patton's surviving work — the original masters were destroyed after his record company tanked, so his tracks have always had to be dubbed off of scratchy old 78 r.p.m. records.)

And was the jazzy Badu a hard sell to the record company for a bedrock-blues collection? "Universal, I'm sure, would have preferred Joss Stone or something," Tonio K. allows. "But we said ... 'No, no, no.' "

Tags ,

For The Record: 50 Cent, Panic At The Disco, D'Angelo & More

Posted 6/20/08 10:16 am EST by in For The Record


· We kind of thought Taco Bell's name-change offer for 50 Cent was a joke, but apparently the rapper didn't think it was so funny. He's mad ... that his team didn't get a chance to review the offer before the taco chain went public, and he's now considering litigation. That's ... gangsta?

· In other 50 Cent litigation news, the rapper plans to file a defamation suit against his 11-year-old son's mother, Shaniqua Tompkins, for claiming that he was behind the mysterious fire that burned down the $4 million home she was living in.

· Panic at the Disco, Lupe Fiasco, Wyclef Jean, Death Cab for Cutie and Erykah Badu have joined the list of performers for this year's Voodoo Experience in New Orleans.

· After several years of minor activity and major drama, D'Angelo is finally at work on his first album since 2000. He's already collaborated with Raphael Saadiq and plans to hook up with John Mayer soon.

· OK, so Queens of the Stone Age singer Josh Homme may have gone a bit off the rails last week when he verbally lashed a fan for pelting him with a shoe. But if this is his apology, whoa, we'd hate to see him in confession!

Tags , , , , , , ,

Erykah Badu Inspires Marriage Proposal, Love From Shaheem

Posted 5/12/08 3:59 pm EST by in live, Music


badulive

I love “Low Down Lo-Retta Brown,” aka Ms. Erykah Badu. I’m not putting any gas on it when I say she’s phenomenal in concert -- and she proved it again on Friday, at Radio City Music Hall with the Roots.

I say Badu’s the R&B equivalent of Nas, Mary J. being our Jay-Z. Whereas Mary capitalizes on being a legend -- with an album and tour every two years, media blitz, endorsements, the full shebang -- Badu reminds me of Nas, dropping projects sorta when she wants. (I think she needs to drop more music more frequently, but that’s for a whole 'nother blog post.) Ms. Bad Bad Badu could care less about the accolades of the mainstream or the dollars that are associated with parlaying your stardom into business ventures. Also like Nas, she is just so profoundly lyrical. Her songs are way more than just “ooh baby, make love to me.” Erykah has jewels for days.

“What if there were no n*****s, just master teachers?” she sang on Friday during “Master Teacher." “Hip-hop is bigger than religion, bigger than the government,” she would profess earlier in the midst of singing “The Healer.” Highlights from the show for me were “Me” and “Solider” (my two favorite joints from her latest album, New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War)), “Tyrone,” and, of course, “Bag Lady.”

And at the end of the night, Badu brought out two surprise guests. I’m thinking Talib and Mos Def, maybe Common and Kanye -- nope. She brought out two regular people, so regular I can’t even remember their names. They were fans of hers, a couple from Cincinnati. After telling everyone how great E. was, the man laid it on really thick and professed his love to his woman: “Being without you is like looking in the sky and sun not shining...We need to go 'head and do this thing.”

Who wrote that, Tyler Perry or Wingo from Jagged Edge? Lucky for the man, love is blind. The lady never did say yes, but she took the ring and they kissed. When Erykah came back on the mic, she joked the guy pinched her ass on the sly.

Anyone out there catch the show? Are you feelin' New Amerykah?

Tags , , , ,

Page 1 of 212
SPONSORS
AD:
©2012 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved. MTV and all related titles and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.